Case Study 24 : HOSPICE CARE
Challenges
An 85-year-old married female was admitted because of body weakness, poor food intake and continuous severe pains in the lower half of the body. CT scan showed multiple lung metastasis as well as lymph nodes and masses growing inwards and compressing the urinary bladder. The patient felt very weak, remained unable to eat and complained of severe pain. Seeing that the patient possessed almost no chance of recovery, and the burden was too much for the patient and the family, the children decided to bring her home. The attending physician introduced to the children the option of contacting the hospital’s Hospice Care Unit.
Question
What is the nature of Hospice Care?
Solutions
Hospice Care allows patients with terminal illness to remain in their homes surrounded by their families and friends. It is palliative in nature, with the goal of providing comfort and freedom from pain when cure is no longer possible. A person may request hospice care or may be referred by a health care professional, relative, friend or chaplain.Compassionate care for the whole person affirms personal dignity and quality of life. Hospice care aims to provide this kind of environment.
To attain this end an interdisciplinary approach is used, involving collaboration among the patient, the family, professionals and volunteers. Most of the time a family member or a friend acts as a caregiver at home, following a plan laid out by a team composed of at least some of the following: the primary physician, nurses, therapists, social workers, psychiatrists, dieticians, pastoral care coordinators, family members and volunteers.
In general, a hospital’s Hospice Care Unit provides training for these persons, as well as support in the form of home visits, pain control and symptom management, counseling for patients and caregivers, coordination of volunteers for errands, and others. It also establishes networking among different hospice caregivers within the same locality or outside for patients who live elsewhere.
