Americans Got Nurses Interview Article – Hospice Nurse

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Who Qualifies for Hospice Care?

Hospice is given to patients who are reaching the end of life and have chosen to die at home. Although hospice care is generally associated with the elderly, people with incurable diseases approaching the final stages may also seek hospice care.

Once the domain of hospitals, there is a growing trend for choosing to die at home. It’s not always a welcome decision for the loved ones of a dying patient. “A lot of people still view hospice as giving up and letting the disease win,” states hospice nurse, Jill Campbell. The thought of a loved one dying is not a comfortable one. In the hopes of somehow beating death, the choice is often to leave the patient in hospital care until the last breath.

Isn’t There Hospice Care in Hospitals?

There is hospice care in hospitals. Federal regulations state that for a hospice, which provides care in its own inpatient facilities, “the facility provides 24-hour nursing services that are sufficient to meet total nursing needs and are in accordance with a patient care plan. If you take a look at the site here, you will know how scary the number of accidents is. 24- hour services are necessary for this scenario. Each patient receives treatment, medication and diet as prescribed, and is kept clean, well-groomed and protected from accident, injury and infection.

How is a Hospice Nurse Different from a RN?

Palliative care is the most recent of nursing specializations. A nurse may enter hospice care at the associate’s, BSN or Master’s degree level, but their concentration is on promoting a quality of life by protecting patients from burdensome interventions and providing care at home, whenever possible, instead of a hospital.

Hospice and palliative care nurses distinguish themselves from other colleagues within the nursing profession by maintaining an unwavering focus on end-of-life care. The goal of the hospice nurse is to achieve the best quality of life through the relief of suffering, control of symptoms, and restoration of functional capacity while remaining sensitive to personal, cultural and religious values, beliefs and practices, according to the Last Acts Task Force (1999).

What is the View of the Hospice Nurse on End of Life Care?

People are reluctant to talk about death, even as their loved ones reach the final stages of life. The truth is, the patient usually has far more certainty about what’s happening than those who are trying to prolong the patient’s life. Hospice nurses feel it doesn’t have to be a frightening experience, but one that is painless, peaceful and graceful. By working with the families and preparing them for the inevitable outcome, the patients are allowed to die within the home, surrounded by those who love them.

Becoming a hospice nurse may seem unbearably sad to the novice, but Jill Campbell doesn’t see it this way. She relates experiences in which families gathered to tell funny stories and draw on their warmest experiences with the dying patient. “There’s still happiness within the sadness of it,” she says.

What Difficulties Face the Hospice Nurse?

It can be difficult for families to face the idea that their loved one is dying. Some are divided on the idea of hospice care, even when it’s the patient’s request. Communications are the most difficult part of being a hospice nurse. We need to educate physicians on the qualities of palliative and end of life care.

Hospice nurses are care-givers, educators, mentors, facilitators and advocates. Their role is to make the physical, emotional, spiritual and mental process of dying as comfortable as possible for both the dying and their families. We need to question why we must prolong the act of dying as much as possible and why we must transfer our own fears to the dying. Death is as much a natural process as living. As a society, we need to become more open and communicative about it and learn to accept and allow the terminal patient to die with grace and dignity.