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Palliative

Serious Illnesses and COVID-19

As we continue into month 7(ish) of the COVID-19 pandemic, this virus continues lead the news, social media, talk shows, and our daily thoughts and actions. We’ve all adopted new actions and phrases in our daily lives such as wearing a mask and “social distancing” and “hotspots”, to name a few.

We are all pros at checking for symptoms of the virus- fever of 100.4°F or higher, cough, shortness of breath and/or difficulty breathing, sudden loss of taste or smell, muscle/body aches, nausea or vomiting or diarrhea, etc. Sadly, what has not changed is the numerous individuals still facing serious illnesses.

Serious Illness and COVID-19

Serious illnesses include, but are not limited to, COPD, heart disease, dementia, Parkinson’s, CHF, MS, diabetes, cirrhosis, kidney disease, and others. These illnesses require access to medical providers and treatment, even during a pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, these treatment options were difficult to come by. Now treatment options are becoming easier to obtain, but there are more ways to access your treatment possibilities.

Hospitals and treatment centers have new policies and procedures for patient appointments and visitors. Many Skilled Nursing Facilities and Assisted Living Facilities are prohibiting visitors and additional healthcare providers entirely, except when a patient is on hospice or end of life care.

Some over the counter medications and household essentials are in short supply, creating anxiety and panic to many. This means many necessary household supplies may be difficult to find and/or maintain.

Caring for Your Serious Illness

COVID-19 seems to be the highest priority for all healthcare providers. However, you still are facing a serious illness, even in a pandemic. With all the new policies in place, how do healthcare providers provide proper care to those with serious illnesses? With the pandemic still in full swing, there is no single, easy answer. Here are some simple approaches one can take to ease some difficult situations.

Plan for the uncertain times.

We don’t know how much longer the pandemic will last. We all need to plan for the uncertainty, especially those with serious illnesses. Don’t wait until the last minute to refill medications or contact your physician if there is an issue.

Remain obedient with your treatments.

Compliance is key!  Don’t forget to take your usual medications or forgo treatments. This sounds so simple but it’s so effective.

Stick to easy but efficient treatment methods.

Sometimes the simplest methods are the most efficient. Be sure you get around 8 hours of sleep each night. Drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water each day (a 160lb person should get at least 80oz of water). Try to reduce stress in a healthy way- read a book, take a walk, disconnect from social media occasionally, and disconnect from the constant COVID-19 news coverage.

Follow CDC guidelines.

The most effective ways in keeping yourself safe from COVID-19! Wear your mask over your nose and mouth. Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds or use alcohol-based sanitizer when your hands are not visibly dirty. Clean regularly touched surfaces in your home and car, including your phone, with alcohol-based or bleach-based cleanser. Stay home if you exhibit any COVID-19 symptoms or just feel ill in general.

I have a Serious Illness and Need Extra Care. What are my options?

In addition to keeping up treatments and medications, St. Anthony’s Palliative Care is a great option! The biggest benefit to palliative care is the extra support. Palliative Care allows patients to continue aggressive treatments, avoid repeat hospitalizations, and remain in their home. St. Anthony’s Palliative Care comes to you- no additional clinics or appointments to go to.

If you or a loved one is struggling with a serious illness, give St. Anthony’s a call at (270) 826-2326 to see how we can help you.

 

 

Images from google search. Information 

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Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

September is a month of many things- the unofficial and official start of fall, back to school month, a super fun song by Earth, Wind & Fire, and the official month of the Virgo. Most importantly, its Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease for children under age 14, according to St. Jude’s website. We all know of a child or family that has been directly impacted by this horrible disease.

We’ve put together some facts about childhood cancer to help raise awareness.

The awareness ribbon for childhood cancer is gold.

43 children in the US are diagnosed with cancer every day.

Around the world, at least 300,000 children and teens are diagnosed with cancer every year. That is over 800 children and teens diagnosed daily.

It is estimated that 10% of children with cancer developed it due to a genetic mutation.

Childhood cancer survivors are twice as likely to suffer from chronic health conditions into adulthood.

1 in 285 children will be diagnosed with cancer by the age of 20.

Childhood cancer research only receives 4% of the budget from the National Cancer Institute.

(facts sourced from- https://www.alexslemonade.org/childhood-cancer/about-childhood-cancer/facts and https://www.stjude.org)

Children with cancer can receive concurrent care, which is aggressive treatment along with palliative care. This type of care ensures the child is kept comfortable while fighting their cancer.

