When you hear the phrase, “hospice care,” you generally think of end-of-life services; however, hospice care also includes palliative care, which is centered on pain management and symptom relief. Palliative care versus curative care is important to understand: the hospice philosophy focuses more on the palliative or comfort care, while traditional curative care focuses on [...]

Caring for the terminally ill requires accepting and planning for the eventuality of death, while creating an atmosphere that provides comfort and compassion to both the patient and their family. Hospice care recognizes the patient’s right to self-determination and decision-making. Hospice program goals are:   (1) Self-determined life closure — anticipating death, mentally competent residents will [...]