St. Marie's Hospice
St. Marie's Hospice serves families across Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties. Mrs. Melvie Berkery co-founded it in 2012 with her aunt, and we have cared for patients across metro Detroit ever since, wherever they live: at home, in a nursing facility, or in assisted living.
We are Medicare-certified and CHAP-accredited. Physicians, nurses, social workers, music therapists, chaplains, and trained volunteers build a plan of care around you and your family, and our 24/7 on-call nursing means you are never managing a crisis alone.
St. Marie's Hospice at a glance
Our mission is to restore honor, dignity, and respect to end-of-life services.
Our philosophy has always been to help patients stay independent for as long as possible. You and your family work with your care team to build an individualized plan of care, and the team stays at the patient's side for guidance, support, and treatment. Staff and volunteers approach every patient and family with respect, dignity, and a celebration of life. Read our promise to patients and our patient rights and responsibilities.
Our History
Melvie Berkery and her aunt co-found St. Marie's Hospice in metro Detroit, to fill a need she saw in the city for end-of-life care that is efficient and responsive.
St. Marie's earns Medicare certification, the federal standard that allows a hospice to serve patients under the Medicare Hospice Benefit.
The hospice has expanded to three buildings and now serves more than 20 communities across the tri-county area.
Holds voluntary CHAP accreditation and a 4.9 out of 5 rating across 123 Google reviews.
Medicare certification is required of every hospice that bills Medicare, so it is a minimum. CHAP accreditation is voluntary: an outside body reviews our policies, medical records, and practices against defined quality standards. See our certifications and accreditations and quality of care.
Care for Every Eligible Patient
We have always cared for any patient who needs and wants our services. That is central to who we are. Every patient who is eligible for hospice may receive care from St. Marie's, and most of our patients receive hospice benefits under Medicare, Medicaid, or private insurance. See who pays for hospice care and our nondiscrimination policy.
Who Cares for You
Your care team includes physicians, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, certified nursing assistants, social workers, music therapists, and chaplains. Together they provide end-of-life care, family and caregiver support, non-medical therapies, and bereavement support.
Our volunteers offer companionship and support. They have been specially trained in hospice care since we first began serving the community. Read how we prepare our clinical staff on our staff training and qualifications page.
Our Leadership
Melvie Berkery has led St. Marie's Hospice since co-founding it with her aunt in 2012. A Detroit native, she credits the women in her family: her mother and closest aunt, whose leadership drew her toward caring for people at the end of life, and her grandmother, who told her at twelve that she could do everything she wanted in life and that her decisions were her own.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social Relations, with a specialization in Criminal Justice, from James Madison College at Michigan State University, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Detroit School of Law. She applies that legal and business training to keeping the hospice well managed and compliant.
Her leadership style is to follow the recommendations of the front-line staff who work with patients every day, an approach she calls leading from the back. Patients often tell us they are surprised by how quickly and efficiently our services begin, and that is the result she aims for.
Outside the hospice, she founded a tutoring company for underprivileged youth that helped more than 275 people reach their academic goals, and she has led local and international scholarship, adoption, volunteering, and sponsorship projects.
Mrs. Berkery is available to speak to organizations and churches. To book her, contact us or call (800) 489-7977.
Where We Serve
From our office in Southfield, we serve patients throughout Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties, including Southfield and Detroit. See every community on our locations page. Clinicians and case managers can find referral details on our For Clinicians page.
Talk With Us
If you are weighing hospice for someone you love, a conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing. We offer a free consultation, and you can read what to expect in hospice care or browse our FAQs first.