For Providers
Benefits of Hospice Care for Your Patients
It’s never easy to make the determination that a patient is nearing the end of life, and it can be even more difficult to share a life-limiting prognosis with the patient and family. But transitioning a patient to hospice care, where the focus is on maintaining quality of life for as long as possible, can be beneficial both for them and for their family.
A Comprehensive Plan
Hospice care providers work closely with you to ensure a patient’s needs are met. A care plan is provided by an integrated group of both clerical and clinical team members, from physicians and nurse practitioners to chaplains and volunteers.
Emotional and Spiritual Support
In addition to meeting the physical needs of a patient, hospice care also supports the emotional and spiritual needs of both the patient and their family. Services like bereavement support can help patients and loved ones cope during an end-of-life journey, while chaplains are available for non-denominational spiritual support.
And in many cases, hospice care can be provided at a patient’s home. Being in a familiar location can provide comfort to both patients and families.
A Decreased Financial Burden
In addition to enhancing quality of life, hospice care can also help decrease the financial burden that a life-limiting illness can place on a patient and their families. Transitioning a patient to hospice care helps keep costs low because it can reduce hospital visits and because patients are no longer participating in expensive treatments.
During the last months of life, cost savings of over 30% have been realized using hospice services for the care of cancer patients, according to An Analysis of the Cost Savings of the Medicare Hospice Benefit conducted by Lewin-VHI. Research from Trella Health has also found that “Patients in our study who did not receive hospice consumed $27,455 more in health care costs during the last three months of life than those who received early hospice care.”
To learn more about the benefits of hospice and the services we provide at Agape Care, please contact us today.