Mexico's One-Of-A-Kind Hospice In San Miguel de Allende

By Tom Murlowski

“Those who learn to know death, rather than to fear and fight it, become our teachers about life,” said Hospice Pioneer Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross.

​There is an undeniable reality that binds us all together: we are all going to pass from this world one day. This reality makes many people uncomfortable because we don't have a pat answer for what mortality means. Religions, cultures, and philosophies present varying perspectives. Shakespeare in Hamlet called death the “undiscovered country.”

Dealing with death becomes even more traumatic and confusing with the complexities of aging, disease and pain. How best to ease the passing of loved ones, and make the experience as loving, gentle and painless as possible?

Modern hospice care, focusing on palliative care, comfort, and dignity for the terminally ill, was founded in 1967 by Dame Cicely Saunders with the opening of St. Christopher's Hospice in London. While rooted in medieval traditions of hospitality, the movement modernized in the 1960s and ‘70s to blend specialized pain management with emotional and spiritual support for patients and families.

Hospice Care Mitigare in the Lee Carter Center in San Miguel de Allende is the first of its kind in Mexico. It has an atmosphere of color and joy. Even the medical areas are festooned with bright colors and lively art. Inaugurated March 29, 2025, the Center features three fully equipped hospital style rooms for ‘round-the-clock care, a medical office and examination room, a chapel, a full kitchen, and administrative offices. The patient rooms feature floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over a beautiful, enclosed park setting.

Most people prefer to have hospice services at home, hence only three patient rooms. The Center also offers at-home care where patients may spend their final days with their loved ones. In both cases, palliative care is led by Medical Director and Founding Board Member Dr. María de Lourdes Tejeida Bautista.

Founding Board Member and Former President Lee Carter has been a pioneer in introducing the culture of hospice and palliative care to the state of Guanajuato. He has worked tirelessly for almost 20 years to make this Center a reality. Carter is also a long-time member and past president of the Rotary Club of San Miguel de Allende-Midday, which played a crucial role in making this project a reality. The Rotary Foundation also has provided some of the primary and ongoing funding. 

The Center is a work in progress, with plans for future expansion including expanded patient facilities and educational resources. 

No one is ever turned away from the Center, for care is provided on a patient’s ability to pay based on a scale developed by the State of Guanajuato. 

The operating philosophy of the Center can be found in its motto: We add life to days, when days can no longer be added to life. 

The Center is located at Prolongacion de Cuesta de San José 93. El Paraiso Arcos de San Miguel (near El Charco). For more information, contact the Center at [email protected] or via 415-152-5202. It is open weekdays from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.