Hospice is a philosophy of care that focuses on the care of a patient who has a likely prognosis of six months or less. It treats the person rather than the disease and focuses on quality of life. It surrounds the patient and family with a team of professionals who not only address physical distress, but also emotional and spiritual issues. Hospice care is patient-centered because the needs of the patient and family drive the activities of the hospice team.

It is also important to make clear what hospice is not – hospice is not hastening death. It is about celebrating what time the individual has left and making them as comfortable as possible.

An individual may qualify for hospice if a doctor certifies they have a terminal illness and likely have six months or less to live if the disease runs its normal course and they are no longer seeking curative treatment.

The following factors are good indicators that it’s time for hospice:

• Curative treatments (medications, chemotherapy, rehab, etc.) are no longer effective or create side effects that prolong suffering, discomfort and pain
• The individual has decided to stop testing, hospitalizations and treatments in favor of palliative care
• The individual is increasingly unable to perform the activities of daily living (personal hygiene, dressing, eating, maintaining continence, transferring)
• Over four to six months, the individual has experienced any of these:
  • Loss of 10% or more of body weight
  • More than three hospitalizations or emergency room visits
  • Presence of other co-morbid conditions
  • Declining physical activity
  • Declining mental alertness/cognition

No. Hospice care is designed to be started when you are terminally ill (with a life expectancy of six months or less); however, there is no fixed limit on the amount of time an individual may continue to receive hospice services provided they continue to meet hospice eligibility criteria. The reason many patients only receive hospice care for a short period of time is that they are not referred until it is evident that they are in the final days or weeks, thus perpetuating the myth that one must wait until such a time.

Most people wait too long until they start hospice. We get told all the time by patients and families they wish they had known about hospice earlier because they needed the help much sooner.

Morphine is one of the most effective and safe medications we have to control pain at end-of-life. Hospice physicians prescribe morphine and many other pain medications to keep patients comfortable. These medications do not cause death.

Our physicians are certified in hospice and palliative care and have years of experience using morphine to effectively manage pain and other symptoms at end-of-life. Aultman also has a dedicated pharmacist who is specially trained in medications used at end-of-life. Through the collaboration of our physicians and pharmacist, you can be assured of the most safe and effective use of morphine.

Hospice does not provide 24-hour care or require that a patient have a 24-hour caregiver.  Some of our hospice patients live alone and manage their own care needs.  However, when a patient is no longer able to care for themself at home, the team will help to coordinate community resources to allow the patient to continue to live at home or assist with making other living arrangements where care can be delivered, for example, at a nursing care facility.

Once enrolled in hospice, the hospice team will review the medications with the patient and discuss the benefits and the burdens of each. Often at this stage, the burdens (or side effects) outweigh the benefits. In some cases, these burdens could be a source of discomfort to the patient.

Yes. If the goals of the patient change, and the patient desires curative treatment again, they can be discharged from hospice at any time. They are eligible to re-enroll in hospice at any time, provided they still meet eligibility criteria.

The Compassionate Care Center is the only inpatient hospice unit in Stark County. The care center provides care for patients when their symptoms, such as pain or shortness of breath, become unmanageable at home. They stay until their symptoms become manageable enough to return home. If returning home is not the best option, our social workers can assist with arranging other living arrangements.

While all hospice care is palliative in nature, not all palliative care is hospice. Palliative care is appropriate at any time during a serious illness and can be provided together with disease treatment. The patient does not need to have a terminal prognosis to be eligible for palliative care.

No. Over half of all hospice patients have conditions other than cancer, such as heart or chronic lung conditions.

Hospice patients are encouraged to eat and drink whatever they desire. We often receive patients from the hospital with dietary restrictions due to difficulty swallowing. Those restrictions are usually lifted when the patient enters hospice service, thus allowing them to eat whatever they are able and provides them pleasure. As a patient’s condition declines, the patient loses interest in eating and drinking. They do not feel hunger and thirst at that time as this is part of the dying process.

Aultman Hospice is a non-profit organization that has been serving our community for three decades. Our physicians have been specially trained and certified for end-of-life care and they are experts at symptom management. Our experienced team of healthcare professionals care for our patients wherever they may call home. We continue to have high quality of care ratings.  You can find our scores on the Medicare Compare website. And we continue to strive to provide the best quality of care for all our patients. We also have grief counselors that help family and caregivers after the death of a loved one.

You can reach Aultman Hospice by calling our Canton office at 330-479-2378 or our Alliance office at 330-596-7480. When requesting hospice, please ask for Aultman Hospice. We are proud to be one of the best hospices in the area and want to provide you with the best care available.