Over a million people in the US spend their last days in hospice care in America, and the number is growing. Well, the figure could have been even higher, if only people knew enough about this special service.
Here are three important things about hospice you may not have known.
Someone needs to qualify for hospice
Typically, people who enroll in hospice homes here in Indiana must have a life-altering condition whose expected prognosis is six months or less. Two physicians must certify that this is to be the case before you can gain admission to this service.
However, keep in mind that this timeframe is arbitrary since no one can tell for sure how much time a person has left.
With hospice, you can live longer
Patients with terminal illnesses who enroll in hospice care tend to live longer during the time they have left than people receiving standard care. Studies show that this period can extend to three months for patients with lung cancer, even longer for patients with breast cancer.
This is just another reason patients are encouraged to sign up for the service.
Hospice is for everyone in the family
The last days of a loved one can be a difficult period for everyone in the family. Seeing the hallucinations of delirium that the ailing person goes through can be traumatic. And when your dear one can no longer speak, it becomes very difficult to understand their body language.
A specialist in hospice can help the family know what the loved one is trying to communicate.
What you know about hospice is ultimately what determines whether or not you’ll choose the service when the right time comes. By doing away with the misconceptions that abound about this important care, you can have full advantage of it early enough.
