Frequent Falling

December 26, 2009

What should you do if an aging or ailing loved one is falling frequently?  This issue arises often in hospice care, particularly for home-bound patients.
We always investigate the cause of falling:

Low blood pressure can make people light-headed.  It can result from dehydration (not eating enough, or vomitting/diarrhea), taking too much blood pressure medicine, a new [...]

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Now that’s what I call relief

December 14, 2009

I believe there was a 1980’s Rolaids commercial about relief.  How consumer-focused we communicate using the ideas we have seen in old television ads.
Last week I saw real relief.  One of our patients was suffering from constant and worsening air hunger (he has emphysema).  Air hunger is one of the most devastating symptoms.  It is [...]

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Kudos, an old Greek word, used in Texas

December 6, 2009

I was present at a patient’s house this past week at the moment she passed.  We were able to console family and set in motion mortuary and other services.  Our team handled themselves well.
Before the patient passed I visited with some family members.  They mentioned that our social worker called a court justice in Kansas [...]

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60 Minutes and Hospice

November 30, 2009

Last week the CBS show 60 Minutes featured a segment on end of life care.  It covered a wide range of hospice issues.

Doctors rarely talk to their patients about end of life issues
Hospitalizations at the end of life are inordinately expensive (medicare incurs over half of its costs in the last few months of American’s lives)
An excessive [...]

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At a Fort Worth Hospice: MD meets MS

November 22, 2009

A local physician asked us to take one of her patients who is suffering from multiple sclerosis.  What a discouraging disease this one can be.
MS attacks younger people, usually women.  It strips the nerves of their outer covering, making them useless.  The patient experiences weakness, pain, and loss of bodily control.
It varies in severity.  Some folks [...]

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All things new

November 16, 2009

It is common wisdom that we humans suffer more in losing health and function, than we do in death.  The slow decline of body and mind, once young, healthy and aggressive, trumps the ache of passing away.  
I spent the weekend at a father-daughter retreat with my 10-year old daughter.  It was a delightful time.  The girls [...]

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Common questions happen commonly

November 10, 2009

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 [...]

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Traveled Road

November 1, 2009

I thought I would add cheer to an already enjoyable weekend by reviewing some recent national hospice data.  Here are some nuggets:

Patients on hospice lived an average of 28 days longer than patients with similar diagnoses who were not on hospice.
Hospice service saved an average of $2,309.00 per patient in 2008.
The cost savings data indicated that the [...]

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Ministry masquerading as hospice

October 26, 2009

This past week I attended a minsitry briefing for Prison Fellowship Ministries.  During a lunch, one gentleman, a lawyer by trade, said that he has a ministry in town that masquerades as a law firm.
We admitted a young person dying from cancer tonight.  This patient has a young child and is married.  It is one of the [...]

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Today you will be with me

October 18, 2009

One of our dear patients died last week from pancreatic cancer.  Her husband of 40 years had gotten up on her bed and was lying next to her when she passed.  One of their children came in the room and said, “I think she is gone.”  The huband replied, “Yes.  She died a little while ago.”
As [...]

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