Hospice is a philosophy of care. Hospice provides skilled and compassionate care for people with a terminal illness or life-limiting injury or condition allowing them to live as fully and comfortably as possible at the end of their life.
The goal of hospice is to help patients and their families deal with the physical, emotional and spiritual pain of nearing life’s end. Hospice treats the person rather than the disease; it focuses on quality rather than length of life. Hospice care is family-centered and involves the patient and their loved ones in the decision-making process. Care is provided for the patient and family by a team consisting of a doctor, licensed nurse, social worker, clergy, nursing assistant and trained volunteers. Hospice care can be provided in a patient’s home including an Assisted Living residence, hospital, Skilled Nursing Facilities or a private hospice facility. Most hospice care in the United States is given in the home, with a family member or members serving as the primary hands-on caregivers with the support of the hospice team.
When Is Hospice Care An Option?
Hospice care is intended for the time when treatment for a terminal illnesses or other condition can no longer help and there is a life expectancy of 6 months or less. Hospice treats the patient with palliative care, which helps relieve disease-related symptoms such as pain, but does not continue treatments intended as a cure. The patient, their family and doctor decide together when hospice care should begin.
Many times hospice care isn’t started soon enough for patients and their families to fully benefit from all that it offers. Sometimes the doctor, patient, or family member will resist because they think it means giving up, or that there is no hope. If a patient chooses or their condition improves, they can leave the hospice environment and perhaps pursue active treatment intended for a cure. The cost of hospice care is fully covered by Medicare and most private insurance policies.
The hope that hospice brings is the hope of a comfortable, pain free quality of life. Hospice allows patients to make the most of each day during the last stages of life, and face the dying process with dignity, surrounded by their loved ones. Most hospice services include bereavement counseling for the surviving loved ones.
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