First Choice Home Health & Hospice

Rarely do people initially associate hospice services with an opportunity to get the most out of life. After all, hospice is a service provided exclusively for individuals with a terminal condition who no longer wish to seek treatment. Doctors send patients home on hospice when they can no longer do anything to treat their condition.But in reality, hospice is not intended to help people die; it is intended to help people live every moment to the fullest before they die, and then when death does come, hospice allows the natural processes to run their course while preserving dignity and maximizing comfort. Helping people get the most out of life is a deeply personal journey because each person defines his or her life so differently.The special and unique touch that the hospice team brings to each person is its ability to meet people where they are in their experience, rather than telling them where they need to or should be. Hospice focuses on the person as a whole; a person who has a diagnosis and is facing death, but who also has hopes and dreams.Hospice provides an interdisciplinary team that provides a wide range of services. In addition to providing physical comfort, the most important shared responsibility of all team members is to assist the patient in accomplishing his or her goals before death when possible. Some have a desire to repair relationships with estranged family members. Others want to travel to New York, or Hawaii. For some, that may mean an actual family trip and for others it may mean bringing New York or Hawaii home with a special luau or watching a movie of a Broadway play. This approach helps people focus on the joys of life rather than on the fear of death.Although facing the prospect of death can be overwhelming, hospice can help patients get the most out of the time they have left. The hospice commitment is to improve quality of life and contribute to the joy of the journey before life is over.Editors Note: This article was written by Steve Eastman, LCSW for First Choice Home Health & Hospice. He can be reached at 801-434-4100.