Do you have a loved one living with a serious or terminal illness? You likely have questions about what comes next and how to navigate your care options to ensure they maintain high quality of life. Perhaps you’re considering hospice care at home, but what exactly is it?
How does in-home hospice work? What services can you get? How can it help your family? Get these pressing questions answered in this article. Explore what receiving hospice at home means and how it can make a difference.
What Is Hospice Care?
Essentially, hospice is a special care philosophy that emphasizes comfort and quality of life when a cure is no longer the primary goal of treatment. Hospice focuses on managing pain and symptoms while offering extensive physical, emotional, and spiritual support during a person’s final months.
Where can your loved one receive this type of care? The care team offers this support in a variety of settings. It can occur at a hospital, nursing home, a dedicated hospice facility, or in the comfort of your home. The advantage of the last option is the familiarity of the environment which promotes comfort and healing.
Should You Consider Hospice Care at Home
Receiving support at home is a choice seriously ill people make when nearing their end of life. Why? For many, being at home offers the most comfort and familiarity, something of significant value for those in their final moments.
In-home hospice allows the patient to stay surrounded by the things and spaces they know and love and the people they’ve been with their whole life. Here are some of the many benefits of hospice care at home:
- Personalized care and support: Assistance is specifically tailored to match the person’s specific needs and preferences. The care team works with you for weeks so they get to know the entire family, providing consistency and a foundation for trust.
- Enhanced quality of life: Hospice prioritizes pain and symptom management so patients can live out their remaining days as painlessly as possible. Moreover, it gives your loved one more time to spend with family and makes them feel better.
- Comfort and familiar environment: For many people, home is the ultimate place of security. It offers familiar sights, smells, and space to relax surrounded by personal belongings. You’ll be surprised at how much better a patient’s quality of life can be when they’re in this environment.
- Emotional and spiritual support: It doesn’t just focus on the physical aspect. Both the patient and family benefit from the emotional and spiritual support counselors and chaplains provide. They can help everyone cope with difficult feelings and find meaning and peace.
- Cost-effectiveness: Home hospice care is typically more affordable than inpatient care. With most costs covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and various private insurance plans, it can offer significant financial relief for the patient and their family.
- Family caregiver support: While fulfilling, caring for a loved one with a terminal illness can be physically, mentally, and emotionally taxing. Hospice offers respite to give family caregivers a break, practical help with tasks, and counseling to manage stress and grief.
- Peace of mind: Knowing that high-quality care is just a phone call away can provide great reassurance during a trying time. The 24/7 availability of hospice nurses can ease anxieties and ensure swift responses to changes in the patient’s condition.
Getting Started with Hospice Care at Home
How do you start with in-home hospice? The first step is getting your doctor’s recommendations. They can assess whether hospice is the right choice and help you understand how to initiate the services.
Not sure if you’re qualified to receive hospice care in a private setting? Your doctor will make a prognosis and if it’s determined that a loved one has a life expectancy of six months or less if their illness runs its normal course and other criteria, they’d be qualified for this type of care.
How do you find a hospice provider for in-home care? Start by consulting your doctor. They can give valuable recommendations based on their professional experience and knowledge of your loved one’s unique needs.
Ideally, you should research and interview multiple agencies to assess and compare the range of services they provide. Doing so ultimately connects you to an outstanding care provider, like Amy’s Eden Senior Care which collaborates with a network of hospice professionals to provide your loved one compassionate care in every moment.
Services Provided in Home Hospice Care
Every patient’s needs and preferences are different and home hospice offers a broad range of support to meet these demands. Services typically include:
1. Medical care
A dedicated team of doctors and nurses works together to offer pain relief, ensuring optimal comfort and addressing health concerns immediately. Support includes providing any required prescription medications to alleviate discomfort and promote overall well-being.
2. Palliative care and comfort measures
Palliative support centers on elevating the quality of life instead of curing the illness and it’s part of hospice care at home. It involves strategies for managing pain, nausea, breathing difficulty, or other distressing symptoms. It also includes complementary interventions, like aromatherapy, massage, or the use of specialized equipment to maximize comfort.
3. Personal care
A caregiver stays with the family around the clock while a nurse frequently visits to check the patient’s condition. They can assist with activities of daily living, including bathing, dressing, and eating.
4. Equipment and supplies
When you work with a hospice care team, you receive a hospital bed, oxygen, and other necessary equipment to support effective care provision at home. The hospice nurse will assess what you need and arrange for the supplies to be delivered to your residence and set up by the medical equipment vendor.
5. Respite care
Hospice care provides much-needed respite for family caregivers to dodge burnout and promote well-being. Patients with late-stage illnesses have the highest level of care demands, so an extra hand is necessary to minimize the physical and mental toll of care obligations on your health.
The Hospice Care Team
Who makes up the hospice care team? A group of dedicated and skilled professionals will oversee end-of-life care. It typically includes:
- Doctors and nurses: Specialists in palliative care or comfort-focused treatment will supervise the patient’s skilled care needs. They address pain and difficult symptoms, manage medications, and coordinate with other experts involved in care provision.
- Home health aides: These people provide hands-on personal care and assistance with daily tasks, such as bathing, dressing, and preparing meals. Moreover, they do light household tasks to create a clean, safe, and comfortable environment for the patient.
