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Senior Voice of Citrus County - NOVEMBER 2020 • 5
WHAT IS HOSPICE CARE?
If a disease has no cure, heart disease, and those doctor recertifies them. on their family member’s
hospice becomes a care with advanced neurological condition and let them
option. But when people face conditions, such as What it covers know what to expect. They
the end of their lives, the Alzheimer’s disease. Hospice care includes the provide emotional support to
shift from healing treatments When should following: terminally ill people, and their
to comfort care can be hospice start? • symptom control and families, before and after the
challenging and distressing. management, also known as patient’s death. This includes
Hospice care begins when an bereavement support for
Hospice is for people who illness becomes so advanced palliative care family members.
are in the final stages of an it is no longer curable, and it • pain management
incurable illness. Hospice is not possible to control it. A Note from the
care professionals do not qualified hospice doctor and a • stress management and Publisher
cure diseases. Instead, they person’s primary care doctor other mental health support I wanted to share with you
treat a person’s symptoms need to certify whether the • spiritual support this information about what
to improve their quality patient meets the criteria for • family support hospice is supposed to be.
of life. They also aim to hospice care. It may be time My wife passed away on
include family members and for hospice care if a person: Symptom management does September 6th of this year.
caregivers in decisions that not involve treatment of We called in hospice to
affect a person’s care. • has fewer than six months to the illness directly, such as help her in her final days.
live* the use of chemotherapy to Unfortunately, I was very
People can receive hospice treat cancer. Instead, hospice disappointed in the care she
care at home, in the hospital, • is not seeing improvements care helps ease symptoms to received.
at an extended care facility, to their health after ensure the person can live On several occasions, we
such as a nursing home, or at treatment, and their quality comfortably in their final had to call a nurse to come
a specialized hospice center. of life rapidly declines days. Hospice teams provide to our home because my
However, hospice care most • decides to stop treatments to 24/7 support and should be wife was experiencing
commonly occurs at home. available to the patient and some sort of severe pain
prolong their life family at all hours.
Hospice is not just for people *A person may live longer or discomfort. We live in
with incurable cancer. It than six months and continue Hospice caregivers also Inverness and, apparently,
provide support to families.
all the nurses assigned
may benefit people with to receive hospice care, if a They keep them up to date
late-stage kidney, lung, and
HOSPICE / Continued on page 23
VETERANS Although the food pantry was so grateful for the food; But, Dick added, the Veterans
continued from page 4 is their main service, the she said ‘my kids have never Coalition needs more
Veterans Coalition also works tasted this’ about some of the volunteers.
donations and contributions with other groups to meet things we gave her.
from citizens and veterans’ needs. Bob Bendle “We’re beginning to age
organizations to help local recalled a young woman – a “A year later, her husband left out. We need steady help –
veterans with expenses such military veteran – who came her, just left her stranded with someone who is dedicated to
as rent, utility bills, and car into the pantry a few years four young kids,” he added. the cause, to veterans helping
repairs. ago with her four children, “We made some calls and veterans.”
a six-year-old girl and two- found someone who donated a For more information,
“We raised, and distributed, year-old triplets. van. We put her in that van. It
more than $24,000 from July was very satisfying.” to make donations, or to
2019 to June 2020 and helped “She asked about food and help, contact the Citrus
146 veterans. Every cent of melted our hearts,” he said. “We get calls at all hours County Veterans Coalition
the Got Your Back Fund goes “We offered the kids candy from veterans needing just at 352-400-8952 or email
to veterans. If people want and they asked their mom about everything,” said Dick, ccveteranscoalition@gmail.
to help, donations to that first – they were so well adding that the coalition has com. Contact Mission United
program would be the number behaved. We just about wiped helped to pay for funerals for at 352-795-5483 or email
one thing,” Tom said. the candy out that day. She veterans. “We’re just here to tom.obrien@citrusunitedway.
help veterans and widows.” org.
