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What is Hospice Care?

As a type of healthcare, hospice care in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA refers to the process of alleviating a patient’s pain and symptoms that sometimes accompany a terminal illness. It is generally accepted that patients can be admitted to hospice care if their physicians agree that their disease has a prognosis of 6 months or less, if it runs its normal course. Furthermore, the patient should forego any curative treatment and be completely focused on comfort care in order to benefit from it.

With the same type of care that you would receive in a hospital, you can now receive the same type of care in the comfort of your own home in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. Among these services are direct delivery of medical equipment, medicine, and medical supplies to your home. There are several medical equipments such as a hospital bed, oxygen, wheelchairs, and walkers; these are only a few. A few of the essential supplies are skin lotion, latex gloves, bedpans, and incontinence supplies to name a few. Everything that you might need for the terminal illness will be delivered to your home so you are comfortable.

Home Health Aide Assisting Hospice Patient and Family in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA

There is a philosophy and an approach to the care of the dying that is flexible and can be provided in a variety of settings, for example:

  • Home
  • Assisted living facilities
  • Skilled Nursing Facilities
  • Hospitals
  • Hospice Centers

In hospice, a multidisciplinary group of professionals provides support to the patient. Each of these specialists has a vital role to play in helping the patient with their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Among the members of the team in Rancho Palos Verdes are doctors, nurses, therapists, counselors, as well as home health aides and volunteers. The patient is checked periodically by each of the team members throughout the week. The nurses in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA are available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, in case of emergency.

The primary focus of hospice is on medical needs of the patient, whereas it’s the caregiver’s responsibility to take care of the non-medical requirements of the patient. As the caregiver, usually a family member or friend, they help to change briefs, clothes, and assist with meal preparation as well as medication administration. When a family member or a close friend is not available to provide the care, the option is to either hire a private caregiver or to receive care in a nursing home.

There are three types of funding for hospice care: Medicare, Medicaid, or private insurance. Aside from that, the only thing that isn’t covered by insurances is either medicine or treatment aimed at curing a disease, as well as room and board. If you do decide to get general inpatient care in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA you will be responsible for the room and board costs associated with it. In order to avoid the costs associated with general inpatient care facilities, many families choose to receive care at home.

Hospice Care Services in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA

  • Provides pain and symptom management for the patient
  • Assists the patient with the emotional and psychosocial aspects related to the end of life
  • Assists in the provision of drugs, medical supplies, medical equipment, etc.
  • Instructing the family members on the proper way to take care of their loved one
  • The company provides special services such as physical therapy, speech therapy, group therapy, music therapy, and art therapy  
  • If a caregiver needs respite time or pain or symptoms become too difficult to manage at home, then a short-term inpatient facility may be able to provide it
  • Bereavement therapy and counseling for the bereaved family, close friends, and colleagues

The Four Levels of Hospice Care

Level 1) Hospice Care at Home

Doctor holding hospice patient hand in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA

In hospice, patients will receive regular care aimed at ensuring their comfort and quality of life as much as possible so they can remain as comfortable as possible during their final months of life. The usual course of care may encompass the following: pain management, symptom management, emotional counseling and spiritual counseling, nutritional support, and therapeutic assistance for the patient and their families. The routine hospice care can be provided in any setting you consider to be your “home”, such as a skilled nursing facility, assisted living facility, memory care facility, or perhaps even your own residence. In the case of intermittent care plans, the schedule of care will depend upon the patient’s needs.

Level 2) Continuous Hospice Care

A patient who is experiencing a medical crisis, or whose symptoms need to be treated with a great deal of intensity, may require continuous hospice care, also known as crisis care among consumers. Nursing support that is available on a round-the-clock basis or for extended periods is beneficial to the patient as well as to his or her family during such a critical time. Thus, they are able to step back from the hands-on level of care and be able to focus on their loved one

Level 3) Short Term Inpatient Hospice Care

When the patient’s symptoms are too severe to manage at home, it may be necessary to admit him or her to an inpatient facility in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. Here, the goal is to reduce the severity of the pain as well as stabilize the patient’s symptoms so that, if at all possible, they may go back home. During the last few days of a patient’s life, they may decide to spend their time in an inpatient center in a neutral place of safety and comfort for themselves and their family.

Level 4) Short Term Respite Care

Likewise, hospice centers offer respite care to patients who are receiving hospice care at home. Additionally, a short-term stay at such a facility can provide caregivers with an opportunity to take a much-needed break from the care they are providing at home. Patients are also able to access 24/7 symptom management.

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