Source: SeriousIllness.org

“Life after eighty rarely ends suddenly and unexpectedly in our sleep,” states Dr. Dennis McCullough, in his book My Mother, Your Mother. Instead, caring for an aging relative is more commonly a journey of many years. As a geriatrician and care provider to his late mother, he knows this terrain well.

McCullough outlines eight “stations” in the journey of late life. For each one, he offers insights and tips to help you counter the modern system of “fast medicine” with personalized solutions he calls “slow medicine.”

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

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In this season of growth and blossoming – consider taking your career in a new direction!

We are searching for compassionate and caring people to become a part of the HPCC team.

Job Fair – All Clinical Departments

Date: Wednesday April 27, 2011
Location: Kate B. Reynolds Hospice Home, Multi-Purpose Room
101 Hospice Lane
Winston-Salem, NC  27103
7:00am – 9:00am
4:00pm – 6:00pm

Please visit our website at www.hospicecarecenter.org to view our open positions and complete an online application.
EOE

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Source: SeriousIllness.org

National Healthcare Decisions Day is April 16, a day when all Americans are encouraged to complete or review their advance directive.

The advance health care directive allows you to name someone to act as your “agent” if you become unable to speak for yourself.

That person becomes your “medical power of attorney.”

Your family member should have an advance directive. So should you!

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

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After a lifetime of maintaining your will, you may be wondering what exactly happens to it after you pass away. Well, after your lifetime, your will goes through what is known as probate, the legal procedure by which the courts oversee that your assets are properly distributed.

In general, if you leave a will, the will is submitted to a court for legal review. If you die without a will (called intestate), a court becomes responsible for ensuring that your estate is distributed according to your state’s intestate succession laws. A number of steps occur in the probate process, including:

• Your will and any codicils (separately written amendments to your will) are submitted to the probate court.
• An executor is appointed to act on behalf of your estate.
• People and businesses that have claims against your estate or owe money to your estate are notified.
• Your estate’s assets are inventoried.

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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!

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Salem Speaks will be playing at the Primo Water Team Tailgate at the Hospice Hope Run on Saturday, April 16th from 11 am to 1 pm for all registered participants prior to the Wake Forest University Spring Football game!

Bring your lawn chairs and enjoy the entertainment with you friends and family all to support Hospice & Palliative CareCenter.

SalemSpeaks has been making music together for over a year: winner of the “Rock the Block” band competition, “Carolina” CD release, and multiple shows. The band has developed a loyal following. These are the people who make SalemSpeaks.

The band continues to expand the music library and currently has a dozen new songs that are unrecorded. The new songs add to the live shows and provide a glimpse into the growth of the band and their music. This is the beginning and the future is bright. Follow us as we provide fun and exciting entertainment.

For more info, visit http://salemspeaks.com!

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!

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Source: SeriousIllness.org

The search for meaning appears to be a uniquely human trait. Along with hope, having purpose can sustain us through even the darkest circumstances. Noted psychiatrist Viktor Frankl spent many years in Nazi concentration camps. During his ordeal he established that a sense of purpose and a goal for the future were essential to human existence. They made the difference between surviving that tragedy with grace and dignity or succumbing to bitterness and despair. When faced with a diagnosis of serious illness, we can learn lessons from Dr. Frankl’s observations. Although we cannot control many of the external events of our lives, we do have some control over our attitudes and how we approach even a life-threatening condition. This perspective in turn can have a significant effect on the quality of our life and how we experience our days, whether we have many days left or only a few.

Finding purpose in life, both in the past as well as the present day, can transform a serious illness into a deeply meaningful event. Indeed, many family caregivers and people diagnosed with terminal conditions have said that the illness brought them gifts along with the sadness. Reflection on one’s life and one’s contributions and achievements is often cited as a source of insight into the meaning of it all.

Many people struggle with identifying their contributions and achievements and tend to count only the financial and material aspects. Few of us can be a great statesman or a brilliant architect who leaves behind a legacy to be seen and remembered by the world. All of us, however, leave behind a very meaningful legacy in our friends and families. The way we have lived our lives, the values and principles that have allowed us to touch the hearts and souls of others, and that we have passed on to our children and family, is a legacy that is every bit as important, and one that will live forever as it is passed down from generation to generation.

