Support Report

May 13, 2026

Bringing peer support to Massachusetts’ largest hospice and palliative care organization 

In April 2026, Care Dimensions officially became the Betsy Lehman Center’s newest partner organization within the Virtual Peer Support Network (VPSN). Care Dimensions is the largest hospice, palliative care, and grief support provider in the Commonwealth, serving over 100 communities across greater Boston and Northeast Massachusetts. 

Care Dimensions is the first organization specialized in this type of care to join Network. Due to the nature of the personal, and in some cases, emotionally complex work, leaders at the organization believed their staff would benefit from an additional resource for emotional support. 

The collaboration began when a Care Dimensions board member shared about their experience with peer support through their work at Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), another VPSN partner. CHA found the Network to be a great resource for their staff and thought Care Dimensions was well-positioned to bring it to their organization. After an initial conversation with the Betsy Lehman Center, Johanna Lent, Chief People Officer, and Patricia Ramsden, Chief Clinical Officer took on the project. 

“We often say, caring for each other is as important as our care we provide to patients and families,” said Lent. ​“I think this creates a formalized program and another way for us to show how much we do care for each other and how we can support each other. I don’t feel like we can have enough ways to connect and support each other, and I think this is a really brilliant one.”

“Caring for each other is as important as our care we provide to patients and families” 

– Johanna Lent, Chief People Officer, Care Dimesions

Lent and Ramsden assembled a team of staff to oversee the implementation, including Nicole Anderson, Benefits and Wellness Specialist, Nicole Mui, Manager of Health Information Management and Abbie O’Grady, Director of Quality and Patient Experience. This team of five was instrumental in championing the rollout of VPSN, recruiting employees to take the peer supporter training, and finding ways to embed the resource into their existing systems. 

In the month prior to their official launch, 18 Care Dimensions staff members were trained to become peer supporters by the Betsy Lehman Center team. These individuals represented a range of roles, from leadership to clinicians to office and programming staff. 

One thing that became apparent during the training was the length of service many of these staff members had at Care Dimensions and their commitment to the organization’s mission. ​“Many of these employees shared that they wanted additional opportunities to give back to their colleagues in need,” said Linda Kenney, Director of Peer Support at the Betsy Lehman Center. ​“It’s a real testament to the culture of the organization, and especially the staff involved who care so much for their work and for each other. 

Ramsden also emphasized the impact of VPSN on staff culture. ​“I want [the people who were trained] to feel like they can make a meaningful difference in someone else’s life,” she said. 

For other organizations that might be smaller, or less resourced than a major hospital, Lent shared the advice, ​“don’t hesitate. It’s a win-win situation. I think a lot of the smaller non-hospital organizations, often lack the resources to formalize a program like this, and [the Betsy Lehman Center] has given us the tools, resources, experts and roadmap to take this and run with it.” 

The Betsy Lehman Center applauds Care Dimensions for their engagement, creativity, and effort to bring this resource to their community. Any organizations interested in joining the Virtual Peer Support Network can reach out to our team at Peer.​Support@​BetsyLehmanCenterMA.​gov.