In the A to Z run up to publication of my new book Carers and Caring; the One Stop Guide; how to care for older relatives and friends H is for Hospice care

Hospice care is about living well

Palliative care, or end-of-life care, aims to support the person to live as well as possible until they die. You as a carer also need support. There are hard questions about what you might expect, and what available medical options might be offered by the doctors. Hospice staff, including nurses, can support you in advance or during those difficult conversations.

When people think about hospice care, they often associate it with cancer care at the end of life in a building specially provided and staffed for this specialist care. There may not be a building, and it might be that the staff come to where the person lives to provide hospice care. Usually, hospice care is limited to the last six months of life. But it is not limited to cancer care. Increasingly, hospice care has a focus on all end-of-life care, including dementia. People don’t often think of dementia as a life-limiting illness, but it is.

Emotional and spiritual comfort

If you are caring for a person with who is nearing the end of their life, it is hard sometimes for carers to provide emotional and spiritual comfort. The person may be unresponsive, and you may be worn out after a long spell of caring. This is where hospice care can help you. The person you care for may not need to move away from home to receive this care, if hospice care can be provided at home. 

Social services can provide equipment for end of life care, and through the GP community nurses or nurses from Macmillan or Marie Curie may be able to come and help. If the person who is dying is in a care home or nursing home, it might be that they would prefer to stay there rather than move to another place such as an acute hospital. 

The care provided in a hospice is free. Like a good care home, it extends to supporting people who are close to the person even after the death, during the bereavement period. It’s important to be supported after the death of a loved one. 

The Alzheimer’s Society has a useful fact sheet on end-of-life care for people with dementia: www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/help-dementia-care/end-life-care-dementia

 There is more about later life care in  Carers and Caring: The One-Stop Guide: How to care for older relatives and friends - with tips for managing finances and accessing the right support  available from all good bookshops in May 2022

 Three hints:

1.     Plan for the end of life; planning doesn’t hasten it, but can make it more comfortable

2.     Important conversations might be difficult, but hospice staff can help you to have them

3.     Find your nearest hospice and talk to them before it is necessary