HOSPICE CARE

Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain
and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care
prioritizes comfort and quality of life by reducing pain and suffering. Hospice care provides an
alternative to therapies focused on life-prolonging measures that may be arduous, likely to cause
more symptoms, or are not aligned with a person's goals.
Hospice care in the United States is largely defined by the practices of the Medicare system and
other health insurance providers, which cover inpatient or at home hospice care for patients with
terminal diseases who are estimated to live six months or less. Hospice care under the Medicare
Hospice Benefit requires documentation from two physicians estimating a person has less than six
months to live if the disease follows its usual course. Hospice benefits include access to a
multidisciplinary treatment team specialized in end of life care and can be accessed in the home,
long term care facility or the hospital.[1]
Outside the United States, the term tends to be primarily associated with the particular buildings or
institutions that specialize in such care. Such institutions may similarly provide care mostly in an
end-of-life setting, but they may also be available for patients with other palliative care needs.
Hospice care includes assistance for patients' families to help them cope with what is happening and
provide care and support to keep the patient at home.

Hospice home health[edit]

Nurses that work in hospice in the home healthcare setting aim to relieve pain and holistically
support their patients and patient’s families. Patients can receive hospice care when they have less
than 6 months to live or would like to shift the focus of care from curative to comfort care. The goal of
hospice care is to meet the needs of both the patient and family, knowing that a home death is not
always to best outcome. Medicare covers all costs of hospice treatment [72](Nies & McEwen, 2019).
The hospice home health nurse must be skilled in both physical care and psychosocial care. Most
nurses will work with a team that includes a physician, social worker and possibly a spiritual care
counselor. Some of the nurse’s duties will include reassuring family members, and ensuring
adequate pain control. The nurse will need to explain to the patient and family that a pain free death
is possible, and scheduled opioid pain medications are appropriate in this case. The nurse will need
to work closely with the medical provider to ensure that dosing is appropriate, and in the case of
tolerance, the dose is raised. The nurse should be aware of cultural differences and needs and
should aim to meet them. The nurse will also support the family after death and connect the family to
bereavement services