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You’ve been working hard your whole life, and you deserve something that proves it. (Hospice) Since entering the workforce you’ve been paying into the Medicare Trust Fund, the national health insurance program for people 65 years and older. In fact, 1.45% of your...
Home, family, love, comfort, dignity, community and well-being are all signs of a good life. When you or a loved one is diagnosed with an advanced illness, the story line can change. West Virginia Caring is an organization of highly trained medical professionals and...
[av_textblock size='' font_color='' color=''] An illness, whether it’s curable, chronic or life-threatening can be a difficult thing to come to terms with. During this time, pain management, symptom relief or emotional support may not be the first things you worry...
[av_textblock size='' font_color='' color=''] In May 2018, WV Caring received the 2018 Hospice Honors Award for providing exceptional care to their patients as categorized by Hospice CAHPS survey results. This honor was given by HEALTHCAREfirst, the leading provider...
[av_textblock size='' font_color='' color=''] Losing a loved one is hard at any age. For a child, it’s hard to understand what is happening and to communicate how they are feeling. For an adult, it can be hard to explain things in a way that a child understands. At...
The vast majority of West Virginians want to die at home, but most people lack the community resources to help with that process or are unaware of palliative care options close to home.
The holiday season is upon us and it is a very special opportunity to celebrate the life of loved ones. You can remember loved ones who have passed away or honor those living and those who are suffering illnesses. West Virginia Caring’s annual Light up A Life event begins now and continues through the end of the year.
The WV Caring Staff, Elkins High School staff and students, Elkins Police and Mayor came together to honor a wish for Austin Van Pelt, an 18 year-old patient of ours. Austin wanted to ride a bus to Elkins High School to visit some of his former classmates; but it did not stop there. The Bat Signal came on and Batman drove in his Batmobile from Huntington, WV’s Gotham City, to see Austin and lead a Hope Rally with the entire student body and to help raise funds for Austin’s family.
Americans are living longer and healthier lives than ever before. Yet inevitably – 100% of us will die, and the clear majority will experience debilitating advanced illness for which curative treatment is no longer effective.
November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month, and I encourage fellow West Virginians to be more aware of the innovative and compassionate end-of-life care available throughout the Mountain State.
November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. Advanced illness organizations nationwide are reaching out to raise awareness about these often-misunderstood benefits which are covered by Medicare Part A and most commercial insurance plans.
Patients face new regulationsNew Medicare regulations regarding hospice care now require that patients who have been through two full rounds of hospice to meet in person with a hospice doctor or nurse practitioner to determine whether they are actually in need of...
Hospice care covers both mind and bodyHospice care is certainly about comfort and pain control at a physical level, but those are not the only aspects that are carefully looked after. This quote from a MyFox Tampa Bay article explains:"We do have a lot of medicines...
Reasons to choose hospiceMany think of hospice as a program that offers emotional support to those with terminal illness, and it does, but hospice today is an integrated program that offers much more than just emotional support; the list of hospice services covers...
Hospice care is about hope, not lossHospice care serves many purposes, most of all to make the later stages of life an enjoyable time for patients, friends and family. In an interview for the Colombus Telegram, one hospice social worker explained what her job...
What hospice care is all aboutThe word hospice is sometimes spoken in hushed tones. It can conjure feelings of sadness, because by its very definition, it involves caring for someone who is terminally ill.Hospice, however, also has the same word root as hospitality....
Hospice care has many advantagesModern medicine works many miracles, but when it comes to the point where it can no longer slow or cure an illness, there are many reasons to seek hospice care. Recently, myOptumHealth.com put together a compelling list:Reasons for...
Hospice care gains more supporters following telling studiesA new study by the Dartmouth Atlas, a group that specializes in studying medical care, has determined that a full one third of U.S. patients dying of cancer end up pursuing costly and ineffective hospital...
By nature, most volunteer jobs are for compassionate people who are willing to take a risk, get a little messy, and put someone else’s needs before their own. A Hospice Care volunteer is the epitome of this description, and may have one of the more challenging...
There are several harmful myths that still persist regarding hospice careWhile the public has more knowledge regarding hospice care these days than they ever have before, there are some common misconceptions that still exist. In a recent article for The News Leader,...
Hospice care enrollment skyrocketsHospice is a growing and viable option for quality end-of-life care. In 1999, hospice was provided to at least 700,000 patients, up from 540,000 in 1998. Clearly, as Americans learn more about hospice, they are recognizing that it's...
No one person can serve the needs of hospice patientsHospice care covers a wide spectrum of needs, more than any one person is capable of. Fortunately, this care is broken up among teams of trained professionals. For those who are unfamiliar with just how hospice...
“People with dementia get sicker inch by inch,” said Lin Simon, director of quality at Gilchrist Hospice in Baltimore, the largest hospice organization in Maryland. “Trying to say, ‘Now, she’s ready for hospice’ is much harder.”Yet doctors serve as the gateway to...
Hospice care is about living wellHospice is not a place. It is the provision of services to those who are living with a terminal illness. The services are uniquely designed and based upon one’s requests and expressed needs.Hospice is not about dying! Rather, hospice...
Gov. Christine Gregoire plans to eliminate all Medicaid funding for adult Hospice care in Washington state as of Jan. 1. This cut is supposed to save the state budget $4.6 million.The savings from the elimination of hospice end-of-life care for the most needy of our...
Another study has been released exploring the connections between the increased use of hospice care and lowered health care expenses. This one was focused on heart failure patients, who traditionally encounter major expenses in their later months. A couple of quotes,...
A flood of studies showing the benefits of hospice care to both patients and state finances has been hitting the news reels recently as experts prove what we have known for years. A quote from a Reuters article regarding one such study, authored by Dr. Jonathan...
A new study by UCLA researchers has found that, while more than half of all men dying of prostrate cancer do use hospice care, most wait far too long to enroll, thereby missing out on many potential benefits. A quote from their press release, published on...
While palliative and hospice care have a strong foothold in the U.S., other countries are not so lucky. A quote, from the Uganda Pulse:As Uganda joined the rest of the world to celebrate World Hospice and Palliative Care day on Saturday, health service providers and...
Hospice care enrollment continues to rise as public recognizes the advantagesIn the past, physicians didn't specialize in helping people deal with their final days of life. Instead, they often focused purely on survival, even if a patient was terminally ill.Over the...