What to Expect from Hospice Care

Happy senior standing with her care giver

What is Hospice.

Hospice is a philosophy of care, a care that provides comfort and support to patients and their families when terminal illness no longer responds to cure. Hospice aims at making the best of the remaining time. Hospice care can be provided anywhere one calls home, such as Private residences, Skilled Nursing Homes, Assisted Living Facilities and Group Care Homes, etc.

Levels of Care Provided by Venarks Hospice:

  • Level 1 - Routine Home Care: Care is provided out of place of residence. Such as Private Homes, Residential Group Care Homes, Assisted Living Facilities, Nursing Facilities.
  • Level 2 - Respite Care: Patient is located in a contracted facility, while the primary caregiver will be able to regain rest, lost while caring for the needs of the patient.
  • Level 3 - Continuous Care: A licensed nurse is at bedside round the clock to manage uncontrolled symptoms. This is provided until symptoms are managed or resolved.
  • Level 4 - General Inpatient Care (GIP): The patient is in a hospital or skilled nursing facility with 24-hour availability, to provide care and manage uncontrolled symptoms.

Hospice Care

Financial concerns should not be a barrier to accessing hospice care. The Medicare/Medicaid/Private Insurance Hospice Benefit is an inclusive benefit, in which all hospice services that are related to the terminal illness are covered 100% by Medicare Part A.

There are no co-pays or out-of-pocket expenses.

Care that is unrelated to the terminal illness continues to be covered by Medicare Parts A and B, with all normal rules applicable (e.g., co-payments, coverage guidelines and deductibles).

All related conditions related to patient’s hospice diagnosis are covered, and this includes: visits by a nurse, medical social worker, chaplain and nurses’ assistants as well as medical equipment, incontinent supplies and all medications related to the terminal diagnosis.

What it is

Depending on your terminal illness and related conditions, your hospice team will create a plan of care that can include any or all of these services:
  • Doctors' Services.
  • Nursing and medical services.
  • Durable medical equipment for pain relief and symptom management.
  • Medical supplies, like bandages or catheters.
  • Drugs for pain and symptom management.
  • Aide and homemaker services.
  • Physical therapy services.
  • Occupational therapy services.
  • Speech-language pathology services.
  • Social services.
  • Dietary counseling.
  • Spiritual and grief counseling for you and your family.
  • Short-term inpatient care for pain and symptom management. 
Inpatient respite care, which is care you get in a Medicare-approved facility (like an inpatient facility, hospital, or nursing home), so that your usual caregiver (like a family member or friend) can rest. Your hospice provider will arrange this for you. You can stay up to 5 days each time you get respite care. You can get respite care more than once, but only on an occasional basis.
Any other services Medicare covers to manage your pain and other symptoms related to your terminal illness and related conditions, as your hospice team recommends.

Things to know

  • Only a physician can certify that you’re terminally ill and have a life expectancy of 6 months or less. After 6 months, you can continue to get hospice care as long as the hospice medical director or hospice doctor recertifies that you’re still terminally ill.
  • Hospice care is provided by a licensed hospice provider through the hospice interdisciplinary team. You have a right to choose any hospice of your choice.
  • As a hospice patient, you always have the right to stop hospice care at any time. You also have the right to change your hospice provider.
  • You can still see your regular doctor or nurse practitioner if you’ve chosen him or her to be the attending medical professional while on hospice care.
  • You can receive hospice care any where you call “home” (Residence, nursing home, group home, assisted/independent living). While receiving hospice care at home, If the hospice team determines that you need short-term respite care services, the hospice team will arrange for it and Medicare will cover your respite stay. However, you may have to pay a small copayment for the respite stay.
  • While on hospice always contact your hospice team for any concern.
Asian nurse happy with caucasian elder patient.

Who We Are

Venarks Hospice provides extensive, individualized, and compassionate care to patients and their families using the interdisciplinary team approach. We focus on the total person, while alleviating their symptoms and disease burden.
We Offer: 
  • Pain and symptoms control
  • Physician services
  • Nursing Care
  • Certified Nurse assistant services
  • Chaplain services
  • Social work/counseling services
  • Volunteer support
  • Bereavement support
  • Medical equipment
  • Provision of personal hygiene supplies