Hospice care helps patients and families focus on living. This is the message that Access Home Care and Hospice is sharing with the community during National Hospice/Palliative Care Month. However, this important message lasts beyond the month of November and is important all year round.
“November is a valuable time to raise awareness throughout our community about care at the end of life,” said Rob Phelps RN, Clinical Administrator and owner of Access Hospice. “But the time a family might need us doesn’t follow a calendar or occur only during this season, so our message must make an impression that stays with people all year long.”
Every November hospices across the country reach out to raise awareness of the compassionate care that hospice and palliative care provide patients and families coping with serious and life-limiting illness.
The Seasons of Caring theme reminds people that life’s final seasons can be some of the most fulfilling, especially when patients and families look to hospice care for help.
The hospice team provides expert medical care to keep patients comfortable and able to enjoy time with loved ones. The hospice team answers questions, offers advice on what to expect, and helps families with the duties of being a caregiver. The team also provides emotional and spiritual support for the entire family.
“With the help of hospice, patients and families alike can focus on what’s most important – enjoying life together and living the final seasons to their fullest,” said Rob Phelps RN. “It’s about the quality of life.”
“There’s an inaccurate perception among the American public that hospice means you’ve given up,” said J. Donald Schumacher, president and CEO of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. “Those of us who have worked in the field have seen firsthand how hospice and palliative care can improve the quality of life. And there’s a growing body of research showing that hospice and palliative care may prolong the lives of some people who receive care.”
More than 1.45 million patients receive care from the nation’s hospices every year, reports the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.
For more information about hospice and/or palliative care, and how they can help your family, contact Access Home Care and Hospice at www.accesshomecareandhospice.com.
Additional information on hospice and palliative care as well as advance care planning is available at www.caringinfo.org.
October 2010 marks the 25th year since the first National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) was declared in 1985. Access Home Care and Hospice is celebrating this anniversary in a special way – by wearing pink exam gloves.
“These pink gloves that our caregivers are wearing are a visible reminder that early detection and prevention is key,” states Camie Tripp RN, Director of Access Home Care and Hospice, Pocatello office.
Experts say that mammography screening remains the single-most effective method of detecting breast cancer in an early, treatable stage. If all women received regular screenings and mammograms after turning 40, the death rate would fall by another 20 to 30 percent.
In addition to raising awareness, these pink gloves are helping provide free mammograms to women who cannot afford them. The manufacturer, Medline, contributes $1 for every 1,000 Generation Pink gloves purchased to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, an organization that has provided over 130,000 free screenings since 2004.
Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer among women and takes the lives of approximately 40,000 women annually. Breast cancer has many risk factors, including age, genetics, obesity, and family history. Women who exercise regularly, maintain healthy diets, and have regular visits with their doctors may be less likely to get breast cancer.
The National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) is committed to spreading knowledge and fostering hope in the fight against breast cancer. By funding free mammograms for women who could otherwise not afford them and supporting research programs in leading facilities across the country, NBCF helps inspire the courage needed to win this monumental battle.
Medline is also the sponsor of the Pink Glove Dance video that went viral on You Tube last year. In an effort to continue building awareness, Medline is releasing multiple sequels on pinkglovedance.com — this time featuring both healthcare workers and breast cancer survivors. For more information on the Pink Glove Dance sequel, visit pinkglovedance.com.
About Access Home Care and Hospice
Access Home Care and Hospice is a locally owned and operated agency that provides home health and hospice services to Northern Utah, Eastern Idaho, and Western Wyoming. Access provides nursing and CNA services in the home, as well as physical, occupational, and speech therapies. In terms of hospice, the Access staff is comprised of Medical Directors, social workers, nurses that specialize in end-of-life care, volunteers, and nursing aides.
On Friday, August 6th at the South Ogden Senior Center, Access Home Care and Hospice held a memorial service designed to remember and reflect upon those that we have cared for on hospice. It was an opportunity for Access Hospice staff and patient's family and friends to remember those that died on hospice and to say a few words of remembrance or appreciation. Attendees also memorialized their loved ones by bringing pictures.
The message was clear that, although time has passed, memories still linger for the families and for us. It has been a privilege as caregivers to be a part of everyone's family during the last stages of life. Access is aware of everyone's continued grief process, and often times we find ourselves missing those we have cared for as well. Occasions such as these often stir thoughts and emotions that hold precious moments of love toward those that we will not forget.
We believe this memorial service was a big success and an important piece in the grief process for family, friends and us as caregivers. Access Hospice would like to thank everyone that came and we enjoyed the opportunity to remember, honor, and grieve together. Thank you for sharing your memories and always remember, YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Access Hospice volunteers find it personally gratifying, intellectually stimulating, and emotionally meaningful to assist those in need at a critical point in their lives. Many of our volunteers were introduced to hospice through the death of a family member and understand firsthand the value of hospice care, but nearly 20% of volunteers are new to hospice.* Volunteers consistently report that helping the terminally ill through hospice is not about dying but about living.
Wherever you live in Northern Utah, Eastern Idaho, or Western Wyoming, Access Hospice has opportunities for volunteers. Volunteers may range in age from teens (at least 18) to senior citizens. Access Hospice tries to constructively utilize the talents of our volunteers. For example, we have a volunteer that plays harp, one that bakes bread for patients and families, and others play the piano. These talents not only help the patients and the families we serve, but come as great opportunities for the volunteers themselves to grow. Although music and cooking talents are greatly appreciated, help in our local offices or even reading to someone are ways volunteers can really make an impact. In fact, some of the most meaningful volunteer time comes from those willing to help their friends and neighbors and serve the community.
There is a wide range of opportunities available for Access Hospice volunteers. Some of those items include, but are not limited to:
To ensure that all volunteers are equipped for the challenge of working with the dying, Access Hospice requires all volunteers to complete an orientation and training session, as well as submit to a routine background check.
To all those who currently volunteer for Access Hospice, THANK YOU! And for those interested in volunteering, please contact your local office found on the sidebar of this blog.
"Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile."
- Albert Einstein
*some information used for this post was taken from hospicefoundation.org
