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What is hospice? Hospice offers palliative care that seeks to comfort rather than cure. Hospice offers comprehensive, compassionate care for people at the end of life and support for their families. Who can receive hospice? Any person facing the advancing stages of any terminal illness is eligible for palliative care. Hospice care is appropriate when the following conditions are met:
All Where is hospice care provided? Hospice is a philosophy of care, not a place. Most hospice patients receive care in their home or the home of a relative or friend. Palliative care can also be provided in many long-term care facilities, assisted living facilities, hospitals or nursing homes. Some hospices have residential units designed to provide a homelike setting where hospice is provided. How is hospice care different from other types of home health care? ü Comfort vs. cure: For most home health care providers, the goal is to get the patient well. In hospice, the staff and family recognize that the patient will not get well. They focus on comfort and support, rather than cure. ü Interdisciplinary team approach: All members of the care team - the physicians, nurses, social workers, grief support and spiritual care counselors, aides and volunteers - work together to coordinate care. ü Family focus: Beacon Hospice’s palliative care focuses on the entire family. The hospice team teaches the family how to be involved in their loved one's care. ü Grief Support: Hospice care does not end when a patient dies. Beacon Hospice’s grief support staff and volunteers maintain contact with the family for at least 13 months after the death of a patient. Who pays for hospice? Hospice care is covered by most insurers, including Medicare, Medicaid, Blue Cross/Blue Shield and most private insurers and HMOs. Hospice is a covered benefit under Medicare for people who have a life expectancy of six months or less. Most policies cover all costs of hospice care, though some may require a co-pay for prescriptions. When is hospice appropriate? Palliative care becomes appropriate when treatments are no longer effective and the burden of the disease becomes too much to bear for the patient and family. The Beacon Hospice aims to provide relief from physical and emotional pain so that the patient and family can spend their remaining days with comfort and dignity. What if the patient gets better? If the patient's condition improves, he or she can be discharged from hospice and return to aggressive treatment or resume daily life. If the patient should later need to return to hospice care, Medicare and most insurance programs will allow additional coverage. What if my doctor does not mention hospice? The patient and family should feel free to discuss hospice care at any time with their physician, other health care professionals, clergy or friends. Everyone is urged to prepare Advance Directives that spell out the type of care we want to receive at the end of life. Who can refer a patient to a hospice program? Anyone can refer a patient to a hospice program. To be admitted, a patient must:
What does the hospice admission process involve? When a patient is referred to Beacon Hospice, the office will call the patient's physician to make sure he or she agrees that hospice care is appropriate for this patient. The patient will be asked to sign a consent form confirming that the patient understands that hospice care is palliative, that is, aimed at comfort and pain relief, rather than curative. Where can I get more information about hospice? These are some organizations that can give you more information: |