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Providing the “Gold Standard” in Comfort Care |
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Common Myths of Hospice
Hospice of the Calumet Area, Inc. |
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Setting straight the ‘Common Myths of Hospice’
1. In order to be in hospice, you must discontinue your medication. A. Any medication directly related to the terminal illness is not only continued, but also provided by the hospice team. If additional unrelated medications are necessary, the family would obtain them as usual.
2. You must be homebound to receive hospice care. A. There are no activity limitations for patients enrolled in the hospice program. Patients are encouraged to enjoy all aspects of life as fully as possible.
3. Hospice withholds food and fluids. A. Each patient’s nutrition is tailored to his or her individual needs, and those under hospice care may eat and drink as much or as little as desired. Patient control and choice are always considered and are combined with the expertise of the hospice team in managing end-stage nutrition.
4. Hospice care is for those in their final days. A. Hospice care was designed for those in their last 6 months of life, not as a deathbed intervention. Many families could greatly benefit by having the support of the hospice team in the final months and weeks of the patient’s illness, but may not know that those services are available.
5. You must be ready to die to be ready for hospice. A. We understand that within each individual is a natural resistance to the thought of death, and we recognize the difficulty of coping with the last stages of life. All too often, people deny them-selves (and their caregivers) the help and support of hospice by thinking they must be “ready” to accept their own death. One of the many benefits of hospice care is having the team’s resources to assist a patient and his or her family in working toward a peaceful and dignified end of life.
6. Hospice care is only for cancer patients. A. Hospice is available for patients with any life-limiting illness in which the physician has determined that the patient’s life expectancy is 6 months or less, and comfort measures rather than curative measures are now appropriate or chosen by the patient. This could include illnesses such as emphysema, congestive heart failure, or advanced Alzheimer’s disease in their final stages.
7. You have to leave your own doctor to be a part of the hospice program. A. Your primary physician can continue to direct your care and work with the hospice team. The hospice team also has a medical director who’s available to your physician for additional medical consultation.
8. All hospice agencies are the same. A. Saying all hospices are the same is like saying all nursing homes are the same. While all hospices provide the same basic services, the quality of those services can vary greatly. Do your homework! Hospice of the Calumet Area is an independent, not-for-profit hospice that has served nearly 10,000 local patients since 1981.
9. Once you begin hospice care, you cannot leave the program. A. A person may sign out of the hospice program for a variety of reasons, such as resuming aggressive curative treatment or pursuing experimental measures. Or, if a patient shows signs of recovery and no longer meets the 6 month guideline, he or she can be discharged from hospice care and return to the program when the illness has progressed at a later time.
10. Hospice care means giving up hope and waiting passively to die. A. The hospice philosophy embraces living fully for as much time as possible, and maintaining hope for a meaningful time of life and a peaceful dying process. Its focus is to work aggressively to manage pain and symptoms that might hamper one’s quality of life. Emotional and spiritual support enable individuals to give their life’s story a great ending.
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©2007 Hospice of the Calumet Area, Inc. |
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Hospice of the Calumet Area, Inc. 600 Superior Ave., Munster, IN 46321 3224 Ridge Road, Suite 202 & 203, Lansing, IL 60438 Phone: 219.922.2732 / 708.895.8332 / 219.736.2422 Fax: 219.922.1947 E-mail: info@hospicecalumet.org |