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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!

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Source: SeriousIllness.org

Perhaps you wonder if your family member is a “hoarder.” You may even harbor secret fears about yourself! We all have cherished possessions. From trophies to teacups. Spare buttons to cans of half-used paint.

To save things is normal. To hoard compulsively is not.

Most of us can determine when we have “enough.” And we can decide to stop buying things and/or start donating or recycling things or throwing them away. Hoarding is different. The formal definition of a person with a hoarding disorder is a person who

* acquires and fails to discard a large number of possessions that appear to be useless or of limited value
* lives or works in spaces so cluttered they cannot be used as originally intended
* has significant distress and/or problems in everyday life that are caused by the hoarding behavior

What’s “normal” in home clutter occurs across a spectrum. The disorder of hoarding falls at the far end of this spectrum:

* Clutter free
* Clutter
* Social impairment: problems in everyday life, such as inability to find bills that must be paid, can’t invite friends or family to visit
* Safety issues: piles on the floor create a falling hazard. Belongings stacked on top of each other create a fire hazard
* Squalor/health hazard: infestation by mold, bacteria, insects, or rodents. (At this late stage, the local fire department and/or Adult Protective Services typically begin an intervention.)

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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!

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There’s a reason rivalries resurface when siblings share in elder care. According to Francine Russo, author of They’re Your Parents, Too!, the trigger is an awareness that time is running out. It often hinges on the desire to resolve unconscious needs for parental attention. Perhaps it’s a need to feel as important as another sibling. Or to feel forgiven. Or to feel capable.

When old issues operate beneath the surface, the result can be lots of emotion and little constructive progress.

What to do:

- Check in with yourself. Are you overly engaged in caregiving out of the hope for approval? Or underinvolved because you were “the baby”? Recognize how your perspective may affect your role in your parent’s care and your response to your siblings.

- Don’t blame your sibs. If you feel that Dad overlooks you, you may be right. Your parent may be unfair. This is not the fault of your siblings, however. Similarly, if you are the “favorite child,” try not to abuse that privilege. Instead, look for common ground with your siblings. Acknowledge your parent’s foibles.

- Treat your siblings as adults. If you don’t operate according to old family patterns, your siblings are less likely to do so too. Meet them as they are today. At a minimum, agree to put aside sibling issues to focus on the care of your parent. Use the forum of a “family meeting” for discussion. Hire a facilitator if problems persist.

- Get support. You may not ever receive the love you want from your parent. Your siblings may repeat old patterns. Accept these realities if they occur, and find connection in other places. Try a support group for family caregivers. Or consider individual counseling for help in letting go of old hopes.

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!

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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.

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

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Driving performance, not age, dictates when it’s time to curtail driving. If your parent is showing problems with driving, it could be time for “that” conversation.

Ideally, you’ve set the stage through candid discussion over the past months or years. Perhaps you’ve even talked about how others have handled this phase-of-life issue. Sensitivity to your own emotions can help guide you when you talk with your loved one. It’s better to acknowledge the sadness than avoid the conversation and risk an accident.

- Consider who should deliver the news. It’s typically best received from a trusted family member or a health professional. Choose someone who can be supportive and empathetic. If Mom is able, have her talk to Dad, or vice versa. If it’s your role, go easy. Expect to have several conversations. Show your concern for maintaining your parent’s ability to get around and participate in life activities.

- Practice using alternatives. Work toward zero driving. Have family members and friends provide rides more often. Make it natural by saying, “Let’s go shopping together today.” Join Mom in trying public transportation. Arrange for home delivery of goods and for automated bank deposits/payments.

- Work with resistance. If Dad doesn’t follow through with promised changes, you need to take further action. See if the doctor will set limits. Remind Dad his behavior puts others at risk. Impose family restrictions, such as telling him he can no longer drive when the grandkids are in the car.

- Be firm. If all else fails, contact your state department of motor vehicles and find out how to report an unsafe driver. This will trigger a driver evaluation. If the license is revoked but your parent continues to drive, consider disabling the car or “losing” the keys.

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

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