Debbie Shumway is the executive director of Hospice of the Valley (HOV) and has devoted 30 years to advancing the agency’s nonprofit mission of bringing comfort, dignity, and compassionate care to the community. Since joining HOV in 1994, Debbie has helped grow the organization from serving 140 patients per day to over 6,000 patients daily across various programs, including home-based primary care, palliative care, dementia care and hospice services.
As the leader of Arizona’s largest hospice, Debbie oversees an organization with annual revenues exceeding $200 million. She previously served as senior vice president and chief financial officer for 22 years before being appointed executive director in 2016.
Under her leadership, HOV has expanded its services while maintaining a strong focus on excellent patient care. A recent study published in the American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine ranked Hospice of the Valley as one of the top three hospices in the nation for quality care. Debbie attributes this success to an outstanding leadership team and a dedicated, compassionate workforce. The organization’s service-oriented culture prioritizes patients and families while emphasizing employee development and retention.
In 2022, Debbie oversaw the opening of an innovative Dementia Care and Education Campus, designed to support caregivers and individuals living with dementia while training a dementia-capable workforce for the future. The campus features an education center, an adult day program with an adjacent childcare center for intergenerational enrichment, a small assisted living center, and a dementia hospice inpatient home. It serves as the hub for HOV’s Supportive Care for Dementia program, which last year provided in-home support to over 2,000 individuals, improving the quality of life for those living with dementia and their caregivers.
Debbie actively oversees and participates in developing new programs and forming partnerships with healthcare organizations seeking hospice, palliative care, and advanced illness services.