What is Hospice Care at Home?
Hospice care at home is a choice that more and more people are making at the end of their lives. Hospice care is for people who are sick and nearing the end of their lives and focuses on their care, comfort, and quality of life. Patients can stay in the comfort of their homes while hospice is given daily with a support team available to the patient’s caregiver 24/7.
What are the Four Levels of Hospice Care?
There are four levels of hospice care, and each one is based on what the person getting care needs. These include:
- Routine care – Also known as home hospice care, this is the most common type of hospice care and is for people who don’t need hospice care around the clock. Most of the time, this means they are stable and can take care of their symptoms. People can get regular hospice care at home instead of staying in a facility
- Continuous care – Continuous hospice care is mostly about nursing care, but a person may also get help at home, from a hospice aide, or both. A patient can get continuous hospice care at home instead of at an inpatient facility. If someone can’t control their pain or other symptoms, they may need continuous hospice care all the time
- General inpatient care – This level of care takes place in an inpatient facility, like a hospital or nursing home, which focuses on controlling pain and managing symptoms that can’t be handled at home
- Respite care – Hospice care professionals take care of the person who is dying so that the person who is caring for them can rest. Most of the time, respite care is short-term and lasts up to 5 days
Hospice care is important for those who are nearing the end of life. In-home hospice care is very common and provides all of what the patient needs, unless they require more from the care, like pain management. Sometimes, pain and other symptoms cannot be managed at home, and the patient may need to move to an inpatient facility.
Home Hospice Visits
Patients will start getting visits from their hospice team, which includes nurses that will come by to check on the patient’s health. They will work with the patient’s doctor to make changes to the patient’s care and medication based on how the patient’s needs change.
Aides can also come to the home several times a week to help with personal care as needed. This includes helping with transfers and feeding, as well as bathing and grooming. With this extra help, family members can take a break and relax, knowing that their loved one is getting the care that is tailored to their needs.
More Quality Time with In-Home Hospice Care
When hospice care is given at home, the patient can stay in a place where they are most comfortable. If the patient’s condition changes, support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to answer questions and help.
This extra time at home also lets the person stay involved in family events and get-togethers, which means family members don’t have to plan visits around hospital hours. Instead, they can spend time together in a relaxed setting at home, which gives them more time to talk about everything they want and need to.
The Benefits of In-Home Hospice Care
The best thing about hospice care at home is that patients can get care in a place that feels comfortable to them. Most people would rather spend their last days at home, and hospice care services can help them do this. When you have a serious illness, the hospice team can help with tasks that make it easier for patients to live on their own and improve their quality of life.
Family caregivers often choose hospice care at home because it is easier for them. When hospice care is given at home, family members don’t have to travel to and from the hospital as much, which makes it easier for them to be with their loved ones during this hard time.
Getting Hospice Care at Home
Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans have a hospice benefit that pays for hospice patients to get care at home. For patients and their families to get insurance benefits, they may need a referral from the patient’s primary care doctor.
Contact Hospice Care Options today at (800)563-8680 to find out more about getting hospice care at home and having peace of mind that their loved one can spend their last days in a familiar place with family and friends.