Reviewed 8/23/2022
End-of-life care: True or false?
Do you know the difference between hospice care and palliative care? There's some overlap in the kind of care they provide, so it's easy to confuse the terms. Take this quiz to improve your knowledge about how these valuable services can improve quality of life for people with serious illness.
True or false: Palliative care is only for people who are dying.
False. While hospice is end-of-life care, you can receive palliative care at any time. And you don't have to have a life-threatening illness. It's simply focused on improving your comfort and quality of life—you can have palliative care alongside curative care. In fact, it can help the whole family. And it may provide the best conditions for healing.
True or false: Accepting hospice care mean stopping all medical care.
False. Hospice care is given to people whose chances for recovery are small and whose life expectancy is measured in months rather than years. The focus shifts from cure to comfort. Still, hospice patients receive the medical care they need to manage symptoms.
True or false: Hospice care is only for older people who are dying of age-related illness.
False. Age doesn't matter. Hospice care is open to anyone with a life expectancy of less than six months. Whether it's cancer, Alzheimer's or any other terminal illness, hospice is available to ease pain and promote comfort in the final months of life.
True or false: Hospice care and palliative care can be provided wherever the person lives.
True. Both hospice care and palliative care can be provided in hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, hospice centers or a person's own home.
True or false: There is no limit to how long a person can receive hospice care.
True. Although hospice care is for people who are not expected to live longer than six months, many people do live longer. Predicting how long someone will live isn't an exact science, and doctors' estimates may fall short. Medicare will continue to pay for hospice as long as the patient's life expectancy is measured in months—even if they live for years.
These are just a few of the facts about types of care that could make life easier for the ill person and their family. Don't be afraid to ask your doctor about palliative or hospice care—it's a decision you can make together.
Sources: Administration for Community Living; National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization; National Institute on Aging
Hospice offers comprehensive support to terminally ill patients and their families. In addition to providing pain and symptom management for the patient, hospice provides comfort and reassurance to families during this uncertain life transition. Hospice provides comfort care and brings quality of life during the final days of a person's life while supporting families through this difficult time. Some of the additional specialized services provided include spiritual care, nutritional education and bereavement services. You should consider hospice care when there is a life expectancy of six months or less and you or your loved one have decided to forgo seeking curative measures.
For more information, call 509-574-3606.
Cottage in the Meadow, MultiCare Yakima Memorial's hospice facility
Cottage in the Meadow provides quality hospice care in a rich, home-like environment while operating a 24-hour nursing staff assisted by hospice aides, chaplains, physicians, social workers and volunteers.
20 private, spacious suites, each complete with a bath and an individual patio, are designed to accommodate a patient with a variety of amenities for both patients and families.
In addition to providing pain and symptom management for terminally ill patients, Cottage offers comfort and reassurance to families during this uncertain life transition, including spiritual care, nutritional education and bereavement services. Patients are referred to hospice by their physician.
This home-like environment assists patients who need more intensive care for symptom management or for those needing respite care. For more information, call 509-574-6744.
El Centro Cottage in the Meadow
Para más información, llame al 509-574-6744.
El Centro Cottage in the Meadow mejora el espectro total de cuidados paliativos disponibles para los residentes de los condado de Yakima Kittitas que no puedan recibir atención en sus hogares.
Este ambiente hogareño ayuda a pacientes que necesitan un cuidado más intensivo para el manejo de síntomas o para aquellos que necesiten cuidado de relevo.
Estas instalaciones cuentan con 20 camas en un área total de 16,000 pies cuadrados donde se ofrecen cuidados paliativos y cuidados de relevo de calidad en un ambiente hogareño mientras opera con un personal de enfermería las 24 horas con la asistencia de auxiliares de hospicio, capellanes, doctores, trabajadores sociales y voluntarios.
Además de proporcionar manejo del dolor y síntomas a pacientes con enfermedades terminales, Cottage ofrece consuelo y aliento a las familias durante esta transición incierta de la vida, incluyendo atención espiritual, educación nutricional y servicios de duelo. Los pacientes son referidos a cuidados paliativos por su doctor.
Este ambiente hogareño ayuda a los pacientes que necesitan un cuidado más intensivo para el manejo de síntomas o para aquellos que necesiten cuidado de relevo.
A celebration of life