POST FALLS - When emphysema and diabetes slowed Michael Slaight, he turned to River City Hospice for help.

"It came to the point where I couldn't take care of my wife (Diane) and myself," the 61-year-old Rathdrum man said. "Hospice has taken the pressure off me."

Slaight is among a growing list of area residents who are utilizing one of four Hospice options in Kootenai County.

Demand has fueled the need for a Hospice House in Post Falls similar to what opened on Prairie Avenue in Coeur d'Alene in August with Hospice of North Idaho, said Donna Wilder, administrator of River City Hospice, a for-profit company that opened in Post Falls two years ago.

Hospice addresses end-of-life conditions with dignity, she said. Its services are covered by Medicare, Medicaid, HMOs and many private insurance policies.

Hospice organizations provide nursing, nurse's aides, chaplain and social worker services, medications for pain and symptom management and bereavement services both in patients' homes and senior facilities.

Wilder said she's looking at sites for a Hospice House inpatient facility to expand the company's reach.

"We've outgrown this building (on Mullan Avenue) and are planning a Hospice House in Post Falls," said Wilder, adding that the project will be funded with private money. "Our administration offices would be a part of that building."

Wilder said she and her sister, Janet Montagne, who is a partner with Wilder and CEO of a group of Hospice locations in Texas, plan to explore Post Falls locations in early November.

Wilder said the hope is to open a Hospice House in a year. River City would likely build a facility rather than lease a building, but that hasn't been determined, she said.

"Our goal of a year is very realistic because of the growth we've had," Wilder said.

The facility would evolve over two phases, offering eight rooms to start and eight later as demand grows.

In its short lifespan, River City has grown from four employees to 35.

After six months, it outgrew its original location on Seltice Way and moved to the Mullan Avenue site it leases.

River City has served about 225 patients and their families in six North Idaho counties.

The River City Hospice Foundation was started as a nonprofit so people could make tax-deductible donations for a variety of patient services.

"With the foundation, the money provides different services such as wheelchair ramps that may not be covered by Medicare or Medicaid," Wilder said.

The firm received its Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations certification last year.

"It's a marker of quality that rises above other certifications," Wilder said.

The company also opened a Moscow office last year.

Slaight said he's thankful he learned about Hospice through word of mouth at the recreation room of Timber Cove, the 55-and-older apartment community he resides at in Rathdrum.

Hospice workers help keep his apartment clean, assist with his medications and appointments, take his blood pressure and pulse, offer companionship and are on call 24-7.

"It's wonderful," he said. "They'll do anything you ask. It's a good company to have around."