Getting Started on Hospice

Once you or your loved one has opted for hospice care and your doctor has agreed this is appropriate, a member of the hospice team will call to schedule a visit to your home ( it can be at a private residence, SNF, B&C, or an Assisted Living) to “admit” you to hospice. The admission visit is done by an RN.

The RN will explain the hospice philosophy, and once all questions have been answered, consents will be signed for admission to hospice. RN will review the patient’s medical history, current medications, assess if any DME equipment is needed. Examples of DME are a hospital bed, wheelchair, shower chair, oxygen. All of this equipment is brought to you and is covered under the hospice benefit of your insurance. If you already have some of this equipment, it sometimes needs to be switched out because different home care agencies/hospices use different vendors.

The RN will go over current medications, determining what medications will be covered by hospice and thus delivered to your home. Only medications related to your hospice diagnosis are covered by hospice.
The RN will go over different members of the hospice team who you can expect visits and/or calls from over the upcoming days. Your hospice team will include physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, CHHA, volunteers, and bereavement counselors.

The first days of hospice can be overwhelming with deliveries, meeting new people, retaining new information, and simply the stress of the situation, but then you realize why you decided on hospice in the first place. Together with your hospice team, you will create a schedule of visits that meets your needs. The frequency of nursing visits changes as your needs change. While the hospice team will be in and out of the home frequently and will do extended teaching, as a person declines and becomes less independent, it is the family, caregivers, etc who are responsible for the care and safety of the patient. A plan of care will be developed, implemented, periodically reassessed, and re-implemented.

A plan of care will include basics like how often your nurse visits. It also may include strategies to increase your quality of life, tweak your medications, or address stresses being experienced by your loved ones.

Having a hospice nurse available 24/7, you will get fast and effective help while keeping you at home. If, for example, you experience a fall, develop a new symptom, or observe worsening of an existing problem, call hospice. Urgent nursing visits are done around the clock.

Dying is part of living and hospice is focused on living while dying. Hospice supports you and/or your loved one to ensure comfort and peace.