What is hospice care?

Hospice care makes patient comfortable and prepares the patient and the patient’s family for the patient’s end of life when it is determined treatment for the illness will no longer be pursued. Hospice care is provided for any terminal illness at any age with the comfort care being the focus. Hospice care is the comfort care without curative intent; patient is no longer responding to curative treatment or has elected not to further pursue pursue such treatments. Primary goals of hospice care are improved quality of life and relief of suffering (physical, emotional, and spiritual). Patient receives visits from a specialized interdisciplinary team to provide oversight of care plan (Physician, Registered Nurse, Social Worker, Chaplain, Home Aides and Volunteers) wherever home is and as often as necessary.

Who can benefit from hospice care?

Hospice care is for a terminally ill person who’s expected to have six months or less to live. But hospice care can be provided for as long as the person’s physician and hospice care team certify that the condition remains life-limiting. Many people who receive hospice care have cancer, while others have heart disease, dementia, kidney failure or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Enrolling in hospice care early helps you live better and live longer. Hospice care decreases the burden on family, decreases the family’s likelihood of having a complicated grief and prepares family members for their loved one’s death.

Our Mission:

Angel Palliative Care and Hospice is guided by a tradition of personal, clinical and technological excellence. We are dedicated to providing the highest quality of patient care with compassion and respect for each person.

Our Philosophy:

Angel Palliative Care and Hospice recognizes the unique physical, emotional and spiritual needs of each person. We strive to extend the highest level of courtesy and service to patients, families/caregivers, visitors and each other. We deliver state-of-art hospice services with identified centers of excellence. We engage in a wide range of continuing education, clinical education, and other programs for professionals and the public. We believe that the quality of our human resources – organization personnel, physicians, and volunteers – is the key to our continued success. We provide physicians an environment that fosters high quality diagnosis and treatment.

Our Services:

Routine care is provided at your home on an average day. The hospice team and services are available at scheduled times, and on-call to respond to emergencies’ 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

  • Interdisciplinary case management by a team comprised of:
    •    Skilled Nurses
    •    Hospice Medical Director
    •    Medical Social Workers
    •    Certified Home Health Aides
    •    Volunteers
  • Services include
    • On-Call services (Home visits can prevent ER visits and hospitalizations)
    • Visit by nurses, home heath aides, medical social workers and spiritual counselors
    • Family counseling and education regarding care
    • Hospice physician employed by hospice to provide clinical direction to the hospice team
    • Volunteer support
    • Bereavement counselor evaluation and plan for caregiver and family support for up to 13 months
    • All durable medical equipment and medical supplies as required for treatment of the terminal diagnosis
    • Medications related to terminal illness
    • Dietary counseling and diversified therapies for comfort care

    Hospice Care Eligibility:

    • Patient has been diagnosed with a life-limiting condition with a prognosis of 6 months or less if their disease runs its normal course
    • Increasing weakness, fatigue, and somnolence, a change in cognitive and functional abilities
    • Weight loss of 10% in past 6 months or at least 10 lbs. in one month
    • Frequent ER visits/hospitalizations, 2 or more without stabilization or improvement in the past 6 months
    • Recurrent infections: UTI’s, Cellulitis, or Respiratory
    • Incontinence of bowel and/or bladder
    • Decline in Activities of Daily Living (ADL’s) such Primary Diagnoses qualifying patients for Hospice Care:as eating, bathing, dressing, toileting, transferring/walking, and continence, or shortness of breath with min activity
    • Mental decline that interferes with any day to day activities
    • Skin breakdowns or any pressure sores stage II or higher
    • High levels of Creatine in Urine or Low levels of Albumin in blood

    Send Your Referrals

    Do you have a friend, family member, relative, or colleague who can benefit from our services? Send us a referral today.

    LEARN MORE

    To arrange a one-on-one hospice consultation with our team, please contact us at any time.

a caregiver and a senior woman smiling at each other