The purpose of experiencing a hospice clinical was to give me the opportunity to observe and participate in the care of my patients who are receiving hospice care in their home. My first encounter occurred in Jenks, Oklahoma at the patient’s personal home. Upon entering the house, we were greeted by his wife and one of their sons. Before we spoke with the patient we had a pre-conference in the patient’s living room with his wife. My nurse asked how the patient’s wife was doing and the wife stated that she needs more help with his care. She feels like her husband needs some form of an assistive device for walking, getting in and out of bed, an assistive device for urinating, and a chaplain. In response to this statement the nurse asked her if she would like a walker, …show more content…
Being offered these services further highlights his declining health. This hospice clinical made me experience a variety of emotions. My first initial emotions were nervousness and awkwardness, I believe I felt this way because I have never been directly involved with hospice. The second wave of emotions consisted of sorrow and hopelessness. I felt these emotions because I couldn’t fathom being in their situation, but then I realized I cannot let these emotions affect the way I care for this patient and his family. The last of my emotions were compassion and motivation. I was motivated to be compassionate for the patient and his family. Upon entering the patient’s room I finally understood my place and part of how to care for this patient. This hospice clinical will affect me for years to come, it taught me how to show compassion even when I am scared for the patient. It taught me that just because my patient is dying, or is very much near death, doesn’t mean that they are unaware of their condition. I honestly feel that this hospice experience has made me a better person, and it will make me a better
I spoke with the patient 's wife via phone, The wife states that she needs additional assistance for the patient. She states that she is aware that the patient 's health is declining and that she wants him to be comfortable at home. I discussed hospice services with the patient and the wife. The wife states that she would like hospice to evaluate the patient, the patient also agree for hospice to evaluate. Case reviewed with the patient 's nurse, the charge nurse, case management and hospice.
The reporting party (RP) stated on 8/1/15 as she was assisting a Memorial Hospice patient shower she heard the front door alarm sound. The RP stated a staff person (Abundio Serenio) was assisting with the shower at the time of the incident. The RP stated she heard the sound of running footsteps and a woman 's voice screaming she wanted to leave, she had to get out of here. The RP stated she heard the staff call out the name "Claire" during the incident. The RP stated she finished assisting with the shower and went to the hallway and observed "Claire" running towards her saying "Chris" kicked her.
This summer I was assigned Final Gifts by Maggie Callahan and Patricia Kelley. Both authors worked as hospice nurses and were able to share their thirty-three years of first- hand experiences and knowledge with us to help better our understanding of the special awareness’s, needs, and communications of the dying. The book focuses profoundly on the physical, metaphysical, and psychological traits the dying encounter weeks or days before death. Both Kelley and Callahan are experts at observing every little behavior of the sick and being able to pinpoint specific signs that mean death is approaching. Not only does this book concentrate on the sick and their needs, but it also fits in the families and their duties in such hard times.
Agency Paper The purpose of this paper is to discuss the Amedisys Home Care and Hospice agency. This paper will give a brief background on the origins of modern hospice, as well as the founding of Amedisys. This paper will discuss the mission statement, policies, and multidisciplinary approach of Amedisys--as well as how these impact both employees and the company’s clients. Specifically, this paper will discuss the role of the social worker in hospice care, and how that manifests in the rural North Georgia region that Amedisys of Dalton serves.
This video produced originally in 1981 follows three terminally ill patients during the end of their life, being cared for by family, at home. It is also the intimate portrayal of the family’s response to the fear, anger, and the overwhelming responsibility of caring for a loved one at home. I found this film powerful because I had a similar experience in my own life. My father cared for my mother at home for the last two months of her life. I remember the wide range of emotions in a manner that allowed me to process and understand the complexity of this kind of intimacy during death.
