How a family uses its money usually starts with the care of family members, addressing basic needs such as the mortgage, medical costs and tuition bills.

What a family decides to do with its money after basic needs have been met can cover an array of venues. If you do choose to contribute to charitable causes, you will be pleased to know that you can give in ways that not only benefit the causes you love, but you and your family as well.

Three Ways to Make All the Difference
One—Annual gifts ensure that we will be able to provide much-needed patient services every year.
Two—A sizable gift to Hospice & Palliative CareCenter this year lets us use those funds to support immediate projects.

	Learn of the many ways you can minimize your taxes and maximize your gift to Hospice & Palliative CareCenter in our free guide.

Three—A gift in your will or trust demonstrates your commitment to improving health care in our community.

Please contact Ellen Coble at 336-331-1312 or ellen.coble@hospicecarecenter.org to learn more about the different ways to support Hospice & Palliative CareCenter.

For more information about Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

This is not a unique story. It’s told over and over. Many of the details and most of the emotions are shared by thousands who choose quality end-of-life care at Hospice & Palliative CareCenter.

The power in Madlon Glenn’s story lies in the very fact that it is not unique. It is the same story. It is a story of caring, compassion and comfort.

Madlon’s Story
Madlon’s mother, Hawley Chambers, suffered a serious injury in January 2008. At first, her family was hopeful that she would survive, but after two months and two unsuccessful surgeries, they called Hospice.

“The Hospice nurse gently broke the news to us that our mother would never recover,” Madlon says. After accepting the care and support from Hospice, the family’s story of pain and despair became one of peaceful acceptance.

“Hospice knew what to do for her and for us,” Madlon says. “They were always so kind. And we were grateful for the option of having around-the-clock care at the Hospice Home.”

When Madlon and her brother, Thornton “Butch” Chambers, visited their mother at the Hospice Home for the first time, they were amazed to see her looking so well. “She was sitting up for the first time in two months, her hair was fixed and she’d had a manicure,” Madlon says.

But the intense level of care Mrs. Chambers enjoyed during her time at Hospice went deeper than a beauty makeover. “She was frightened in the hospital but not at Hospice,” her daughter says. “She was never alone and she seemed more relaxed. She was at peace.”

With Hospice’s help, Mrs. Chambers’ family members found their own peace. As Madlon tells the story, “Hospice makes the patient’s last days mean something and prepares the family to let go.”

For more information about Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

Source: SeriousIllness.org

You may be entitled to claim your relative as a dependent. This requires that:

- The individual’s income was less than $3,650 in 2010. “Income” includes Social Security and pension benefits. Also, proceeds from investments or withdrawals from retirement savings plans.

- You paid more than 50% of your relative’s support. He or she does not have to live with you. Support expenses include food, clothing, housing, and medical care. Also, transportation, recreation, and other essentials. If he or she lived with you, include fair rental value for your family member’s share of the lodging.

Many relatives qualify. Your parents and siblings. Other family relatives, step relatives, and in-laws. Or anyone who lived with you all year.

If others paid some support expenses, a deduction is still possible. But only one person can claim it. And everyone who shared expenses must sign a multiple support agreement.

You may be able to deduct medical expenses.

• This includes expenses paid for yourself, your spouse, or a dependent relative. Or for a relative who would have qualified as a dependent but had too much income or filed a joint return.
• The expenses must add to more than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). For example, if your AGI is $40,000, the first $3,000 of expenses doesn’t count.

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE

For more information about Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, contact Ann Gauthreaux, public relations director, at 336-768-3972, or see Hospice’s website at http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

Source: SeriousIllness.org

It’s natural to want to help when your loved one can no longer drive. But it may not be realistic. Smart caregivers learn to delegate things that can be done by others. Only you can provide the love of a family member. Transportation is something others can do.

Each town has its own transportation program. Check to see which of these are available where your loved one lives.

Public transportation options

• Public or mass transit. This service is bus or rail travel on a preset route. It usually has a preset schedule. Seniors often pay a reduced fare. Some companies can even arrange ahead of time for someone to accompany a first-time rider, share tips, etc.
• Paratransit service. This service is for individuals with physical or mental disabilities. It provides door-to-door or curb-to-curb travel. Most paratransit vehicles can handle wheelchairs. Timing is based on the rider’s schedule. Advance reservations are required.

