Sometimes, patients may not know what to expect when they come onto services with Ardent Hospice & Palliative Care, and it can be a confusing or stressful transition. We want every potential patient to know that at Ardent, they’re at the center of our work. If your loved one needs hospice services, please share this article with them; we want to ease their fears or concerns and help them understand that our team already cares about them deeply.
It’s our promise to support our patients through this difficult time by providing care with dignity, kindness, and heart. Here’s what else you, our patient, should understand about hospice care.
- Our care is tailored to you, in every way.
We tailor our care to your comfort and wishes as soon as you begin services. This even comes down to the language we use around your family; we understand that some people are sensitive to the term “hospice,” and we want you to know that we will do everything we can to ensure you and your family are comfortable. More than that, our nurses and staff take the time to get to know you and your loved ones individually so we can provide the personalized care to bring you peace of mind that meets your desires and needs.
- Hospice is so much more than physical care.
The goal of hospice care is to make sure you’re comfortable in all aspects of your life—physically, medically, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. As a patient, you’ll receive visits from licensed vocational nurses, nurse practitioners, medical doctors, care aides, social workers, spiritual counselors, and caring volunteers who all work together to deliver a holistic approach to your care.
- You don’t need to be dying to receive hospice care.
To qualify for hospice care, you need to receive a terminal diagnosis from your doctor and no longer be seeking curative treatments. You don’t have to look weak, be bed bound, unable to eat, or even feel as sick as your diagnosis would entail. With hospice care, our goal is to provide you the highest quality of life possible. At this point in your life, we feel you’ve earned the right to have a private care team come to you, and that’s exactly what our team is here for. When you put our services into that frame of mind—that we’re here to give you a higher quality of life during this journey—you’ll realize that you don’t have to wait for a certain point of decline to start receiving services.
- You’ll never have to worry about costs or payments.
Neither you nor your family will ever have to worry about expensive out-of-pocket costs or bills when you come onto our hospice program. Usually, Medicare will cover the entire cost of your care, including medication and medical equipment. In the rare circumstance your insurance doesn’t cover hospice, we’ll work with your provider to adjust benefits or utilize our No One Should Die Alone Foundation to make sure you get the care you need without the expense.
- You can receive hospice care wherever you are.
Sometimes, when a patient realizes they’re at the stage in their life that requires hospice care, they think they need the extra support provided by a skilled nursing facility as well; but we want you to know, that’s not typically the case. Our services are so comprehensive that you’ll find you’ll be comfortable staying in your own home with your loved ones.
If you do still prefer to move into a facility or would like to coordinate a respite day for your family, we can help you find a place that meets your needs. You’ll be able to continue receiving care from Ardent even with the extra services from a nursing home or facility.
- You can still continue to see your doctors—if that’s what you choose.
While our services bring a fully qualified care team to you, some patients still want to see their regular doctors. So long as your physicians aren’t providing curative treatments that fall under the hospice diagnosis, you can continue to visit them. If you want to keep seeing your podiatrist, optometrist, or dermatologist, those services can still be covered through your insurance.
- We won’t drop you from our care after six months of services.
Part of the hospice requirement is the prognosis of six months or less. However, we have several patients who stay with us well over six months. Our doctors monitor you the entire time you’re on service with us, and as long as you have the same qualifying diagnosis, you’ll continue to receive our care. We’ll never drop a patient as long as they qualify. If your prognosis improves and you are able to come off hospice services, you can always enroll in palliative care for extra support.
- Our services are for your family too.
Our hospice care centers around your needs, but we’re here to provide support for your family as well. We can help them apply for additional benefits, coordinate any advanced directives or outside care, and set up future services. Our bereavement counseling, which may include visits from our team and support groups, can continue for as long as your family needs it. They’ll never have to feel that they’re alone in this; when we come along with you, we walk with them too.
- In fact, your family can still come to us for support, even if you’re not on our services.
Many times, our team will meet with families even though their loved one wasn’t enrolled in our hospice services. Ardent is here to help any family in need; we can direct your family to additional resources, support groups, or discuss care options even if you’re not a part of our program.
- You and your family can start planning, before you need our services.
As you start meeting with your primary care doctor to discuss your medical plan or physician orders—especially in regards to your diagnosis—you can start to plan for hospice care. Our team often meets with patients and families well before the patient receives a hospice prognosis. Having a plan, asking questions, and expressing any concerns you may have before you need hospice care can give you peace of mind that everything is in place for when the time comes.
If you have any questions about our services, please contact us by visiting Ardent Hospice & Palliative Care online or calling (559) 408-5945.
Share +