Hospice Team: Who Are They; What do they offer?
Hospice care is nothing like hospital care. As non-traditional patient care, hospice focuses on the terminally ill patients’ quality of life when the curative treatment is no longer effective. Hospice has a highly complex task to work on- make the patients remaining 6 months as stress-free and pain-free as possible so that they enjoy their life to the fullest around their loved one. But how can hospice fulfill such a high responsibility? It has a team of experts who professionally and efficiently manage the patients’ condition to deliver the promise of improving their life quality.
Who Are Hospice Team Members
The hospice team provides physical, psychological, and emotional support to the patients and caregivers. No wonder that there is a special team dedicated to that. Depending on the case, the team may differ with its members and the extent to which the member is involved.
The team usually consists of the following members:
- Hospice physician (or medical director)
- Personal physician if needed
- Nurses
- Clergy and other counselors
- Social workers
- Hospice aides
- Speech, physical, and occupational therapists, if needed
- Trained volunteers
As you may notice, the hospice team doesn’t exclude the patient’s physician if needed. Both the personal physician and hospice medical physician can work together to coordinate the care of the patients especially when the case is complicated.
The hospice team is also in close cooperation with the primary caregivers of the patient, who also become part of the team to take care of their loved ones.
What Does The Hospice Team Do?
As mentioned, hospice doesn’t only offer services for the patients but also takes care of the caregivers during the care and even after the death of the patient. The main responsibility of the team is to manage the patient’s pain and symptoms. With the leadership of physicians, all the hospice team thinks of a custom strategy of how to do so. The team counselors and therapists take care of emotional and psychological assistance. Apart from that, hospice also provides all the needed medical supplies, medications, and equipment. Depending on the condition of the patient, the hospice team might likewise provide speech and physical therapy. To assist the caregivers, the hospice coaches them with the essentials of patient care. Besides, the caregivers may request respite care, which is one of the hospice services that gives the caregivers a much-needed break. Hospice is by the side of the caregivers even after the death of the patients, providing grief support known as bereavement support.
Final Note
The Hospice Team of professionals comes up with a custom strategy to help the patients and caregivers. Depending on the patients’ condition, the team members may vary, but all have the common goal of improving the quality of life of those who trust in hospice.
