By the FL Innovation News editorial team · Health
For many patients living with chronic and serious illness, palliative care enters the conversation too late. Dr. Dave Thimons believes healthcare has an opportunity to change that.
As founder and CEO of The Rose Program, Thimons is working to expand access to physician-led palliative medicine that reaches patients earlier, before a hospitalization, medical crisis, or major decline forces families to make difficult decisions under pressure.
That approach is increasingly taking root across Florida, where The Rose Program is growing its relationships with skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities, healthcare providers, and other organizations caring for older adults and medically complex patients.
The goal is straightforward but ambitious: make palliative medicine a proactive part of serious illness care rather than something patients encounter only at the end of life.
Changing the perception of palliative care
One of the biggest barriers to earlier palliative care, according to Thimons, is a fundamental misunderstanding of what it is.
Palliative medicine is often associated exclusively with hospice and the final stages of life. In reality, it can be provided alongside treatment for serious illness and can support patients much earlier in their healthcare journey.
For older adults managing multiple chronic conditions, that support can include symptom management, medication review, advance care planning, communication with family members, coordination among healthcare providers, and conversations about a patient’s goals and values.
Thimons believes those conversations should happen before a crisis, not because a healthcare organization is giving up on treatment, but because understanding what matters to a patient is an essential part of treating them well.
That philosophy has become central to The Rose Program’s model as the organization expands its work with long-term and post-acute care providers.
A mission born from personal experience
For Thimons, the mission is also deeply personal.
Although he was already a physician, his perspective on serious illness care changed when his daughter, Kaelyn “Rose,” was diagnosed with stage IV Ewing sarcoma at age 12.
During her cancer treatment, Thimons experienced palliative care from the other side of the healthcare system, not simply as a physician, but as a father. He saw how meaningful symptom management, communication, emotional support, and attention to quality of life could be for an entire family navigating serious illness.
After Kaelyn overcame cancer, Thimons pursued advanced training in palliative medicine and began applying those principles to his work with geriatric patients. In 2019, he founded The Rose Program in his daughter’s honor.
Today, Thimons is board certified in both family medicine and hospice and palliative medicine, and the organization he created is focused on developing interdisciplinary models of care for people living with chronic and serious illnesses.
Growing through Florida’s senior care community
Florida represents an important market for that mission.
The Rose Program has been expanding its presence within the state’s senior living and post-acute care community, building relationships with organizations that serve patients who may benefit from earlier, more coordinated support.
The organization has also become increasingly involved in Florida’s long-term care community, including participation with the Florida Health Care Association and conversations about advance care planning, quality improvement, reducing rehospitalizations, and care coordination.
For Thimons, the opportunity extends beyond introducing another clinical service into a facility. It is about working collaboratively with existing care teams to identify needs earlier and help create a more complete picture of the patient.
A medically complex resident may be managing several diagnoses, multiple medications, specialist appointments, changes in function, and distressing symptoms simultaneously. Families may also be trying to understand what to expect as those conditions progress. When those pieces are addressed separately, care can become fragmented. The Rose Program’s approach is built around bringing them together.
Moving care upstream
That model also reflects a larger shift happening throughout healthcare: moving from reactive treatment toward more proactive and value-based approaches.
When an older adult repeatedly moves between a senior living community, emergency department, hospital, rehabilitation facility, and home, each transition creates another opportunity for information and goals to become disconnected.
Thimons argues that healthcare organizations should be asking what can be done before the next hospitalization. Are changes in symptoms being identified early? Are medications still appropriate? Does the family understand the patient’s condition and prognosis? Has the patient’s care plan changed as their health has changed? Do clinicians understand the patient’s wishes if another crisis occurs?
Those questions have implications for both quality of life and healthcare utilization.
The Rose Program’s broader vision is to demonstrate that compassionate care and measurable healthcare outcomes do not have to compete with one another. Earlier intervention, better communication, and stronger coordination can support the patient while also helping healthcare partners address unnecessary utilization and improve continuity of care.
Building the future of palliative medicine
As The Rose Program continues growing its Florida footprint and expanding into additional markets, Thimons sees education as an important part of that growth.
Changing the future of palliative medicine will require more than adding clinicians. Patients, families, healthcare professionals, and organizational leaders need a clearer understanding of when palliative care can begin and what it can accomplish.
For Thimons, the future is one in which a patient does not need to reach the point of crisis before receiving an additional layer of support. It means discussing goals before a hospitalization, managing symptoms before they become emergencies, supporting families before they become overwhelmed, and helping healthcare teams understand the person behind the diagnoses they are treating.
The Rose Program’s expansion across Florida is one piece of that larger vision: bringing palliative medicine to more patients, earlier, and demonstrating that serious illness care can be both deeply compassionate and designed for the realities of a changing healthcare system.
About Dr. Dave Thimons
Dr. Dave Thimons is the founder and CEO of The Rose Program and is board certified in family medicine and hospice and palliative medicine. Inspired by his daughter Kaelyn “Rose” and her experience with palliative care during cancer treatment, Dr. Thimons founded The Rose Program to expand access to supportive medicine for individuals living with chronic and serious illnesses. Learn more at theroseprogram.com.
Medical disclaimer: This article is general information about health topics and is not medical advice. It is not a substitute for a conversation with your own clinician, who can advise on what is appropriate for your circumstances.
