With the start of the New Year, Mountain Valley Hospice & Palliative Care (MVHPC) welcomed family medicine physician Dr. Kevin Cope as their new Medical Director overseeing clinical practice and quality assurance. Cope’s transition was part of the planned retirement of long-term local physician Bob Brandis.
“Dr. Cope has been a positive force behind Mohawk Valley health and wellness for years,” said Kara Travis, MVHPC President/CEO. “From his busy primary care practice with St. Mary’s Healthcare and his work helping those in need of opioid recovery to his Medical Director role at Lexington ARC to mentoring youth in his church community, Dr. Cope brings a wealth of knowledge about the care continuum and an approachability to patients and staff that we are extremely lucky to incorporate into the MVHPC family.”
Until his recent employment with MVHPC, Cope served on the MVHPC Board of Directors as Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) Chair, Nominating Committee, and Palliative Care Steering Committee.
“I am looking forward to helping many of you in our community get the care you need in your homes by growing our Palliative Care program. We work with your primary care provider and your specialists to help relieve your symptoms and give you a better quality of life,” said Cope. “This is exciting to me because this is at the forefront of healthcare today where we leverage technology to provide personal care in your home. Patients do not want to spend time in emergency rooms or hospitals. When the time is right, we also have excellent Hospice care with local, community-based nurses, social workers, and a chaplain to give you holistic care that matters most to you as you approach the end of your life.”
Cope will be overseeing the care planning, symptom & pain management, and overall clinical practice for both the Hospice and Palliative service lines. He can be reached at kevin.cope@mvhcares.org.
“I have been blessed and privileged to work in various roles with the MVHPC organization over the years, and I believe it is now my calling to assume the role of Medical Director. I thank Dr. Robert Brandis for his 18 years of excellent service and dedication. I certainly have big shoes to fill, but I feel prepared for the challenge,” Cope added.
MVHPC is a community-based, not-for-profit agency founded in 1988 with a mission of enhancing the lives of those served by honoring what matters most. Providing end-of-life care in homes, hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities across Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery and Saratoga Counties, MVHPC also offers the unique eight-bed, Adirondack-style Nancy Dowd Hospice Home for 24/7 personalized care located in Gloversville. In July 2021, MVHPC expanded services to include home-based pain & symptom management for the chronically ill to reduce Emergency Room visits & prevent Hospital readmissions.