If you have a loved one with a terminal illness, hospice care is a worthwhile option. Hospice care provides comfort, support, and round-the-clock care to bring peace to terminal patients after attempting all treatment options. The compassionate care of hospice workers also relieves family members struggling with the thought of losing a loved one.
Read on to learn how hospice staff provide comfort and care for terminally ill patients.
What Is Hospice Care?
Hospice care is a collection of services for someone coming to the end of their life and their immediate family. Hospice health care professionals aim to make a terminally ill person as comfortable as possible through pain reduction while attending to their psychological, physical, spiritual, and social needs. Hospice staff offer family members counseling, practical support, and respite assistance.
Hospice care is different from regular medical care. The focus shifts from curing an ailment to providing the best quality of life for the patient for their remaining days.
Where Can People Recieve Hospice Care?
Hospice care takes place at the patient’s house or in facilities such as:
- Nursing homes
- Assisted living or life care facilities
- Hospitals
- Hospice care facilities
Symptoms of life-limiting illness that a hospice team can’t handle in a domestic setting will require a stay in a dedicated hospice facility with 24/7 care.
Who’s on the Hospice Care Team?
If your loved one is at a dedicated hospice facility, someone on the staff will be there to help at all times. Otherwise, team members will routinely visit the patient’s home or whatever setting they occupy. Hospice staff stays on-call round the clock.
Professionals who make up a hospice care team include:
- Doctors: Patients can choose their primary doctor or a hospice doctor to oversee their care.
- Nurses: Hospice nurses will go wherever a patient is staying to administer care and coordinate the team.
- Spiritual counselors: Ministers, chaplains, priests, and other spiritual advisors are available to offer guidance to patients and their families.
- Home health aides: These aides assist with daily living tasks like dressing, eating, and bathing.
- Social workers: Hospice social workers offer counseling and referrals for further support.
- Pharmacists: Hospice pharmacists oversee patients’ medication regimens and provide insight into methods to relieve symptoms of the ailment.
- Volunteers: Volunteers go through training to offer assistance with transportation, respite for caregivers, or just time to give the patient some company.
- Additional professionals: Physical, occupational, and speech therapy is available for patients who require such assistance.
- Bereavement counselors: These trained counselors guide loved ones through the grieving process once a hospice patient passes.
Find Comfort and Support with Golden Rule Hospice
At Golden Rule Hospice, we have a team of trained professionals who have dedicated their life’s work to the care of hospice patients. We honor each patient’s autonomy and wishes to provide compassionate care. If you have a loved one who requires hospice care in the Alpharetta or Atlanta, GA, area, call us at (470) 395-6567 to set up your consultation.
We live by the Golden Rule
Treat others the way you would like to be treated.
