Jason Colbert, CHPCA, was nominated and chosen by the Hospice and Palliative Credentialing Center as the nation’s Certified Hospice and Palliative Care Administrator of the Year for 2024. This prestigious award is awarded to one certified hospice administrator in the United States each year. The award was presented to Colbert at HPCC’s annual banquet in Phoenix Arizona where a crowd of over 3,000 credentialed hospice professionals convened for their national conference. This award is given to hospice individuals that personifies excellence in clinical practice, shows leadership through mentorship of others, and who exhibits compassion and professionalism as a hospice and palliative care administrator. During the presentation of the award, HPCC said, “He [Colbert] is a well-respected member of the community, and he has been dedicated to the hospice and palliative care community for many years.” In Colbert’s acceptance speech he stated, “Being recognized and certified in a career that is your passion is a badge of honor I wear proudly.”
Colbert was hired as the Chief Executive Officer of Community Hospice in Vidalia nearly eighteen years ago and has been serving Toombs and surrounding counties in that capacity ever since. He is the top executive of a hospice organization with an average daily census of over 100 patients. In 2023, Colbert established Seasons of Life Palliative Care, the first palliative care program, for individuals with advanced illness not requiring hospice services, based locally in Vidalia. Community Hospice provides home hospice services and has the area’s only inpatient hospice facility within a fifty-mile radius, called the Community Hospice House. Born and raised in Vidalia and a 1996 graduate of Vidalia High School, Colbert has provided years of service in various community organizations. He is a 2002 graduate of the Toombs-Montgomery Leadership program and was the 2010-2013 President of the Board of Director of the Downtown Vidalia Association. On a State level, Colbert has served on the Georgia Hospice and Palliative Care Board of Directors in Atlanta for many years. GHPCO is the association that is tasked with leading, advising, and providing education to hospice providers from across the state. In 2019, Colbert was featured in the Toombs County Magazine for his commitment to providing the community with compassionate and competent hospice care. Recently, Memorial Health Meadows Hospital recognized Colbert and Community Hospice with a Community Pillar and Partner of the Year Award.
When asked, Colbert said the following about receiving this award, “This career is not a job it is a calling, and I am extremely honored and humbled to have been selected for this prestigious award acknowledging my passion for compassionate care at end-of-life.”
Paul Elmore, CEO of Trilogy Health said, “Congratulations, on this National Award. It speaks to your commitment to the people suffering from advanced illness, and your endless pursuit of making their remaining journey of life on earth better for them and those they care about.”
