Houston Hospice

 
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Patient Services

When a patient with a severe illness decides that curative measures are no longer appropriate or effective, the option of hospice care is a compassionate, dignified and cost-effective end-of-life care option. When possible, the patient can receive treatment within his or her own home. The hospice team who visits the patient on a regular basis consists of a nurse, hospice aide, social worker, volunteer and chaplain. Staff physicians are consulted and are available when necessary.

The essence of Houston Hospice care is:
  • quality of life
  • treatment of the patient, not the disease
  • the provision of palliative (the alleviation of pain) treatment
  • the family as the "unit of care," not simply the patient
  • 24 hours a day, 7 days a week available help from the hospice nurses and physicians
Following assessments in the areas of physical pain, emotional needs, spiritual issues, legal concerns and practical arrangements, the patient, family and physician approve a plan of care. Being involved in making the plan helps patients and families face the last stages of life more comfortably and confidently.

Patient care is provided by Houston Hospice in the home, in a nursing home or residential facility or in the Margaret Cullen Marshall Hospice Care Center which is located in the Texas Medical Center.

There are four levels of care that are provided by hospices in the United States. Every patient receiving hospice services will be on one of these four levels. A hospice patient can move from one level to another and back, depending on the services required to fulfill his or her needs. The need of the patient will determine their individual level of care. These four levels are:
  • Routine Home Care – patient at home with symptoms controlled
  • Continuous Nursing Care at Home – patient at home with uncontrolled symptoms
  • Inpatient Care – patient in facility with uncontrolled symptoms
  • Respite Care – patient at facility with symptoms controlled
Houston Hospice offers the Butterfly Program, a comprehensive program of palliative, hospice and bereavement services for children. Our specialty program, Wings, serves children and teens ages 5-18, is designed to help the children in our community understand and express their grief about the death of a loved one.

After the death of a patient, the family can choose to continue receiving hospice services through Bereavement Programs aimed at helping with the acclimation to the death. Support groups, individual counseling and referrals can continue as long as a year after a patient's death.

Houston Hospice provides an educational program, Pathways, to help individuals and families in making decisions about the choices of care for those with advanced illnesses.

To read more facts about hospice care go to www.aahpm.org (American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine).

Forms that will help you with the process of participating in hospice care are:
  • Financial Assessment
  • Referrals
  • Physicians’ Referrals
  • Admission
Links for further information: