Hospice in Nursing Facilities

Hospice services can be provided to eligible patients living in nursing homes. The partnership of hospice care with nursing home care has advantages for all who are involved.

Advantages for the resident and his or her family

  • Broader array of services
  • State of the art end-of-life care
  • Resident and family counseling and support
  • Out of hospital care during the last stages of an illness
  • Continuity of care in transition from one setting to another
  • Bereavement follow-up for the family

Advantages to the nursing facility

  • Validation of change in focus of care from rehabilitative/restorative to palliative (comfort care)
  • Additional personnel for resident care
  • Education opportunities for staff
  • End-of-life care technology available at no cost and on-call
  • Decreased staff burnout
  • Bereavement follow-up for nursing home staff, roommates and other facility residents as requested
  • Marketing and PR opportunities

Advantages to the hospice

  • Elaboration of philosophy and extension of hospice care to all in service area
  • Ability to rely on facility staff as primary caregiver system
  • Decreased costs due to a less fragile primary support system

How are the responsibilities divided?

The Nursing Facility Provides:

  • Communication with hospice
  • Expertise with regard to long term care including aging and dementia
  • Services ordinarily provided to residents including personal care, assistance with activities of daily living, socialization, and nursing care including administration of medications
  • A safe and comfortable living space including a room with personal furnishings and meals that accommodate special diets
  • Surrogate family and caregivers for patients who have no family

The Hospice Provides:

  • Services of all the members of the hospice interdisciplinary team, including hospice physicians, nurses, social workers, hospice aides, chaplains and volunteers
  • Expertise with regard to palliative care, pain and symptom management, dying and bereavement
  • Management of the patient's life-limiting illness
  • 24 hour on-call support to handle questions and emergencies
  • Bereavement support to families and nursing home staff
  • Communication with the nursing home

Hospice of the Panhandle partners with the following nursing facilities:

 

To inquire about hospice services for yourself or someone you know,
contact Nancy Zenich, Social Services Director.
nzenich@hospiceotp.org  
(304) 264-0406 or (800) 345-6538