Continue Reading…

For more information about Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, contact Ann Gauthreaux, public relations director, at 336-768-3972, or see Hospice’s website at http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

The changes to Medicare for 2011 provide your loved one with several free prevention services. The idea is to catch major health problems early by lowering the cost for screenings.

The changes apply to everyone with Parts A and B. If your family member has a Medicare Advantage Plan, check with the plan itself about benefits for 2011.

Following is a sample of the services to be covered. Most are offered at no cost. Some require payment of 20% of the approved Medicare fee. Important: To get these savings, your family member must use a doctor who has signed on with Medicare.

• Yearly wellness exam. An annual visit to look at current health issues. This is also a time to discuss personal risk factors and steps for preventing disease. Patients new to Medicare are entitled to a more extensive “welcome” exam within their first year of signing up.
• Bone density screening. Bone mass evaluation every 24 months for persons at risk for brittle bones.
• Cancer screening. Four types of tests are covered for colon or rectal cancer. For women, there are yearly mammograms. Plus, there is coverage for Pap smears, pelvic exams, and a physical breast exam every 24 months. For men, PSA tests and physical exams for prostate cancer are provided yearly (with a 20% fee).
• Diabetes screening. Provided twice a year for at-risk individuals (with a 20% fee).
• Flu/pneumonia prevention. Flu shots are covered annually. Anti-pneumonia shots are also covered and typically last a lifetime.

Prescription costs may also go down for your family member in 2011. If he or she reaches the “donut hole” coverage gap, the cost of brand-name drugs will drop 50%.

For more information about Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, contact Ann Gauthreaux, public relations director, at 336-768-3972, or see Hospice’s website at http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

New Medicare rule could cost hospice providers more and limit their reach

Source: Journalnow.com
By RICHARD CRAVER

A new Medicare rule requiring a doctor or nurse practitioner to visit patients in person after 180 days of hospice care is likely to raise staffing costs for providers and could limit the reach of assistance in rural areas.

The rule, which goes into effect today, requires a face-to-face visit before a hospice patient can continue to receive care after two 90-day periods. However, Medicare agreed Dec. 23 to postpone enforcing the rule until April 1 to give providers more time to meet its requirements.

The primary functions of the visit are to make sure that the patient still needs end-of-life care and that the care is appropriate for the person’s needs.

The goal of hospice care is to provide comfort to a patient who is close to dying rather than to continue treating the patient to extend his or her life. Some hospice care is provided in facilities, and some involves visits to patients’ homes. Care is provided by medical professionals and lay volunteers.

Local and state officials said the rule would affect about 9 percent of North Carolinians who receive hospice care.

Where the cost comes into play is that Medicare will not allow a provider to bill for the doctor or nurse practitioner visit. It’s considered an administrative requirement, so the bill must come out of Medicare’s per diem rate of about $130 a day.

“It’s going to stretch all of us, no question about it, more so with the smaller hospices,” said JoAnn Davis, the president and chief executive of Hospice & Palliative CareCenter, which is based in Winston-Salem and serves 13 counties.

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE

For more, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

Thanksgiving is a time we traditionally gather with family to celebrate our gratitude for life. As those who are dealing with a serious illness know, life is a gift. The fact that it does not last forever is part of what makes life precious. Join others who are choosing to spend a portion of this holiday gathering to engage with grace.

This is a national movement to gracefully promote family discussions about end-of-life preferences. Talking with family is key to ensuring that your own wishes are followed. In caring for a family member, knowing that person’s wishes ahead of time reduces the potential for guilt and conflict.

You can lead the way by reviewing with your family your own answers to these questions:

- Who would you like to have make decisions for you if you are unable to speak for yourself? Ideally, you have completed an advance directive. In this document, you name your medical power of attorney and give him or her some basic instructions. Use this time to let others know whom you have chosen and what you would like.

- Where would you like to spend your last days? At home or in a hospital? What would be the most comforting?

- Do you want aggressive medical treatment right up to the end? If so, make sure your family knows to advocate for you.

