Understanding the Hospice Admissions Process

Although you may have heard of hospice care, you may not know how it’s actually arranged. Because hospice is for terminally ill patients, it can be difficult to talk about for yourself or your loved one. Traditions Health understands how stressful it can be to opt for end-of-life care. Here is a guide to understanding the hospice admissions process.

Why hospice care?

The National Hospital and Palliative Care Organization and Caring Info defines hospice as “a type of health care that focuses on the relief of a terminally ill patient’s distress and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs during the final stages of life.” Put simply, it focuses on caring for, rather than curing, a person.

You or your loved one may choose hospice care when treatments are no longer effective, or recovery isn’t possible. Some of the positive aspects of hospice include:

• Comprehensive care: a multidisciplinary healthcare team creates a personalized plan of care
• Convenience: no need to travel to doctors’ appointments or the hospital
• Familiar environment: hospice often can be at home in a calm, quiet setting
• Bereavement support: various resources can help family members and caregivers
• Patient’s wishes and dignity: hospice prioritizes comfort and quality of life
• Time with family and friends: hospice allows you to spend time with your loved ones you’d otherwise spend on treatment

Qualifying for hospice

Anyone can bring up hospice with the medical team at any time, so you don’t have to wait for the doctor to talk about it. In fact, families often wait too long to discuss hospice care, which means patients can’t experience its full benefits over several months.

Hospice may be appropriate when a patient feels that the discomfort of curative treatments outweighs the benefits. Or it may be helpful when worsening symptoms, weakness, fatigue, or confusion severely impact quality of life. Hospice care is used for a variety of illnesses, including ALS, cancer, heart disease, kidney disease, complications of dementia, and others.

Of course, every patient is unique. Hospice is a personal decision that you, your loved ones, and your doctors make together. Your healthcare team will use an extensive evaluation process to determine whether you or your loved one are medically eligible for hospice care.

There are two qualifications:

• Doctors: At least two doctors must certify that a patient has a terminal illness, and their life expectancy is six months or less.
• Patient: The patient must decide that they no longer wish to receive curative treatment but wish to receive comfort measures only during this end-of-life journey.

These qualifications are required for Medicare coverage, but private health insurance plans may have different guidelines. If you’re considering hospice care for yourself or a loved one, check with your insurance provider.

Starting the process

There are four levels of hospice care. The hospice team will complete a comprehensive assessment of the patient. They will consider a patient’s condition and wishes, along with the preferences of the family and caregivers, to recommend the best one.

• Routine home care includes intermittent care such as nursing, aide support for activities of daily living, physical therapy, and more in the place they call home.
• Continuous home care provides a healthcare provider for 8-24 hours per day. Continuous home care is short-term in nature.
• General inpatient care treats the patient at an inpatient hospice facility, acute care hospital, or long-term care facility. General inpatient care is short-term in nature.
• Respite care offers temporary inpatient care (up to five days at a time) to provide a break for the primary caregiver

Each level of hospice care may include a variety of items and services to care for the patient. Among them: 

• Dietary counseling
• Equipment and supplies
• Bereavement support and counseling
• Hospice aide and homemaker services
• Medicine
• Nursing care
• Occupational therapy
• Physical therapy
• Speech-language pathology services
• Spiritual counseling

Beginning hospice care

When you or your loved one decides on hospice care, you can rest easier knowing that you’ll have a whole team supporting you. From helping you complete the necessary paperwork to explaining care options, they’ll be at your side every step of the way.

The Hospice Foundation of America describes the many roles hospice teams play to ensure an easy transition, including:

• Meeting with the patient, loved ones, and caregivers to discuss symptoms, services, and expectations
• Developing the patient’s plan of care (POC), which specifies medicines, supplies and equipment, specific services, and how often healthcare professionals will visit the patient. This can include the doctor, nurse, medical social worker, home health aide, spiritual professional, and volunteers.
• Training family caregivers on ways to care for their loved ones during this time.

Hospice care is not one-size-fits-all, and everyone’s experiences may be different. But you can rely on your hospice team to work with you and your loved one to provide the highest quality of care. If you need help, Traditions Health offers compassionate, professional hospice care, and is ready to answer your questions. Please contact us to learn more.