If you or someone you know needs extra help in symptom management, please give us a call at (270) 826-2326.

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Pain Management Awareness Month

The month of September is Pain Management Awareness Month! It was first declared this in 2001 when the American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA) led a partnership of groups to establish such.

Pain management is one of the primary goals of hospice care- keeping patients comfortable and managing symptoms to ensure the highest quality of life for as long as they may live. Not all patients experience pain near the end of life but treating pain and other symptoms effectively is crucial. The hospice care team continues to evaluate the patient’s pain at every visit. They use pain rating scales as well as monitoring the nonverbal signs of pain.

How Pain is Determined

How many times have you been to the doctor or hospital where he/she asks you “on a scale of 1-10, what your pain level?” This is a common and universal communication tool in healthcare. It allows patients to rate their pain or point to one of the faces to help the clinician understand the patient’s pain level and better manage it. Below is an example of the commonly used/seen pain scale chart. The chart ranges from no pain whatsoever to the worst pain possible.

Image from Google image search- “pain scale”

If there is a nonverbal patient, hospice clinicians can look at how a patient is acting to assess pain level. For example, a nonresponsive or sleeping patient may grimace, his/her chin may quiver, jaw may be clenched, he/she may be kicking their legs or tensing them up, he/she could squirm, moan or whimper or cry, or he/she could be difficult to comfort or be extremely distracted. St. Anthony’s Hospice wants all patients to be comfortable and have the highest quality of life in a patient’s final months, weeks, days, hours, and minutes.

Pain signs for Caregivers

When caring for a loved one who has been diagnosed with a serious illness, the caregiver must know what to look for. Here are some signs to look for:

  • Increased breathing rate
  • Tightly closed eyes or rapid blinking
  • An increase in the patient’s systolic blood pressure from their baseline
  • Holding arm or leg muscles tightly or a rigid body posture
  • Rocking, fidgeting, or pacing
  • Resisting care or guarding certain areas of the body when turning
  • Becoming withdrawn
  • Becoming more aggressive or easily angered
  • Crying
  • Increased confusion
  • Vocalizations such as moaning, calling out, sighing, and asking for help.

Pain Management Misconceptions

One common misconception about hospice care is that hospice clinicians medicate the patient so much that he/she is constantly sleeping or “out of it.” While hospice care does involve medication to keep the patient comfortable, that’s just it. We want the patient to be comfortable and pain-free and still able to interact with loved ones, if the patient still can. Hospice care utilizes opioids to ensure the patient is pain-free. Hospice nurses educate the caregiver on how to administer the medication to the patient. All hospice patients and caregivers are informed of and sign our opioid medication protocol. Opioid addiction is not a concern at the end of life; often there is not enough time to develop an addiction in 6 months or less. Addiction for the patient should not be a concern, rather using the effective tools is more important. Controlled substances do not hasten death. Studies have proven the opposite! These medications do not prolong life however if a patient’s symptoms are properly managed, quality of life increases thus increasing quantity of life!

Emotional, Spiritual, and Social Pain

We’ve often said that hospice care treats all types of pain. But what does this mean? Physical pain is what we most often think of when we think of pain. Emotional, spiritual, and social types of pain are huge players in increasing quality of life. Emotional pain, like anxiety or depression, can increase a person’s physical pain and vice versa. Emotional pain is treated both with medications such as Ativan, and regular visits from the patient’s social worker and chaplain, who also works to treat the patient’s spiritual pain. Social pain is eased by interacting with people other than the primary caregiver. Social pain is especially important to treat during the COVID-19 pandemic. St. Anthony’s Hospice is taking precautions to ensure our patients and staff are staying negative.

Family members and caregivers should be careful to not add to the patient’s stress and anxiety by arguing with or in front of the patient.

What if I have a loved one who is experiencing a lot of pain?

If you or a loved one needs pain managed due to a serious illness, give St. Anthony’s a call- (270) 826-2326. Our clinicians work hard to ensure our patients have the best quality of life by controlling all types of pain.

