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As healthcare professionals, we are dedicated to providing the best possible care from the first moment of life to the last. While many illnesses in their advanced stages cannot be cured, we are committed to helping you live each day as fully and comfortably as possible.

In this regard, as a hospice and patient advocate, my job is to offer hospice education to medical professionals and educate the public on the services and benefits of hospice. When a patient has an advanced life-limiting illness/disease and curative measures have not proved effective, hospice employees work with the physicians, the hospitals, the home health agencies, the nursing homes, and the assisted living facilities to ensure patients and families needing hospice are aware of the hospice philosophy, benefits, and services available to them for end of life care.

It is interesting that in a study conducted by The Center for Gerontology and Healthcare Research, it was suggested that involving family members/primary caregivers in the decision-making and preparing them for what to expect improves bereavement and may offset increased mortality risks associated with caring for a terminally ill loved one. Hospice expands the scope of medical care beyond curative treatment by supporting people through the end stages of life in the comfort of their own homes. The team approach of hospice provides:

• Specialized medical care.
• Pain and symptom management.
• Support the patient’s and their loved one’s emotional and spiritual needs.
• Medical equipment and supplies

When patients are referred to hospice, it’s important to remember that it is your right to choose which hospice agency you wish to receive care from. If you are not satisfied with a particular hospice, you have the right to transfer to another agency without fear of retribution.

Incidentally, the Medicare Hospice Benefit in the United States sets the rules for the services hospice agencies provide, who qualifies, and what medication, equipment, supplies, etc., are covered under the benefit. Accordingly, all privately owned, corporately owned, and non-profit hospices bill the patient’s insurance and must provide services for underinsured and indigent patients.

It is an honor to be a resource for anyone with questions about hospice myths, criteria, and services. If you have questions, please get in touch with me, the hospice of your choice, or your physician.

“The walls we build around us to keep out the sadness also keep out the joy.” — Jim Rohn

— Vickie C. Wacaster is a Patient and Hospice Advocate for Aveanna Hospice.