Facing the decision to transition a loved one to hospice care can be one of the most challenging and emotional experiences for any family. Conversations surrounding end-of-life care are always difficult, but understanding when it’s time for hospice care can help ease your loved one’s burdens during such a period.

Hospice is appropriate when someone’s terminal medical condition, following its natural progression, will limit life to six months or less. Many people assume that hospice services aren’t needed until just a few weeks before death, but receiving hospice care as soon as your loved one is eligible can help stabilize their condition and address their pain and other needs they may have.

How Do I Know My Loved One is Ready for Hospice?

Recognizing the right time for hospice care can give your loved one the highest quality of life possible for their condition. While a terminal diagnosis of an illness or disease can be a big pointer that it’s time for hospice, other signs your loved one may be ready include:

• Increased need for medical and personal support
• Repeated hospitalizations or trips to the emergency room
• Unpleasant side effects from current treatment for a life-limiting illness
• Failure to return to a prior level of well-being after a health issue
• Significant increase in pain, nausea, breathing changes, etc.
• Increase of time spent sleeping or decrease in alertness
• Significant decrease in appetite and loss of weight

It’s also possible that your loved one has expressed a concern of burdening you with their needs. While many of us may deny that our loved ones are a burden to us, self-sacrificing can lead to caregiver burnout. You could benefit from hospice if you experience:

• Physical and/or emotional exhaustion from caring for a loved one
• Guilt for being unable to attend to other family members’ needs
• Feeling overwhelmed by financial, legal, or spiritual demands and issues
• An inability to make plans or move ahead with events due to uncertainty regarding your loved one

Remember that it is not selfish to take care of yourself, even if you are the primary caregiver for a loved one. Hospice is an available tool to help you.

What Does It Mean If I Put My Loved One on Hospice?

Hospice is not a place, but rather a way of caring for those with a terminal illness with dignity, respect, and compassion. It’s comfort care provided by a team of specially trained professionals delivered to wherever your loved one calls home (including a traditional home, long-term care facilities, retirement communities, and assisted living communities). 

Hospice care prioritizes symptom management, pain relief, and emotional support over treatment and cures. Your loved one’s illness is not ignored but rather reprioritized to manage symptoms and pain best to help people live life to the fullest. Personalized care plans eliminate the need for emergency trips to the hospital or doctor visits since the goal is to ensure that the patient’s days are as comfortable and fulfilling as possible. 

We recognize that this time can be emotionally tumultuous for family members too, which is why hospice care often extends to family members, offering them emotional support, counseling, and assistance with caregiving duties.

What Level of Care is Provided in Hospice?

While hospice care is individualized per your loved one’s needs and wishes, there are four defined levels of hospice care: Routine Home Care, Continuous Care, Inpatient Care, and Respite Care.

Routine Home Care

Routine home care is the most common level of hospice care. It involves regular visits from hospice professionals to provide medical care, pain management, and emotional support. Patients receive care in the comfort of their own homes, allowing them to be surrounded by familiar surroundings and loved ones.

Many hospice patients spend their entire time under this level of care, though some may need to transition to other levels of care if their symptoms worsen or their condition declines.

Continuous Home Care

Also referred to as “crisis care”, continuous home care is for patients experiencing acute symptoms that require intensive management. The hours of care provided at this level can vary depending on your hospice care provider, with some able to provide around-the-clock nursing support. Regardless, the priority of continuous home care is to stabilize your loved one and manage symptoms effectively.

It’s often a short-term solution to a critical need, reevaluated every twenty-four hours. 

Inpatient Care

Inpatient care is provided in a hospice facility, hospital, or nursing home for patients who require more intensive medical care than can be provided at home. This level of care ensures that patients receive the necessary medical attention while still focusing on comfort and quality of life. 

Typically, someone is only under inpatient hospice care for 3-5 days to stabilize uncontrollable pain or other symptoms.

Respite Care

Respite care offers temporary relief to family caregivers by providing short-term care for the patient in a hospice facility. This allows caregivers to rest and recharge while ensuring their loved one receives professional care.

How Long Can I Delay Hospice Care?

Considering hospice care can mean reckoning with the reality that your loved one needs end-of-life care. Grief even before your loved one is gone is very common and expected. There is no right or wrong way to cope with it or timeline for your grief.

However, giving your loved one hospice care early can give them more comfort. Choosing hospice care does not mean death is imminent; it does not hasten death or prolong life but allows your loved one to better enjoy their final days.

We are Here to Help You and Your Family

Del Corazon Hospice strives to ensure a dignified, respectful, and comfortable end-of-life experience for your loved one and the rest of your family during these emotional times. Reach out to us today to talk about counsel or support for you and your loved one if you want to learn more about how hospice can benefit your family.