The Five Principles
- Palliative Care respects the goals, likes and choices of the dying person. Palliative Care:
- Respects the patients needs and wants, as well as those of his/her family and other loved ones;
- Finds out from the patient who he/she wants to help plan and give him/her care;
- Helps the patient understand his/her illness and what he/she can expect in the future;
- Helps the patient figure out what is important;
- Tries to meet the patients likes and dislikes - where he/she gets health care, where he/she wants to live, and the kinds of services he/she wants; and
- Helps patients work with their providers & health plans to solve problems
- Palliative Care looks after the medical, emotional, social and spiritual needs of the dying person. It:
- Knows dying is an important time for the patient and his/her family;
- Offers ways for the patient to be comfortable and ease pain and other physical discomfort;
- Helps the patient and his/her family make needed changes if the illness gets worse;
- Makes sure the patient is not alone;
- Understands there may be difficulties, fears and painful feelings;
- Gives patients the chance to say and do what matters to them most; and
- Helps patients look back on their lives and make peace, even giving them a chance to grow.
- Palliative Care supports the needs of family members. Palliative care:
- Understands families and loved ones need help, too;
- Offers support services to family caregivers, such as time off for rest, advice and support via telephone;
- Knows caregiving may put some family members at risk of getting sick themselves. It plans for their special needs;
- Finds ways for family members to cope with the cost of caregiving, like loss of income and other expenses; and
- Helps family and loved ones as they grieve.
- Palliative Care helps gain access to needed health care providers and appropriate care settings. It uses many kinds of trained care providers-doctors, nurses, pharmacists, clergy, social workers and personal caregivers; makes sure, if necessary, someone is in charge of seeing the patient’s needs are met; helps patients use hospitals, homecare, hospice and other services, if needed; and tailors options to the needs of the patient and his/her family.
- Palliative care builds ways to provide excellent care at the end of life. Palliative Care helps more providers learn about the best ways to care for the dying-it gives them the education and support they need; works to make sure there are good policies and laws in place; and seeks funding by private health insurers health plans and government agencies.
Reprinted from Last Acts, A national coalition to improve care and caring at the end of life.
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University Hospice provides compassionate, comprehensive palliative care to patients with a life expectancy of six months or less.
Services are provided at home, in the nursing home, and, when appropriate, the inpatient setting.
Services include:
- 24 hour on-call RN
- RN visits
- MD visits
- Social Work
- Volunteers
- Home Health Aides
- Dietitian
- Medications for symptom management
- DME
- Bereavement follow-up with family for 1 year
- Bereavement groups (provided free to the entire community)
Reimbursement:
- Medicare
- Medicaid
- Most 3rd Party Insurance
Did You Know...
...that if your patient accepts Hospice, you can continue to follow them and manage their care? You do not have to transfer the patient to the Hospice Medical Director. If you choose to be the patient’s hospice physician, our nurses will contact you on a regular basis to inform you of any changes in the patient’s condition so that you may change the treatment plan as necessary. Our Medical Director, Mary Vesoniaraki, MD, remains available to consult with you if needed.
If your patient is admitted to SIUH while on Hospice, and you are an attending physician at SIUH, you will of course continue to follow your patient. If you are not an attending physician at SIUH, Dr. Vesoniaraki will follow your patient
Perspectives in Palliative Care is a quarterly publication of University Hospice. Your comments are welcomed.
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