Hospice of Tift Area
A hospice in Tifton, Georgia 31794
618 North Central Avenue, Tifton, Georgia 31794. (229) 353-6330.
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The short answer
Record last released by CMS on Oct 23, 2026.
- 2 deficiencies cited in the last three years
- 5of 5 family caregiver rating
- 8of 10 CMS’s Hospice Care Index
Each figure’s source sits beside it, in its section below.
What these words mean3
- Star ratings
- CMS rates some kinds of place from 1 to 5 stars, more stars meaning better on CMS’s own measures for that kind: for a nursing home, its health inspections, staffing and quality measures. A rating is CMS’s summary of those measures; it doesn’t promise good care. Source: CMS, Care Compare and the Five-Star Quality Rating System.
- Inspection (survey)
- A visit by state inspectors, often unannounced, who check a place against the rules it must meet. For nursing homes and other places Medicare pays, CMS calls these visits surveys: a standard survey of a nursing home comes at least every 15 months, and a complaint survey whenever a complaint calls for one. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 488.308.
- Deficiency, citation, violation
- What inspectors write up when a place didn’t meet a rule: the rule, what they saw, and when. CMS calls it a deficiency; states may say citation or violation. It is the inspectors’ finding, not a court’s, and the place is usually asked for a plan to correct it. Source: CMS, statement of deficiencies (Form CMS-2567); each state’s licensing agency.
What did inspectors find?
2 deficiencies cited in the last three years
The middle of the 15 hospices serving ZIP code 31794 had 1.
The last inspection on record was on Jul 16, 2025: a recertification inspection by the state.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, Hospice ZIP Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
When those deficiencies happened
2 deficiencies in 1 month of the last 36. Last cited Jul 2025. Most serious: Standard-level. The last 3 years, to Oct 27, 2026.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Nov | Dec | ||||||||||
| 2024 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2025 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2026 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct |
Hover or focus a month to read it.
Hearth Record drew this from the dates and levels in the source’s own records.
Each deficiency, as cited
Rule titles as CMS’s inspectors cite them, set in sentence case.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Jul 16, 2025: recertification inspection by the state2 deficiencies
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Governing body and administrator (42 CFR 418.100(b))
The inspectors’ words, 211 words
“Based on record reviews, review of policy “Physician Orders,” and staff interviews, it was determined that the facility failed to ensure the management of all hospice operations and provision of hospice services as evidenced by failure to ensure Medical Doctors orders for wound care were included in the patient’s clinical record for one patient (P) (P#9) of 19 sampled patient charts reviewed. Findings include: Review of policy titled “Physician Orders,” dated April 22, 2024, revealed the following:Procedure:C. Diagnostic and therapeutic orders, including verbal orders, are signed and dated by the physician within seven (7) days and incorporated into the clinical record within seven (7) working days. Review of records revealed P#9 was admitted on 4/20/2023 with pressure ulcers (localized injury to the skin and/or underlying tissue caused by pressure). Review of Registered Nurse (RN) AA visit note dated 7/9/2025 revealed wound care was provided during the home visit without a medical doctor’s order. On 7/15/2025 at 11:00 a.m., during an office interview, the Administrator confirmed the agency’s policy was to have a Medical Doctor’s (MD) order in the clinical records before administering wound care to patients. On 7/16/2025 at 10:00 a.m., during an office interview, the Administrator provided a written order for P#9’s wound care signed by a MD dated 7/15/2025.”
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Content (42 CFR 418.104(a)(7))
The inspectors’ words, 136 words
“Based on record reviews, and staff interviews, and policy “Physician Orders,” it was determined the agency failed to maintain patient clinical records with physician orders for one patient (P) (P#9) of 19 sampled patient charts reviewed. Findings include: On 7/16/2025 at 10:20 a.m., during a phone interview, RN AA confirmed P#9’s wound care was administered without an order from a physician. RN AA admitted she was aware of a Medical Doctor’s (MD) verbal order given to another RN for P#9’s wound care. RN AA admitted she was not aware the wound care orders were never put into the patient’s clinical records. RN AA admitted she never looked in the patient’s clinical records to see if the order had been added to the patient’s plan of care. Cross refer to L0651 relating to Governing Body and Administrator.”
All 2 inspections in the last three years
| Date | Visit | What the record says |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 16, 2025 | Recertification inspection by the state | 2 deficiencies cited |
| Feb 12, 2025 | Complaint inspection by the state | No deficiencies cited |
Is it certified?
- Medicare-certified hospice since Jun 1, 1989.
- Ownership: other.
- No For hospices, home health agencies, hospitals and dialysis facilities, CMS writes deficiencies at two levels. Standard is the usual one; condition-level is the more serious, when a problem is serious enough that the provider doesn’t meet a whole condition of taking part in Medicare. Source: CMS, State Operations Manual. deficiency or CMS’s most serious finding: the place’s failure to meet a rule caused, or was likely to cause, serious injury, harm, impairment or death to someone in its care. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 489.3. on record in the last three years.
