Clinical Agency: Capital

Caring Health
VIKTORIIA KAFANDO
JMU
NSG-466
DR. ELKINS
JULY 11, 2021
Hospice
 “Hospice is a component of palliative care that
provides noncurative treatment with a focus on
comfort to patients in their final stages of disease
(typically in the final 6 months)”
 “The primary diagnoses of Medicare hospice
patients include malignancy, cardiac/circulatory
conditions, dementia, pulmonary conditions, and
stroke”
 “20 million people worldwide requiring hospice
care each year of whom 70% are adults ≥ 60 years
old and 6% are pediatric patients”
(DynaMed, 2018)
 Capital Caring Health (CCH)
 Mission
 Provide Patients and their Families with Advanced Illness Care of the Highest Quality.

 Vision
 Be the Best Provider of Advanced Illness Care and the Best Place to Work in Healthcare.

 Core Values
 1. Put Patients and Families First
 2. Always Do the Right Thing
 3. Respect Everyone
(Capital Caring Health, 2020)
Background of CCH

 Founded in 1977

 Regional hospice provider for DC metropolitan area

 Over 1,000 employees and more than 2,000 volunteers

 Provide services to nearly 2,000 patients each day

 Non-profit providers of hospice and palliative care

 Almost $3 million annually in charitable care to families in need

(Capital Caring Health, 2020)

 Services

HOSPICE CARE

ADVANCED ILLNESS CARE

GRIEF SUPPORT

CHILDREN’S HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE CARE

VETERAN’S HEALTH & SUPPORT SERVICES

THREE INPATIENT CENTERS

(Capital Caring Health, 2020)
 Medicare
How are Capital Medicaid
Caring Services
Paid For? Private insurance
Patient Care Fund
(Capital Caring Health, 2020)
How the work contributes to the health of
the community.
 Provide end of life services to patients and their families at their homes
 Help patients to manage their symptoms of terminal illness while at homes
 Provide comfort and all the support to dying patients and their families
 Patients feel more comfortable in their home where they lived for many years; they can
enjoy all the memories and things that surround them at home
 Staying home and be surrounded by family is important process of dying since all the
believes and cultural traditions can be followed by family
 Benefit patients and families because of closeness to loved onces and convenience
 Make a dying person feel complete
 For the diverse population of the United States, I believe hospice agencies are very helpful
to provide support and comfort to dying patient as well family without leaving their homes
or communities
How the agency is situated in the network of
health/healthcare institutions in the community.

 One of the largest hospice provider in DC metropolitan area

 Partnered with local hospitals and doctor offices

 Doctors refer to Capital Caring if patients meets criteria

The role of the nurse within the CCH

 Physical assessment on every visit

 Education of family and patient
 Preventative care or treatment recommendation (pressure ulcers, rash)
 Advocate for patients’ comfort by collaborating with families and other team members
 Review and adjust medications as needed to keep patients comfortable
 Collaborate with families and patients if patients competent
 Safety assessments and education
 Recommendation and placement of the necessary equipment
 Collaborate with other team members (CM, MDs, LPNs, care givers)
 Hospice nurses provide a lot of support for families.
  Cultural competency training and education
 Knowledge of cultures
 Critical reflection
 Cross-cultural communications
 Culturally competence practice
10 standards for
 Cultural competence in healthcare systems and
culturally competent organizations
care:  Patient advocacy and empowerment
 Multicultural workforce
 Cross-cultural leadership
 Evidence-based practice and research
(Stanhope & Lancaster, 2018, p. 74)
How cultural competency is addressed at
Capital Caring

 Knowledge of cultural differences

 Respectful and polite to all patients

 Equal care for all patients

 Collaborate with patient and families to keep their wishes

 Easy to adopt to different environment (home and family dynamics)

 Multicultural workplace
My role and experiences as a
student

 Shadow hospice nurse

 Learn about hospice care
 Assessments, vital signs
 Participate as much as I can
 Help with anything my nurse feels
comfortable
My experiences as a student

 Reviewed patients charts and notes with my preceptor

 Assessed, did vital signs

 Helped with Foley insertion

 Helped order needed supplies and meds

 Helped with meds measurement

 Educated and provided support to families and patients

 Documented when time and situation allowed

Summary of my clinical experience with
Capital Caring Health
 Glad we had this clinical as requirement
 Learned about hospice and community health that are outside of my practice
 Realized family function and its importance
 Learned not to fear death, and is more prepared to assist if I ever need to
 More comfortable to discuss process of dying with family members
 Great preceptor who took time to explain things, and was flexible to
accommodate me
 Preceptor allowed me a lot of opportunities to educate, and we never disagreed
with each other
 References

 Capital Caring Health. (2020). Capital Caring Health

https://www.capitalcaring.org/
 DynaMed. (2018). Hospice Eligibility and Care. DynaMed.
https://www.dynamed.com/management/hospice-eligibility-and-care-16
 Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2018). Foundations for population health in
community/public health nursing (5th ed.). Elsevier.