People frequently ask: is hospice only for cancer patients?
The answer is simple. No, hospice care isn’t only for cancer patients. It’s a special kind of care for anyone living with any serious illness that has been diagnosed with six months or less to live by their doctor or specialist. If you or a loved one is living with heart disease, liver disease or kidney disease, ALS, COPD, stroke, dementia, or another illness, you and your family can benefit from hospice care. Because it’s not just for cancer patients.
Hospice care experts – available 24/7 – help you or your loved one live in peace, comfort, and dignity no matter what disease you’re dealing with. The hospice team helps you stay in your home, where you’re the most comfortable, whether that’s in your family home, assisted living, or nursing home facility.
When you choose hospice care, you choose the best possible quality of life specific to your illness and your wishes. This individualized care addresses your physical symptoms, spiritual requests, and emotional needs during the end-of-life journey. Patients with heart disease, lung disease, dementia, and more benefit from this care, along with cancer patients, because hospice care benefits everyone, not just people living with cancer.
If you or your loved one chooses to forgo curative treatments, hospice helps by managing pain and symptoms caused by your illness. If you have a desire not to be hospitalized for your progressing heart disease, for example, hospice care will help manage your shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue and hypertension at home.
Or if you or your loved one has difficulty swallowing, problems eating or drinking, and does not want to be placed on a ventilator or feeding tube due to ALS, hospice care can help with comfort, education, and making these difficult decisions that impact your quality of life.
For any illness, the expert hospice care team addresses spiritual and emotional issues, coaches you through hands-on caregiving, and answers your call 24/7. Your hospice nurse creates an individualized plan of care to address any issues including pain, hydration, nutrition, skin care, agitation, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, and so much more.
Anyone living with a serious illness and nearing the end of life can benefit from hospice care. Hospice care isn’t just for cancer patients and it isn’t just for the last few days of life. You and your entire family can benefit from hospice care in your last few weeks and months of life.
You or your loved one’s quality of life can be improved with hospice care if you have:
Hospice helps by managing pain. Hospice helps by managing shortness of breath, difficulty swallowing, problems eating or drinking, and difficulty communicating. Hospice addresses anxiety, depression, and grief. Hospice care can help alleviate pressure ulcers and prevent infections. Read more about the benefits of hospice care >>
You can also read about hospice eligibility requirements by disease. This information can be shared with your healthcare provider. Please call us at (800) 229-8183 if you have questions about hospice eligibility.
If you would like more information about hospice care for cancer patients and any serious illness, please call us at (800) 229-8183 or fill out the online form on this page.