Caregivers need help, but few realize how soon hospice benefits are available | Opinion

November is National Hospice Month and National Caregivers Month. It’s fitting that these two important topics “share” a month because hospice care is for caregivers just as much as it is for patients living out their final months and, sometimes, years.

Unique in our healthcare system, hospice care was designed to bring holistic care to patients and their loved ones. An entire team (consisting of a doctor, nurse, nurse’s aide, social worker, chaplain and grief counselor) brings resources to the whole family.

Not only do caregivers receive support meeting a patients’ medical needs, they can also turn to hospice for connections to resources, help with insurance billing and spiritual/emotional support in the wake of loss.

Volunteers also add to that support with even more services such as pet therapy for kids, haircuts and massage for patients, and they spend time with patients when caregivers need to leave the house.

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Seeking hospice care is not 'giving up' on loved ones

Technology is another piece of the safety net that comes with hospice care. With our telehospice program, patients can be seen immediately, day or night, which helps eliminate stressful and expensive emergency room visits. Our virtual reality program (now being piloted) helps control patient pain and lets families explore favorite places, memories and bucket list destinations together.

Sadly, many caregivers don’t realize how much or how soon hospice can help them. Many others fear calling a hospice means they are “giving up” on the loved one they’ve pledged to care for or that their loved one will have to leave their home to receive care. Still others don’t think they can’t afford the help. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, hospice care is not just for the final days of life. Patients qualify when their life expectancy is six months or less. Many live longer on hospice and continue to receive care. Patients on hospice generally experience a higher quality of life, as do their families.

More support for caregivers means more time spent as a family. One son thanked us for bringing his family back together after we began caring for his mother with dementia. His elderly father had been her primary caregiver, and the whole family was suffering as a result. Once she was in the care of our team, the family was able to relax together again knowing that all her medical needs were met and their father was also being supported.

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Ask a doctor or local hospice to see if you eligible for assistance

Ninety percent of our hospice care takes place wherever the patient calls home (their house or a long-term care facility). Patients can remain where they are most comfortable, surrounded by loved ones and favorite things. Hospice also provides twenty-four hour respite care for caregivers when they need to leave town or just need time to recharge.

Many families find their saving depleted after a long healthcare journey. Hospice is almost always covered by Medicare, but when it isn’t, we provide financial aid to those who need it.

Alive gives away close to $1.5 million each year to make sure no one in our community has to die alone.

One of the most frequent regrets we hear from families is that they didn’t seek our help sooner. Our advice is don’t wait.

Ask your doctor or local hospice today to find out if you are eligible. Time with loved ones is the most precious thing we have. It never lasts as long as we wish, but we can always make the most of it, together.

Kimberly Goessele is president and CEO of Alive, a nonprofit which provides hospice, palliative care, grief and caretaker services.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Caregivers need help, but few realize how soon hospice is available