Published: November 4, 2024
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Some consider hospice aides, who make it their life’s work to care for people who are dying, a rare breed. Others call them unsung heroes. Yet most hospice aides will tell you it’s a calling — one they’re honored to answer.
Hospice aides are vital members of a hospice care team, which also includes:
- Doctors and nurses
- Social workers and therapists
- Dietitians
- Spiritual professionals
- Volunteers
And because of the nature of the work, hospice care is available for patients and their families 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
This November is National Home Care and Hospice Month, an observance dedicated to recognizing those who provide health care in patients’ homes — and who make a difference in the lives of patients and their families.
The best possible care
Hospice aides — also called home health aides — are certified nursing assistants who receive specialized training in care related to death and dying. They care for people facing the end of life by assisting with daily activities and providing comfort and support to patients and their loved ones.
The role of hospice aides includes helping with bathing, grooming, and dressing, changing and cleaning bedding, and preparing some meals. Hospice aides also may help with medications and medical equipment, performing light housework tasks, and, sometimes, accompanying patients to appointments or errands outside the home.
Although hospice aides can care for patients in a hospice or nursing facility, the majority do so in patients’ homes, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.
In most cases, hospice aides visit patients once to a few times a week, ensuring all their needs are met. Hospice aides also educate patients’ family members on how to provide the best possible care when they’re not around.
Your care, your impact
This year’s National Home Care and Hospice Month theme is #YourCareYourImpact.
The impact hospice aides make on the patients’ lives they touch is deep and far-reaching. Of course, there are logistical benefits, like increased access to a healthcare professional and medications that bring comfort, as well as a restored sense of dignity to patients and much-needed relief to family members. But there are intangible benefits, too, like the emotional support hospice aides offer to patients and their families.
Indeed, one of the greatest gifts hospice aides provide patients and their loved ones is simply being nearby and lending a listening, compassionate ear.
Research from the National Institutes of Health has found that patients who choose to die at home with hospice care have a greater quality of life, and their family members do, too. That’s because hospice and hospice aides help patients, and their loved ones, keep the focus where it belongs: spending time with the people who matter most.
Traditions Health offers comprehensive, skilled hospice care services. To learn more about our hospice services, including hospice aides, please contact us.