Founder of the modern hospice movement, Dame Cicely Saunders once said “How people die remains in the memory of those who live on.” At Hospicare, we recognize the great importance behind Dr. Saunders’ words. Our goal in caring for our patients and supporting their families is for death to be a peaceful, natural experience and not something to be feared.
Reuters reports that a recent study by the Journal of Clinical Oncology (online on December 19, 2016) found that families of cancer patients were more satisfied with the treatment and care their loved ones received if hospice was involved. The families surveyed for the study were more likely to indicate that their loved ones had the right amount of pain medicine and help with breathing difficulties when they had care and support from hospice.
Hospice is generally defined as being appropriate for people whose physician indicates they have less than six months to live. Unfortunately, many patients and families wait until much closer to the end to ask for our help. “Our findings suggest that earlier hospice enrollment is associated with better symptom management, less pain, better quality of care, and a higher likelihood that patients will receive the care that they want in their own environment,” said study co-author Dr. Alexi Wright of Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of receiving hospice care, or palliative care, please visit the Get Support section of our website. Or call us at 607-272-0212.