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Advance Care Planning

Having your wishes heard and honored is always important, especially during a pandemic. Advance care planning is making decisions about the care you wish to receive, if you become unable to speak for yourself. These decisions are usually in writing and provided to family and your healthcare provider. The decisions you make about your care are put in an “Advanced Directive” which is a legal document that takes effect only if you become unable to communicate your wishes or speak for yourself. One could become unable to communicate healthcare wished due to serious injury or disease, regardless of one’s age. The legal documents help loved ones make decisions for you and help your healthcare provider know what type of medical care you wish to receive.

There are a few types of Advanced Directives one should have in place while healthy and of sound mind to make such important decisions. These documents include a Living Will and Healthcare (or Medical) Power of Attorney. A Living Will allows a person document his/her wishes regarding medical treatments at the end of life. A Healthcare (or Medical) Power of Attorney allows a person to appoint a surrogate or person he/she trusts to be the healthcare agent, who is authorized to make medical decisions on the person’s behalf.

Prior to your Living Will guiding your medical care, two physicians must certify that you are unable to make medical decisions, you are in the medical condition stated in the document (i.e.- terminal illness or incapacitated), or the state the document was prepared in/person’s residence could have other requirements.

Prior to your Healthcare (or Medical) Power of Attorney going into effect, your physician must certify you are unable to make decisions and if you regain the ability to make decisions, the surrogate cannot continue to make decisions and other requirements required by the state the document was prepared in/person’s residence.

St. Anthony’s Hospice has social workers who can assist patients and family with these documents. While our social workers are not attorneys, they do have the knowledge to make the legal documents easier for the average person to understand. They can also assist the family and patients with funeral arrangements, if they need help with that.

If we can help you or a loved one feel more comfortable or getting advanced directives in place, please call us at (270) 826-2326 or visit our website at https://stanthonyshospice.org/referral/.

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Healing as a Person

“’Palliative care’ means patient and family-centered care that optimizes quality of life by anticipating, preventing, and treating suffering.” -definition from CMS webpage

What does “suffering” mean to you or a loved one facing a serious illness? Is it being in physical pain? Is it being lonely? Or is it something else?

What does quality of life mean to you or a loved one facing a serious illness? Increased comfort? Emotional happiness? Or something else?

Healthcare today treats illnesses and not a patient’s suffering. While we are grateful there are professionals who treat illnesses, perform surgeries, and cure diseases, we also want our suffering treated. There is not a person on this earth who has not felt suffering. When a baby is born, he/she comes out crying. Kids, teens, adults, and elders have also all experienced a form of suffering- whether emotional, physical, spiritual, or another form.

Palliative care is the part of healthcare and more specifically, hospice care, that is designed to manage the suffering a patient typically feels with his/her terminal diagnosis. Palliative care improves quality of life in all dimensions of the phrase. Palliative care is a huge part of hospice care.

Why do we overtreat in healthcare, to the point where hospice and palliative care are used in a patient’s final days to hours of life? If everyone agreed that quality of life is the most important thing, healthcare would be better than it already is.

We have not failed when a patient cannot be cured. If a person cannot be cured, it is time to heal the person. One can go into the healthcare system completely broken and come out fixed. This is always fantastic when it can happen! When you go into the healthcare system and cannot be fixed, hospice care and palliative care can heal you. Your body may be failing, but your quality of life and your dignity are healed.

If you or a loved one is needing extra help in treating suffering, please call St. Anthony’s Hospice at (270) 826-2326.

 

Source: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Provider-Enrollment-and-Certification/SurveyCertificationGenInfo/Downloads/Survey-and-Cert-Letter-12-48.pdf

 

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Hospice & Palliative Care Videos

Our Business Development Coordinator, Riley Hamilton, made a couple of videos for a recent virtual health fair we participated in. We wanted to share her videos with all of you!

Hospice Care video- https://youtu.be/XOG1advPxao

Palliative Care video- https://youtu.be/Ov_I9Dw48Wg

If you have any questions, please call our office at (270) 826-2326.

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Happy National CNA Week!

June 18-25 is National CNA Week! Here at St. Anthony’s Hospice, we are blessed with the best CNAs! Our aides are there for our patients and help them and our nurses with so much. They are compassionate, caring, helpful, comforting, important, and amazing.

