Continuous Home Care
Continuous Home Care (CHC) is a level of hospice service provided at home during a medical crisis to manage acute symptoms, avoiding hospitalization. It involves round-the-clock (8+ hours in a 24-hour period) skilled nursing care, often with support from aides and other hospice team members. CHC is used temporarily until symptoms are stabilized and routine hospice care can resume. This care ensures that patients remain in a familiar, comfortable environment during critical times.
Right time for hospice care
When considering hospice care, it’s crucial to understand when the right time is for a loved one to transition into this specialized form of care. Hospice focuses on providing comfort, dignity, and support for individuals who are nearing the end of their lives, typically when curative treatments are no longer effective or desired.
Here are key signs and considerations that can indicate the right time for hospice care:
Advanced Illness or Terminal Diagnosis
A person has a serious, life-limiting illness such as cancer, heart disease, dementia, ALS, or COPD, and the prognosis suggests they have a limited time left to live (typically 6 months or less if the illness follows its usual course). There is no longer any curative treatment option, or the treatments have stopped working, and the focus has shifted to comfort care.
Frequent Hospitalizations or Emergency Room Visits
If your loved one is frequently admitted to the hospital or requires emergency care, and their condition continues to worsen despite medical intervention, it may be a sign that hospice care is appropriate. Hospice can help manage symptoms at home, avoiding unnecessary hospital stays.
Unmanageable Pain and Symptoms
When pain, nausea, shortness of breath, or other symptoms become difficult to control despite ongoing treatments, hospice care specialists can provide expert symptom management to improve quality of life.
Loss of Function
When your loved one experiences significant functional decline, such as being unable to perform basic activities of daily living (bathing, dressing, eating, walking), and the condition is not expected to improve.
Declining Mental Status
For individuals with neurological conditions (such as Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia), when there is significant cognitive decline—such as inability to recognize family members, difficulty communicating, or constant confusion—hospice may be appropriate to provide supportive care.
Desire for Comfort Over Curative Treatment
If your loved one expresses a desire to stop aggressive treatments in favor of comfort and quality of life, hospice care can honor that decision by focusing on pain relief, emotional support, and dignity.
Family and Caregiver Support Needs
Hospice care isn’t just for the patient; it also provides vital support to the family and caregivers. If family members are struggling to manage their loved one’s care or if there is emotional or physical exhaustion, hospice teams offer respite and emotional counseling.
Nonresponsive to Current Treatments
If treatments and medications no longer have a significant effect on your loved one’s illness and their condition is continuing to decline, it may be time to consider hospice care.