For most families, “palliative care” isn’t a phrase that’s used during everyday conversation. Because of this, it may lead to confusion—or even anxiety—when their loved one needs palliative care services. The truth is that palliative care offers patients comfort and a higher quality of life when they’re dealing with chronic medical conditions.
What is palliative care?
Palliative care begins with a patient’s diagnosis; it’s for people who haven’t exhausted their options and are still seeking treatment for a chronic condition. It’s a comfort approach to care, but at a level where the patient is still seeking curative options to either manage or cure their condition.
At Ardent Hospice & Palliative Care, both services go hand in hand. Palliative care and hospice care both involve a high skill level in the nursing and comfort care management for either situation. However hospice care patients must no longer be seeking curative measures, and care for hospice patients is often more invasive.
With the knowledge of what palliative care is, its benefits for patients and their families become more apparent. These are the three main ways palliative care improves the quality of life of patients:
1. Easier transition for families
Being introduced to the palliative component early on in a loved one’s diagnosis provides an easier transition if he or she is later referred into hospice. If a patient starts on palliative and then exhausts their treatment options and goes into hospice, they will already have a mindset and understanding of the support they’ll receive from Ardent’s team. They’ll also have the opportunity to really get to know the nurses and volunteers who would then come to visit for hospice care.
There may also be some patients who are hospice appropriate, but not ready to accept that prognosis. Bringing in palliative care services allows them to keep attempting the curable measures and treatments, while also creating a pathway where they’re more open to hospice care. By receiving services from a palliative and hospice care agency, patients can get a clearer understanding of their disease, its prognosis—that it is no longer considered curable—and that their focus should shift to living a more comfortable quality of life by accepting hospice services.
2. Better overall medical coordination
While a patient is receiving palliative care, they are still able to see their regular primary care physician. This helps bridge the gap between their current care and the palliative services. Their physician has the support of our palliative care team, and we typically have an open door with their doctor to ask questions, take notes, and be able to provide the best care possible. Since the patient is still visiting their own doctor, they can have a better understanding of their illness and its diagnosis, as well as a better understanding of the comforts palliative care can provide them.
3. Extra support all around
Ultimately, palliative care provides extra support to the patient, their family, and any caregivers. It becomes a team for managing a patient’s illness, and going forward they have someone they can turn to with a higher knowledge of their disease. With Ardent Hospice & Palliative Care, the patient and their family can rest assured that they have a support system in place and someone to guide them on the journey they begin as soon as they receive a chronic medical diagnosis. We offer an extra set of eyes on their loved one, and we’re available for them for each part of the process and help point them in the right direction.
Whether your loved one has been referred to hospice care or needs the extra attention to manage a chronic condition, palliative care can bring them comfort when they need it most. If you want more information on the extra support palliative care can offer your loved one, contact Ardent Hospice & Palliative Care today by visiting us online or calling (858) 952-1786.
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