Many of our patients hear about us through our website. Sometimes the patient’s children call and ask us pertinent questions about hospice in general, and what makes us unique as a Fort Worth hospice.
Yesterday, I fielded some excellent questions from someone whose parent is considering our service. Here are some excerpts:
Question: Can someone receive radiation and/or chemotherapy while on hospice?
Answer: Since the radiation/chemo is related to the hospice diagnosis of cancer, the hospice agency may choose to pay for the treatment. The treatment cost is the determinative factor. Texas Hospice has provided palliative radiation and blood transfusions. At times we have been unable to pay for treatments when they were priced at thousands of dollars a month.
Question: Can someone continue seeing their physician while on hospice?
Answer: Yes. We encourage our patients to continue seeing their personal physician during hospice. We pay for the visit.
Question: Does hospice enable a patient to stay at home who would otherwise be forced into a facility?
Answer: Maybe. This scenario depends on many factors such as the patient’s ability to walk, and the family caregivers’ health and availability. Hospice aids can be present and helpful for only an hour or so a day. The purpose of hospice in these situations is to educate and assist the family. In unusual cases, hospice may provide 24 hour care (see my blog on continuous care).
I’ll try to address some of the other common hospice questions in next week’s blog.
