Understanding Hospice Care
CompassionCare Team
We have a very dedicated and committed team of health care professionals who share our mission of ensuring that each patient and family be treated with respect and dignity. In accomplishing that, we promise to meet each need on a prompt and personal basis ensuring all aspects of care are met.
The Team Approach
When you select CompassionCare Hospice, the focus of medical care shifts—from searching for a cure to providing expert pain and symptom management, also known as palliative care. This special kind of care enables you to enjoy the best quality of life possible during this time.
Right away, you will notice two major differences about hospice care:
- Instead of one person—an attending physician—providing your care, you will also have access to the combined expertise of a team of health professionals from several disciplines. With its many skills, the hospice team looks at your situation holistically, considering not only your physical condition, but also your mind, spirit, heart, and soul.
- Because end of life affects everyone involved, we treat you and your loved ones as a single “unit of care.” End of life is a very difficult time for those who love you, and their needs must also be addressed.
In other words, we address the many emotional, financial, and spiritual concerns that arise during end of life as well as providing the very best in palliative medical care.
This team approach, which is unique to hospice, relieves much of the stress inherent in caring for a loved one at home. As you and your loved ones face the hard choices ahead, you have the comfort of knowing that you have access to a wide range of knowledge, compassion, and experience.
The Plan of Care
After assessing your situation, the CompassionCare Hospice team draws up a comprehensive but individualized Plan of Care that everyone—hospice team members and family members—will follow. The first question to answer is one that the team will continue to ask throughout: “Where are we in the course of this illness?”
The Plan of Care provides the goals — physically, emotionally, and interpersonally for the patient and family. It brings much-needed clarity and structure to a time of great stress, anxiety and family upheaval. Every team member who works with you has a copy of your Plan of Care, which is continually updated throughout your hospice experience.
The Plan of Care is developed in close consultation with you and your loved ones. Respecting the wishes of patient and loved ones is a bedrock value of hospice care.
Hospice Team Members
Here are the members of the interdisciplinary hospice team:
Physician
You select your doctor. Your primary care physician will continue in that role, or you can select a hospice physician—it’s up to you. In either case, the doctor must sign off on all treatment orders and plans recommended by the hospice team.
Home Care Nurse
CompassionCare Hospice nurses provide the complete spectrum of skilled nursing care. They call frequently and make regular visits to monitor your condition, manage medications, provide injections, and answer medical questions. They also handle the all-important work of teaching family members how to care for you.
As case manager, the nurse coordinates the work of the entire hospice team.
Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)
The CNA spends the most time in the home setting. He or she helps the caregiver by providing personal care such as bathing the patient, changing linens, tidying-up the patient’s room, etc.
Social Worker
The social worker provides help with often-changing emotional, medical, and financial concerns. An experienced counselor and expert on community resources, the social worker also can facilitate family communication, arrange support for caregivers, and help to find financial and legal assistance. The social worker can help with issues related to Medicare, private insurance, and Advance Medical Directives.
Chaplain
The non-denominational chaplain can provide assistance in many areas: spiritual counseling for people of all faiths, planning services, offering communion, and serving as a liaison between the family and clergy in the community. You or your loved one can request the services of a chaplain at any time, though this service is completely optional.
Dietician
The dietician can offer expert direction on nutrition questions. He or she also can provide advice—by phone or via a home visit—on difficult feeding problems.
Bereavement Coordinator
Bereavement support and services are offered to family members and loved ones for more than a year after death. These include support groups, individual counseling, and educational workshops. The bereavement coordinator supports your loved ones through the grieving process.
Patient Care Volunteers
These specially trained volunteers are an incredible resource. They offer assistance with personal care and household tasks, such as cleaning or food shopping and preparation. They can run errands. And they can provide a few hours of respite care, giving the caregiver a much-needed break.
Patient and loved ones
You and your loved ones are key members of the team. You have chosen us to accompany you on a very special journey, and we respect your concerns and desires at every step. We will provide you with all the information needed to make the best choices for you and your loved ones.
4 Facts about the CompassionCare Hospice Team
We come to you.
Hospice services are provided in your home setting, whether that is a private residence, apartment, assisted living or long-term care facility, or nursing home.
We provide regular care
The caregiver cares for you; the hospice team supports the caregiver. The nurse and CNA make the most regular visits. They monitor the patient and family, teach personal care skills, and anticipate changes in the patient’s condition and needs.
We make sure that your caregivers have the knowledge they need
The CompassionCare Hospice team teaches your loved ones everything needed to provide you with excellent quality care.
We can be reached around the clock
After business hours and on holidays, caregivers can call a staff nurse who has electronic access to your hospice medical record. This After Hours Care nurse will listen to concerns and offer expert advice. If needed, she will dispatch a field nurse or doctor to make an emergency home visit.
