Everything You Wanted to Know About Hospice Care
Humans are amazing creatures. Yet, despite our many ways of shaping the world, we remain as scared of the ideas of aging and dying as our most primitive ancestors. In many families, these are taboo subjects. We avoid talking about them, despite their inevitability. This makes it more difficult if you’re facing a shocking terminal diagnosis in your family.
While we often think of ‘self-improvement’ as things like learning a new language, or learning an instrument, a key part of developing yourself to be the best person possible is knowing how and when to be dependable for those you love. Here’s what every smart self-improver should know about hospice care, when it’s needed, and how to find it.
Why does hospice care exist?
What is hospice care, and why do we sometimes need it? The end of a life can be a terrible time for loved ones. Sometimes, in our own hurt and pain, we forget the wishes of the ailing person, or find ourselves unable to deal emotionally with the difficult journey ahead. Hospice care seeks to step into the breach, helping the patient and their family make the very most of the time they have left.
It can be administered in many settings, from a full-time caregiver in the patient’s own home to a special hospice facility. Above all, the idea is that the patient experiences the very best possible care as their life draws to a close, with minimum worry. While we typically associate the term ‘hospice’ with elder care, terminal cancer patients and others who receive end-of-life diagnosis can successfully use hospice care. While it’s often confused with palliative care, they aren’t the same thing.
Hospice should start sooner, not later
It can be difficult and painful to come to terms with a terminal diagnosis. Hospice carers are well trained to help you navigate these difficulties, in fact, their role is to ensure you or your loved one experiences comfort and peace in their final days.
Don’t take ‘final days’ too literally, however. Hospice care hopes to help the patient through the entirety of their end-of-life experience, and isn’t something you need to use only at the very end days of your life. Using hospice facilities allows:
-Dedicated and trained care
-Access to special medical equipment
-Bereavement support
-Improved quality of life
-Lessen hospital trips
-More days of life, and better quality through the experience
It’s likely that you can see how this helps shape an end-of-life experience that is comfortable and dignified, and helps the patient and their family enjoy the very best of the time left to them. Don’t forget, as the loved one of a person with a terminal illness, to get care and support for yourself as well.
Hospice care services provide a critical bulwark for those placed in the difficult position of navigating a terminal diagnosis. Using a hospice service for your loved one restores their dignity and gives them back control over their life, without leaving them without the medical care they need to be as comfortable as possible.
Lora Y