Highlighting the Four Levels of Hospice Care

Hospice care was made for patients who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness in which the prognosis suggests they have six months or less left to live. Hospice care providers offer four different levels of hospice care. These levels are defined by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. 

As a patient’s condition begins to worsen, they may progress throughout the different levels of hospice care. As an example, a terminally ill patient can begin in hospice care with routine home care. However, as they get worse, they could transition into continuous home care. 

Let’s take a closer look at the four levels of hospice care.

Routine Home Care

Routine home care is for patients who are dealing with tolerable symptoms that don’t require around-the-clock care. The services a patient may receive under routine home care can include:

• Nursing
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Medical equipment
• Medical supplies
• Pathology services

 
Routine home care can allow hospice care patients to receive the care they truly need without leaving their homes. 

Continuous Home Care

Continuous home care offers 24/7 support. While it most often takes place at home, continuous home care can also be provided in an assisted living facility or nursing home. It is designed to help terminally ill patients who are experiencing moderate to severe acute symptoms. 

These symptoms can include:

• Difficulty breathing
• Severe acute pain
• Severe anxiety
• Nausea and vomiting
• High risk of seizures

 
While each provider will have an entirely different process, continuous home care usually involves home hospice workers taking shifts. This is done to ensure both the patient and their family have the support they need.

General Inpatient Care

General inpatient care is often a temporary stop-in for terminally ill patients who have symptoms that cannot be managed properly at home. Those in inpatient care will receive 24/7 monitoring by medical staff.

Symptoms that can often lead to a patient needing treatment in an inpatient facility are often similar to the acute symptoms. Though, the symptoms can often become worse and require more complex medical equipment.

Respite Care 

Respite care is given to a patient when their primary caregiver is physically or mentally exhausted and needs a break or may be temporarily unavailable. With respite care, patients check in to an inpatient facility and their emotional and physical needs are met by a 24/7 private caregiver and hospice staff.

A caregiver may need respite care if they need to take several days of rest to ensure that they are in a good mental and physical state to properly care for their patient.

Contact Lucky Palliative Services

If you have any questions, we can help you out. We understand that end-of-life care can often be stressful, and we are here to ensure that our patients live with a good quality of life and get the support they need. Our services expand out to the Bakersfield, Santa Clarita Valley, San Fernando Valley, Ventura County, Oxnard, Huntington Beach, and LA County areas. 

Get in touch with our reliable team here at Lucky Palliative Services

More Helpful Resources on Hospice and Palliative Care:

• Identifying Signs and Recovery Steps of a Heart Attack
• Recognizing the Signs of End-of-life and What You can Do for a Loved One