How are emotional and spiritual needs addressed?
Hospice recognizes that people are more than a collection of symptoms. People nearing the end of their lives often face enormous emotional and spiritual distress. They are dismayed as their physical abilities begin to fail. They don’t want to be a burden on their families. They worry how their loved ones will manage without them. Sometimes, they feel deep regret about things they have done or said – or things left undone and unsaid. Hospice professionals and volunteers are trained to be active listeners and to help patients and families work through some of these concerns so that they can find peace and emotional comfort in their final days. Where do I go for hospice care? Many people have the impression that “hospice” means hospital – a place to go to get care at the end of life. But that’s not the case. Palliative medicine and hospice care are a philosophy of care – an approach to the care of someone with a life-limiting disease that stresses comfort vs. cure and quality of life for
