Levels of Hospice Care

Hospice is a multidisciplinary approach to care that centers on the belief that every individual has the right to die with dignity and have a pain-free death. Hospice focuses on pain management and emotional support, and is customized to each patient's choices and needs. The emphasis is not on curing the ailment, and is used in patients who have a disease or injury that is termed "life-limiting." There are four levels of hospice care.

Routine Home Care

• Routine home care is a type of hospice that is used when a patient is first placed on hospice and does not have a need for continual nursing care and whose symptoms are well-managed. This level of care can be utilized whether a patient is in a medical facility or in her own house. Routine home care encompasses many services, including visits from a social worker, chaplain or counselor as well as any medications and therapies needed.

Continuous Nursing Care at Home

• When the patients' symptoms become uncontrollable and need more care than routine services, continuous nursing care will be provided. Symptoms that may become too much to handle include severe pain, bleeding, respiratory distress and uncontrollable nausea or vomiting.

Inpatient Care

• If a patient's symptoms become unmanageable, she may be moved to a facility so she can get symptom relief and comfort. Individualized attention is increased, and more aggressive measures are taken to ensure the comfort of the patient.

Respite Care

• Respite care occurs when the patient has been receiving care at home, and the caregivers at home need a short break. This is a temporary placement in a hospice facility so the patient's family can run errands, or do things they could not do while caregiving. This can last up to five days, and then the patient goes back home.

Palliative Care

• While palliative care is a part of hospice, it is not one of the four levels of hospice care. Palliative care is treating any symptoms a patient has in order to make him more comfortable, including physical and emotional pain or discomfort. It can be given at any time during a patient's illness, even at diagnosis.