“If the job of a CNA was easy, there wouldn’t be a shortage of them. But there is. If the job of a CNA was just wiping butts, they wouldn’t know their patient’s favorite foods, or when they prefer coffee over tea, but they do. If the job of a CNA was insignificant, Supervisors and Charge Nurses wouldn’t rely on them to spot changes out of their “normal,” but they do. If the job of a CNA was to just get vitals, they would have time to sit down and talk with each patient for a good thirty minutes each shift, but they don’t. If the job of a CNA was to just show up and dress them, perform their assigned duties, then go home, they wouldn’t leave work in tears knowing one of our patients might not make it, but they do. If the job of a CNA was appreciated by their peers,colleagues, they wouldn’t feel as unvalidated, but it’s not.” (taken from Facebook posts)

Happy CNA Week to all the awesome CNAs out there!

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Who can benefit from palliative care?

Who can benefit from palliative care?

Palliative care is specialized medical care for people living with serious illnesses, that should the disease progress in its usual course, the patient has a life expectancy of 1-5 years. This is different than hospice care in which the individuals have more of a terminal diagnosis, that should the disease run its usual course, the patient has a life expectancy of 6 months or less.

Palliative care specializes in providing symptom control for individuals living with heart disease, COPD, cancer, dementia. Parkinson’s disease, HIV/AIDS, and many others.

You want to consider your loved one for palliative care if he/she needs help understanding their illness, coordinating care, has frequent hospitalizations/ER visits, needs help making decisions about future care, or has trouble controlling symptoms in the home.

If you or someone you love is struggling with symptoms such as uncontrolled pain, shortness of breath, anxiety, fatigue, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite, weakness, or any other symptom, give us a call to see if palliative care could benefit! (270) 826-2326

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Palliative Care Flowchart

We get a lot of questions about palliative care so we wanted to jump on and give a little bit of information.

Palliative care is a specialized care for patients with serious illnesses and they are still seeking curative treatment. Palliative care helps to manage the symptoms of the patient while undergoing aggressive treatment options such as, but not limited to, chemotherapy, radiation treatment, dialysis, etc.

Our Palliative Care team consists of a Nurse Practitioner, RN, and a Social Worker. This team provides the necessary medical, emotional, and social support to have exceptional symptom management and keep the patient from returning to the hospital due to out of control symptoms. Our team also provides education to help our patients understand their disease process, treatment options, and develop goals of care. At St. Anthony’s, our patient goals are our goals! We want to help our patients keep pain, anxiety, and other symptoms to a minimum. 

Many people don’t realize the importance of this symptom management so he/she just deals with all of the pain, nausea, anxiety, etc. that can accompany both the life-limiting illness and the aggressive, curative treatments.

If you or a loved one are experiencing any of the following symptoms, give us a call at (270) 826-2326 to see how palliative care can help you.

  • Uncontrolled Pain
  • Shortness of Breath
  • Anxiety
  • Fatigue
  • Constipation
  • Nausea
  • Loss of Appetite
  • Weakness

Give us a call at (270) 826-2326 or visit our website to learn more about palliative care- https://stanthonyshospice.org/palliative/.

Graphic source- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWd4nikYwaY

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Palliative Care vs. Hospice Care

St. Anthony’s Hospice offers both hospice care and palliative care, but do you know the difference between the two?

While both hospice and palliative care have the same goal in mind of symptom management and keeping the patient out of the hospital, the types of care are different. Most people use the two terms interchangeably however, palliative care is used to improve the quality of life of patients who have been diagnosed with a serious illness. Palliative care is used for expert symptom management while the patient is still undergoing curative treatment. Our Palliative Care team works with the patient’s physician(s) and/or specialist(s) to coordinate the best care plan and symptom management. Our palliative care program is provided in the patient’s home and the patient can still continue to visit their physician/specialist’s office(s).

On the other hand, hospice care is aimed at patients who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Hospice care is not a death sentence, rather it is extra help for the patient and their family/caregiver(s). Hospice care steps in to manage all types of pain- physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, and psychological- when curative treatment is no longer attainable. If the patient’s physician chooses to continue in their care plan, hospice care also works with their physician to coordinate care but in the home setting, which can be a house, apartment/duplex, assisted living community, nursing home, or the Lucy Smith King Care Center.

Anyone can make a referral to hospice or palliative care by calling our office at (270) 826-2326, filling out our referral form- https://stanthonyshospice.org/referral/, or by taking this short quiz and leaving us some contact information- https://stanthonyshospice.org/#POST_POP_QUIZ.

Pin on Agapé Hospice Lowcountry

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