CMS, Hospice General Information. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Has anything been proven against it?
- CMS doesn’t publish fines or other penalties for hospices, so none are shown.
- 0 deficiencies cited in the last three years came from inspections that included a complaint investigation.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Who does the caring?
- From Medicare claims (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024): 8 nurse care minutes per routine home care day, 5.4% of skilled nursing minutes at weekends and a visit near death for 99.6% of patients who died.
- Where its patients were cared for (Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024): 65% at home, 6% in assisted living, 29% in a nursing facility, 1% in a skilled nursing facility.
CMS, Hospice Provider Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Measure | This provider |
|---|---|
| Nurse care minutes per routine home care day | 8.0 min |
| Skilled nursing minutes at weekends | 5.4% |
| Visits near death | 99.6% of patients who died |
Who owns it?
- 12 owners or officers are people: Jessica W Beier (corporate director, 0%); George Hunt (corporate director, 0%); Rubal Patel (corporate director, 0%); Scott Fulp (corporate director, 0%); James W Scott (corporate director, 0%); Mary T Mathis (managing employee (on the payroll)); Kristy Gladden (managing employee (on the payroll), 0%); Lenton C Daughtrey (corporate director, 0%); William Bowen (corporate director, 0%); Troy Brooks (corporate officer, 0%); Troy Brooks (managing employee (on the payroll), 0%); Craig Smith (managing employee (on the payroll), 0%).
- No private-equity firm among the owners CMS lists.
- No real-estate investment trust among the owners CMS lists.
CMS, Hospice All Owners and Hospice Enrollments. Released Sep 29, 2026. Updated quarterly.
What do families say?
- Family caregivers rate it 5 of 5 in CMS’s survey (Oct 1, 2023 to Sep 30, 2025): 86% rated it 9 or 10 out of 10, and 90% would definitely recommend it.
- CMS’s Hospice Care Index: 8 of 10 (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024).
- 98.14% of patients were assessed on all seven of CMS’s measures at the start of care (Oct 1, 2024 to Sep 30, 2025); 77.3% had visits from a nurse or social worker on at least 2 of their last 3 days (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024).
CMS, CAHPS Hospice Survey and Hospice Provider Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Measure | Rating |
|---|---|
| Family caregiver survey ratingCMS star rating from its survey of patients’ family caregivers, 1 to 5 | 5 of 5 |
| Hospice Care IndexCMS’s Hospice Care Index, 0 to 10 (higher is better): a point for each of ten measures from Medicare claims on which the hospice meets CMS’s threshold | 8 of 10 |
How does it compare nearby?
- Of the 15 hospices CMS’s data show serving patients in ZIP code 31794, where this hospice’s office is, the middle number of deficiencies cited in the last three years was 1; this one had 2.
CMS, Hospice ZIP Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Place | Deficiencies, 3 years |
|---|---|
| Hospice of Tift Area This hospice | 2 |
| Pruitthealth Hospice-Valdosta | 0 |
| Pruitthealth Hospice-Cordele | 0 |
| Pruitthealth Hospice-Gainesville | 2 |
| Affinity Hospice | 3 |
| Adoration Hospice | 1 |
| Heritage Hospice, Inc. | 1 |
| Heart of Hospice Valdosta | 0 |
| Regency Southerncare | 18 |
| Georgia Hospice Care | 7 |
| Georgia Hospice Care | 1 |
| Georgia Hospice Care | 0 |
What the record doesn’t say
- CMS doesn’t publish fines or other penalties for hospices, so none are shown.
- Only complaints that led to a citation appear; complaints that didn’t aren’t published.
- CMS ended its Special Focus Program for hospices with serious problems on Feb 14, 2025, so no hospice is marked as one.
- Hospice quality measures have a gap from October 2025: CMS replaced its patient assessment then, and public results from the new one (HOPE) are expected around November 2027.
Sources
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice General Information (yc9t-dgbk).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice Provider Data (252m-zfp9).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CAHPS Hospice Survey (gxki-hrr8).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, QCOR hospice inspection reports (Hospice Survey Reports - Oct 2021 through Sep 2026.xlsx).
Released Oct 23, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice All Owners (e983965e-1603-4cb8-82b5-c40090e380d1).
Released Sep 29, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice Enrollments (25704213-e833-4b8b-9dbc-58dd17149209).
Released Sep 29, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice ZIP Data (95rg-2usp).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
If you believe something here is wrong, a correction starts with the agency whose record this copies: CMS. CMS’s own record is on Care Compare. If Hearth Record copied something wrongly, it will fix it and log the correction publicly, with its date: how corrections work.
This copy of the record was made on Oct 27, 2026.
From the hospice
The public record above comes first. Anything the hospice adds will appear here, below it, and say who wrote it.
Replies
None. Replies aren’t open yet. When they open, the hospice will be able to answer any finding for free, and the reply will show beside that finding, unedited and dated.
Paid listing
None. Paid listings aren’t open yet. When they open, anything paid for will say “Paid by the hospice”, and paying will never change a finding, a rating or the order of results.