Hospice
- Hospice Introduction
- What Hospice Is
- What Hospice Does
- How Hospice Works
- Respite Care
- What Not to Expect
- Financial Considerations
- Web Links
- References
- Authors and Editors
Hospice Introduction
Nobody wants to die, but we all do at some point. The question is not whether you want to die, but how you want to die.
- If you care for someone with a grave illness, or if you care for an older adult relative, hospice care affects you, your family, and the dying person.
- "There's nothing further that can be done." Don't believe this statement if it's made by a doctor. There is always something that can be done. Unfortunately, what can be done may not prolong life, but there is always a valid treatment to bring comfort. This is a promise, and hospice delivers on that promise.
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Advance Directives Introduction
Advance directives center around the principles of your right to die and death with dignity. With an advance directive, you can express how much or how little you want done for you when you are no longer able to make these decisions.
- Advance directives are a way of making your voice heard when you can no longer speak. They allow you to appoint someone to make your health care decisions for you when you no longer can and to administer or withhold treatment and procedures. Advance directives are not just for the elderly. All people who desire to direct their medical care in the future should complete an advance directive.
- All 50 states and the District of Columbia have laws regarding advance directives. Authorities also agree that no difference exists between withholding life-saving treatment and withdrawing life-support treatment. This is especially important in a situation where someon...
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Palliative Care in the Acute Care Setting »
Palliative care has been defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "the active total care of patients whose disease is not responsive to curative treatment. Control of pain, of other symptoms, and of psychological, social and spiritual problems, is paramount.
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