- Social workers: They are the connectors and problem-solvers. They help you organize paperwork, access financial assistance, arrange additional services, and sort out other practical needs while offering emotional support and guidance.
- Chaplains and spiritual advisors: They provide spiritual care and guidance, which contributes to peace of mind. Whether the patient is religious or not, they assist in exploring life through deeper questions and address spiritual or existential worries.
- Volunteers: They assist the family to reduce the burdens faced by the patients and their loved ones, offering companionship care and running errands.
Your hospice team has one goal — to help and support you. Be open about communicating your loved one’s needs and wishes, so they know what to do.
The hospice care team collaborates with other providers to ensure seamless care coordination. Regular communication is vital because it keeps everyone informed, supporting the patient in the best way possible.
How Hospice Care at Home Works
Your hospice care team will work closely with your family and primary doctors to create a comprehensive care plan. It’s a guide that details the nursing care plan. Here’s what it typically includes:
- Treatments and medications: The program outlines all medications the patient takes for pain and symptom control, along with how and when they’re administered. It also covers any continuing treatments related to the terminal illness.
- Typical daily routine: While no two days are identical, the care plan offers a synopsis of what a typical day with hospice support looks like. This can include medication schedules, times for nurses’ or aides’ visits, and personal care routines.
- Plan for medical needs: It also includes a response plan for when something unexpected or a medical issue arises. If an emergency occurs, you and your loved ones will know what to expect and how the hospice team can help.
- Goals of care: Lastly, it’s a checklist with the patient’s needs, wishes, and goals for end-of-life care. It may include information about where your loved one wants to receive care, their preferred level of involvement in decision-making, and any spiritual practices they’d like to be incorporated.
What are the day-to-day routines for end-of-life patients? There’s no standard answer since each has different needs and preferences. Support is modified to suit the recipient’s care demands. Home hospice aims to maintain as much routine and normalcy as possible since a predictable day is ideal.
What happens if the patient’s needs change? The good news is a hospice care plan is flexible. Nurses and caregivers are on standby and can make adjustments based on the situation.
Financial Aspects of Hospice Care
One of the major benefits of hospice care is the extensive financial coverage available to almost everyone. Here’s a breakdown of the costs and the various insurance options for financing.
Medicare
Does Medicare cover hospice care at home? Yes, it usually covers most of home hospice care costs. Typically, this includes:
- Medical care from hospice doctors and nurses
- Medications for pain and symptom management
- Medical supplies and equipment
- Respite care (short-term relief for caregivers)
- Counseling services and grief support
Your loved one needs to meet eligibility requirements, which your care provider can help with.
Insurance
Are there other insurance options for hospice home care services? Coverage varies, but some plans include selected home hospice care services. Examples are:
- Medicaid: Coverage varies by state, but Medicaid often offers similar hospice benefits to Medicare, such as physician services, counseling, nursing, and medical social services.
- Private insurance: Many also cover hospice care. However, the specifics depend on the policy. It’s best to contact the insurance provider directly to confirm its coverage.
- Veterans benefits: If you’re a veteran, additional benefits may be available to help cover hospice care costs.
Please note that even with extensive coverage, there may still be some small out-of-pocket expenses, including copays for medications or occasional charges for services that aren’t covered.
What if I have financial questions? Your hospice care provider includes a dedicated person to help you manage the financial side of care. They can help you understand what your specific insurance plan covers and explore additional financial assistance programs you may qualify for. Moreover, they can discuss options for out-of-pocket expenses and help create manageable plans as needed.
Don’t let financial worries stop your family from exploring compassionate end-of-life care. Open communication with both your hospice team and insurance provider ensures the whole process is less stressful and you get the support you need, whether it’s financial or informational.
Supporting the Transition to End-of-Life Care
Hospice care providers understand how difficult this time can be for the patient and their loved ones. To address the emotional toll, counselors offer guidance, while support groups are an alternative source of emotional support through other people’s help.
Does hospice address your loved one’s spiritual or cultural needs? Hospice chaplains are trained to support people of all faith backgrounds and those with no religious beliefs. They offer rituals, guidance, or simply lend an ear to the patient. Cultural awareness is an important aspect of a good hospice experience.
Caring obligations can be overwhelming. During this difficult time, remember your own emotional and physical needs. Respite care allows caregivers time and space to temporarily detach from the problem and recharge their health batteries. Additionally, counseling can be a great strategy to provide emotional support.
Quality Care, Quality Life at Amy’s Eden Senior Care
Hospice care at home offers a compassionate and personalized approach when facing a serious or terminal illness — it’s all about focusing on quality of life and ensuring those final moments are filled with peace and comfort.
Being in the familiar surroundings of your own home — or anywhere you can call home — with the support of skilled doctors, nurses, and caregivers can make a difference in your loved one’s quality of life.
Choosing hospice doesn’t mean you’re giving up. It’s prioritizing comfort, and dignity, and finding meaningful ways for those last moments to be joyful.
If you or someone you love is facing a challenging journey, explore Amy’s Eden Senior Care as your care partner. Our homes around Nevada have been a haven for people needing care at all levels. We can connect your family with a doctor, nurse, or caregiver who specializes in end-of-life assistance and help you form your reliable hospice care team.
It will be our pleasure to be with you on this journey. To get started, send us an email or tour our homes online to get a feel of what it’s like living in our thoughtfully designed homes for people like you.
