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Why Offer Hospice Care in Long-term Care Facilities?
Lower
Cape Fear Hospice & LifeCareCenter offers hospice home care to
people
with life-limiting illness, wherever they live-their home, a nursing
home,
an
assisted care facility, or a hospital.
Residents
receive increased and expanded services when the hospice facility
team
and the long-term care staff work collaboratively. Their goal is to
offer the
best
end-of-life care possible. Patients and families have access to
enhanced
care,
support, assistance, and education as they contemplate and make
difficult
decisions
about treatment and end-of-life care.
What Type of Enhanced Care Is Available?
The
Lower Cape Fear Hospice & LifeCareCenter facility team brings
special
skills
to help long-term care facility residents live as fully as possible
until the
end
of life. They can provide expertise in pain and symptom management,
individualized
personal care for hospice care patients, information about
end-of-life
care
decisions and treatment options, patient and family emotional
support,
and 24-hour on-call emergency service.
Who Provides Hospice Care in Facilities?
The
hospice facility team members are registered nurses, certified
nursing
assistants,
social workers, chaplains, and volunteers. They work with the
nursing
home and assisted living facility staff to provide care during a
time
when
patient and family needs increase.
Nurses
work with facility caregivers to develop the plan of care, make
visits,
perform
ongoing assessments, and make suggestions to physicians. Nurse
assistants
offer personalized care as the patient’s condition changes. Social
workers
collaborate with facility caregiving staff and help with
problem-solving
and
end-of-life issues such as advance care planning including living
wills
and
health care power of attorney forms. Pastoral care members offer
spiritual
counseling
to patients and families. Volunteers provide companionship and
support
to patients. Bereavement staff help patients and families work
through
their
grief.
Who Are Hospice Patients in Long-term
Care Facilities?
Residents
of any age with a life-limiting illness who reside in nursing homes
and
assisted
living facilities can accept hospice care services. Patients are
often
diagnosed
with cancer, heart, lung, liver, or kidney disease, dementia, ALS,
or
advanced
aging.
How Are Hospice Care Services Approved?
A
facility, its medical director, a patient’s physician, or a
patient/family member
can
refer a patient for hospice care services. Patients are certified by
their doctor
as
appropriate for hospice care services.
How Are Hospice Services Paid For?
Lower
Cape Fear Hospice & LifeCareCenter is a licensed, certified, and
accredited
nonprofit
organization that is reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid and private
insurances.
A
social worker can explore coverage for services and answer
questions.
How Can Someone Learn More?
To
talk about how hospice care can help, call us at 910.815.3973 or
800.207.6908.
A Lower Cape Fear Hospice & LifeCareCenter staff member
can
meet in person with residents, family members, and physicians to
discuss
receiving
the enhanced services hospice care offers.
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