Hospice Isn’t Just for the Sick HospiceDirectory goes on to promote hospice’s commitment to improving overall quality of life, not only for terminally ill patients, but for everyone who surrounds them. Every quality hospice care facility knows that the involvement of friends and family members is an absolutely essential component of effective treatment and care. That’s why, in addition to looking after terminally ill patients directly, hospice serves caregivers http://auburncrest.com/services/what-is-hospice/ by training them in basic support functions and educating them about the intricacies of terminal care. Friends and family members can also access counseling to prepare them for the many losses they will face as illness progresses and bereavement care to help them cope with postmortem grief.
The past year I have seen how much of a big difference hospice makes. I have seen how patients and their families become attached to their hospice team. I have witnessed all hospice team members working together to be supportive to families when their loved one has passed. I never knew how much of a difference hospice can make until my time at Homestead. I saw how the entire hospice team cared for each and every patient and wanted to make the patient’s last days the best they could possibly be.
Because the funeral home was calm and they made us feel very comfortable, I did not feel sad. Instead, I felt eager to learn and very interested in what Jillian had to
Hospice is where a multi-disciplinary team of physicians, nurses, hospice aides, social workers, bereavement counselors and volunteers work together to address the physical, social, emotional and spiritual needs of each patient and family (Hospice of Southern Illinois, Inc. website, 2016, para. 1). A few benefits of hospice are that it can be used by individuals who choose to remain at their homes, stay in a hospital or even reside at a nursing home. Benefits that the hospice program provides is that of a support system to meet with the family and the patient regarding his/her care, team collaboration involving treatment and care, and bereavement follow-up for the family (Gumucio, 2016, para. 3). Hospice is a program that provides care and services to families and patients who are terminally
Healthcare in the United States is going through the very difficult challenge of trying to deliver on great care all while mitigating cost. To this very day hospitals are still trying to find ways to cut cost and save on medicare spending, and are always constantly seeking ways to reduce those cost and improve overall care. With the highest cost being associated to medicare spending in the millions in the last stages of a persons life, hospitals are now focusing on end of life services. Hospice care is one of these services that manages patients medically and keeps them out of the acute settings, such as the hospital.
Through this assignment, I was able to get an understanding of what hospice care entails. Confronting death is not easy at all and dealing with it on a regular basis is challenging. I would like to commend grief counselors, hospice nurses, EMS workers, hospice social workers and other professionals who are in the field of death and dying for the amazing work that they do on a daily basis; it takes heart and soul to get the job
In all my experiences as a nurse, I’ve realized the importance of communication, providing holistic care to an individual and empowering them with the knowledge to manage their health. When an illness strikes a person, it affects not just his body, but also his mind and spirit. The art of communication is invaluable to patient interaction and establishing a therapeutic nurse-patient relationship, that facilitate coping mechanisms for patients, moreover it prepared myself as a nurse to meet their individual needs. Furthermore, there is at the moment an insurmountable demand for survivorship care as a result of the advancement in technology and medicine, which made living beyond life expectancy possible for increasingly more people. Living after cancer treatment is not free of complications as there are acute and chronic side effects of treatment that requires constant monitoring and attention, and this information spurred me to shift my focus from palliative to survivorship care.
The mind-numbing process of debilitating illnesses eventually take a toll on caregivers. Hence, as a nurse, I must be diligent to delve into a caregiver’s emotional
Palliative Care: Differences Between Palliative Care, Hospice Care, and End of Life Care The dictionary defines palliative as "relieving pain or alleviating a problem without dealing with the underlying cause". Palliative care, therefore, is care that is focused on relieving pain and discomfort. The goal if palliative care is not to treat an illness itself, but improve a person 's quality of life during the course of their illness or situation. Because palliative care does not address the underlying problem, many people mistakenly believe that curative measures cannot be taken while their loved one is receiving this treatment.
At the ending of most people lives, they choose to spend it with loves one. Making psychosocial support a priority for them, because many in this care are in constant pain or knowing they are on the verge of death. Physicians dealing with these patients want them to secure strong psychosocial support, in these trying times. Both