Skilled Nursing & Rehab
Hospice Care
Services can be provided to transition smoothly into this level of care. This decision is painful and can be extremely taxing on family members. Knowing that the facility you have chosen for your family member to live is where they can remain in through their last days, offers comfort and peace of mind. Moving during this time can cause more stress and trauma to the person who is receiving Hospice Care.
Who needs Hospice Care?
Hospice care is an end of life decision about how you would like to see your loved one live their last months. Hospice care involves expert nursing staff that works around the clock to ensure that your loved one is comfortable with adequate symptom and pain management. Those in hospice care are usually diagnosed with a terminal illness that is no longer responding to medication management, or the family has chosen to stop medication interventions.
Hospice care is a type of palliative care for patients who have 6 months or less to live. it is aimed at making patients as comfortable as possible, easing their pain and other symptoms, and providing emotional support for their families.
Red flags for when you may need Hospice
- Declining Health
- Increased Time Sleeping
- Worsening Symptoms
- Shortness of Breath
- Losing weight / Not Eating
- Advanced Terminal Illness
When to set up Hospice Care?
While this is a tough conversation, it is an important one to have before things become critical for your loved one. Our staff will discuss options with you regarding this stage of treatment when you are choosing memory care; however, this option is also available in our assisted living facilities. At least six months before someone passes, they should be in Hospice Care. It is not always easy to predict the need for Hospice Care. The medical staff at our Avante locations are trained to recognize symptoms and behaviors that indicate Hospice Care is needed. You will be contacted by one of our Social Workers to begin exploring options.
Avante Staff at Hospice Care
The staff at Hospice Care are doctors, nurses, social workers, case managers, and Chaplin’s. Beyond medical questions, during this time, many families and residents receiving hospice care may have unresolved questions about life, conflicts, death, and so on. Counseling is available for both family members and residents who would like to have closure. Because Avante offers Hospice Care at the assisted living and memory facility locations, the trust that is needed for this type of emotional healing will already be present, making the process of death more bearable.
Our staff will spend time on the phone with you or in-person to help you make the best-informed decision for yourself or your loved one. Speaking to someone who understands what it is like to place a loved one in assisted living or make the decision to go yourself can be helpful.