Hospice Care for Patients with COPD

End-stage COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, can cause a variety of symptoms and complications, and families often worry about how to provide proper care for a loved one with advanced lung disease. COPD patients in hospice care get access to a team of caregivers who know how to help manage symptoms and ensure the highest quality of life possible.

COPD typically is considered a long-term progressive lung disease, so by the time patients reach the final stage, they have experienced symptoms such as shortness of breath and phlegm-producing coughs for many years. COPD might also be diagnosed as emphysema or chronic bronchitis. Smoke, air pollution, and chemical exposure can all cause or worsen COPD, so smokers and people who have spent time around environmental hazards are at higher risk.

When a patient reaches end-stage COPD, it becomes more difficult to breathe. Coughing may become more frequent, and coughing bouts last longer. Some COPD patients find breathing painful, and eating becomes more difficult as it gets harder to coordinate breathing and swallowing. Patients might also experience dyspnea, a feeling of not being able to get enough air. Dyspnea often causes anxiety, which makes it even harder to breathe normally.

Hospice care helps minimize the distress caused by COPD and can help patients manage symptoms to improve their quality of life.

Caregivers are often at a loss when it comes to managing symptoms of COPD in a loved one, so getting help from skilled hospice workers can ease the burden. Hospice care is focused on quality of life. Another goal of hospice care for COPD patients in particular is to reduce unwanted hospitalizations, so symptom management is often centered around this goal. Ways that a hospice team might help your loved one with COPD include:

Some patients with advanced lung disease require oxygen therapy, particularly if they are experiencing frequent severe bouts of dyspnea. A hospice caregiver can help the patient manage their doctor-prescribed oxygen use during episodes of respiratory distress. This might involve helping the patient put on an oxygen mask or adjusting the levels of oxygen to make the patient more comfortable.

Doctors often prescribe medication for people with advanced lung disease, and hospice care workers can help remind the patient to take pills on schedule and administer prescribed medication. Medicines may help COPD patients breathe easier because they reduce the soreness associated with taking a deep breath, which can reduce the need for other interventions.

Sometimes, the sleeping or sitting position of the patient can ease or exacerbate any existing breathing issues. Hospice nurses and home care workers might help position your loved one to optimize breathing and ensure comfort in a bed or chair.

Patients with COPD often become fatigued easily, even while doing tasks that once were easy. Overexertion can lead to further breathing difficulty. Hospice workers assist with everyday tasks that have become difficult for the patient, such as cooking, cleaning and personal grooming activities. Helping the patient stay relaxed and reducing strenuous activity may help decrease the frequency of coughing fits or dyspnea.

Often, families aren’t sure exactly how to help their loved ones with COPD. A hospice team can answer questions about the illness and offer suggestions for making the patient’s day-to-day life easier. Bereavement counseling is also available for family members as they face the upcoming loss of their loved one.

As always, the decision to enter hospice and the type of hospice care desired is up to the patient and family. The choice of whether to use medication and oxygen therapy is generally made by the family in consultation with the patient’s doctor, so the specifics of symptom management may differ between patients. A hospice team will work with the patient’s regular medical team to ensure that the patient remains comfortable and at peace during the end stages of COPD.