- Would you prefer minimal intervention? Depending on the circumstances, your priority in your last weeks may be to live as normally as possible, placing quality over quantity. Prepare your family to accept this as your choice.

During this season of thanks, you can thank your family for their support of you and encourage them to share their wishes as well.

For more, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

It seems that the older we get, the more pills we take. Remembering to take them, and to take them on time, can challenge even the sharpest mind.

If your loved one has occasional memory lapses, getting into a good routine for taking medications might be all that’s necessary to stick with the doctor’s recommendations. Some suggestions:

• Keep pills in sight. Good places might include the kitchen table or counter, or a bureau top. Keep them away from direct sunlight by a window or a steamy room, such as a bathroom.
• Link with other habits. Work with your loved one to associate pill-taking time with other routines, such as morning coffee or brushing teeth.
• Use a pill box. Pill boxes organize daily doses for a week. The simplest have seven compartments. Others have two or three compartments per day for am/pm doses.
• Add an alarm. Consider a pill box or a wristwatch with an alarm. Or program your loved one’s cell phone to ring a specific tone when it’s time to take a pill.

More active support may be necessary if your loved one has ongoing memory issues. Among the options available:

• Automated pill dispenser. These dispensers sound an alarm and open a dispensing drawer when it is time to take a pill. Some can notify you if a dose is skipped. Check the federal government’s database of available products.
• Telephone reminder. For a monthly fee, your loved one receives timed, daily phone calls and an automated message to take his or her medications. Some services will notify you if the phone is not answered.
• Email or text message. MyMedSchedule’s no-cost service provides email or text reminders. Or check online for smart phone medication apps.
• Personal medical alert. Many home-based medical alert systems include an optional medication reminder service.

For more, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

Hospice & Palliative CareCenter’s medical staff services department offers several opportunities for medical professionals to gain a deeper understanding of end-of-life care.

Through a series of conferences, case studies, and other forums, our team of experienced physicians and nurse practitioners, will offer the following opportunities: Case Conferences…

Our Case conferences are offered the 1st Friday of each month. The purpose of this is for a fellow or a physician to present a challenging case for group discussion.

This is an opportunity for clarification and understanding of problematic situations and understanding of Medicare regulations that play such an important role in what we do as physicians.

The conferences include a wide variety of hospice staff including, physicians, nurse practitioners, nursing, home health, social work, pharmacy, etc.

For more, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!

Did your mom teach you to “do what the doctor says”? If she’s not following doctor’s orders for medications now, you’re probably feeling confused. And concerned.

It’s common for patients not to take pills as directed. Some reasons include:

- “It’s too costly.” One quarter of new prescriptions are never filled because of cost. Make sure the drug is on the insurance plan formulary. Or ask about generics. Find a discount pharmacy, or consider mail order.

- “I feel fine.” Many illnesses lack noticeable symptoms. High blood pressure and high cholesterol, for example. These prescriptions often go unfilled. Many people don’t finish their antibiotics for similar reasons: the symptoms went away. Ask the doctor or pharmacist to review with your loved one why a medication is necessary.

- “It made things worse.” Consult with the doctor or pharmacist. Reducing the dose or changing from morning to evening may fix the problem. Or taking a different medication may be advised.

- “It was too complicated.” Some drugs require multiple doses in a day. Others are restrictive (“30 minutes before eating”). Ask the doctor or pharmacist about alternatives.

- “I can’t get the bottle open” or “I can’t read the label.” Arthritic hands and poor eyesight can make it difficult to follow directions. Ask the pharmacist for large type on the label and a NON-child-proof container.

- “Why bother?” Hopelessness and depression are common reasons why people don’t take their medications. If you suspect depression, ask the doctor to do an evaluation.

- “It won’t do anything.” Perhaps your loved one has an entirely different interpretation of what is wrong. Consider using the motivational interviewing techniques described in our article, “Your changing role: Becoming a partner-in-care.” The discoveries you make in the conversation can help you increase the likelihood that he or she will follow the doctor’s orders.

- “I forgot.” Simple memory lapses are a fact of aging. Look for solutions to forgetfulness in next month’s newsletter.

For more, visit http://www.hospicecarecenter.org!

Stay Connected!