It is a common, but at times forgotten, fact that every person’s experience is unique, from the paths we take through this world to how we navigate life’s big choices. It also means we are all different when it comes to how our bodies react to life. This is just as true in our later years as it is in our early years.
This is why hospice care always looks different for each person. Hospice care is personalized care that’s as unique as each individual. Hospice teams assess every patient and create a plan based on those observations. Care teams take into account the uniqueness of each caregiver as well. Will the caregiver be able to assist with daily tasks? Do they need some extra help at home to make sure the patient’s experience is as peaceful as it can be? Hospice care teams can also assist caregivers with education and available resources to enhance the quality of life that remains.
Below is a testimonial from one of our own Heart to Heart team members, Julie Davidson, and her experience with her parents’ journeys in hospice care. Two different people, two different situations, two different care plans. The main unifying factor: a hospice care team that understood each person’s unique diagnosis and personality and demonstrated compassion toward the patients and the caregiver.
A Daughter’s Experience with Short-Term and Long-Term Hospice Care
My parents, who were happily married for 68 years, were nonetheless as different as night and day. So, it came as no surprise when their end-of-life experiences also differed greatly. This included their hospice journeys.
While both were diagnosed with dementia (Mother with vascular dementia and Daddy with Alzheimer’s disease), the way it manifested in their lives was extremely different. Mother suffered a stroke in 2016 and a series of seizures and falls over the next several years, along with a slow, steady decline in her cognitive abilities. Dad lovingly cared for her and remained mentally sharp until 2022, when his reasoning skills and memory seemed to disappear overnight.
We moved them into an Assisted Living facility, and, soon after, to a Memory Care community. After another fall, Mother was hospitalized and then transferred to a Skilled Nursing Facility. One morning, the nurse was unable to wake her, and we were told it was time for hospice. The hospice team was gentle with her and kind to us. She was only on hospice service for about 10 days and was unresponsive for most of that time before she passed peacefully in November 2023.
Dad, now nearly 92 and still living in Memory Care, was diagnosed with colon cancer last June and has been on hospice for 11 months. He is still conversing, reading his newspaper, and enjoying the sunshine. And the members of his hospice team see him regularly and know him well.
When the chaplain visits, they pray together. The aides bathe him and help with his routine and hygiene – he even lets them shave his beard. The nurse monitors his vitals and medications, keeping close track of his sleeping patterns, his appetite, his mobility, and his comfort level – all indicators of his condition. Tremendously experienced and compassionate, she stays in touch with me, texting or calling at least once a week, which means the world since I live in a different state. (She even sends me pictures on days when he is alert and wants to read her the headlines!) The social worker is helping me plan a veteran’s memorial service to honor my Dad’s wishes.
While my parents’ hospice experiences have been vastly different, the common thread is clear – hospice care is personalized care. Whether for a few days or a few years, hospice team members collaborate to provide the medical and emotional support that each patient and family needs.
Making sure each patient has the best end-of-life experience possible is the main focus of hospice care. Each care team also takes the caregiver into account so families can be assured their loved one is receiving the most appropriate care for their unique personality and condition.
Diagnoses are not one size fits all, so hospice care shouldn’t be either. Talk to our compassionate team at Heart to Heart today about how we can create the best care plan for your loved one, so their final days are as peaceful as they can be.
