Hospice
When you or someone you love is faced with a life-limiting illness, Granite VNA is here. Our hospice experts provide quality, compassionate care as well as guidance and support to patients and their loved ones.
Common Misconceptions
While hospice is often toward the end of a person’s life, there are many common misconceptions such as:
- Hospice is only for the last few days or weeks of a person’s life
- It is only for people with cancer, people in severe pain, or those who have a ‘do not resuscitate’ order
- People on hospice do not receive treatment, they’re just kept comfortable with medication
- Hospice is a ‘place’ where a person goes to die
- Hospice hastens death
- People on hospice must give up seeing their primary care providers
- Hospice is focused on the patient and ends when the patient dies
Benefits of Hospice
Hospice care is much more than meeting patients’ medical needs. Hospice care empowers patients to have a voice in their end-of-life experience, and to help them through it with as much comfort, grace and dignity as possible. It is about compassion – for them and their loved ones.
While some people chose to begin hospice care in the final weeks or days of a terminal illness, hospice care is not limited to this time frame. If in line with your goals of care, meeting your hospice team months before your final days can help give you peace and strength as you formulate a plan that works best for you.
Services Provided
Patients on hospice with Granite VNA receive personalized care coordinated with their care team, which may include their primary care provider and other clinicians. They may receive nursing care, pain management, spiritual care, social work, including emotional support and companionship – all in the place they call home. Those who need more intensive care may choose to receive care at Granite VNA’s Hospice House.
Unsure what hospice is and is not? Curious about palliative care versus hospice? Let our dedicated Advanced Illness Management team make a visit to discuss goals of care with you and your loved ones.
Caring for the Caregiver
Equally as important in this end-of-life journey are the caregivers, who are most often the patients’ loved ones. Hospice care is about them, too. In addition to day-to-day assistance with patient care, loved ones may receive emotional and spiritual guidance and support from our spiritual care counselors; help with end-of-life planning; and much-needed respite care. It is important to note that hospice care does not end when a patient dies – our bereavement counselors and support groups help loved ones as they learn to cope with their loss for as long as they need us.
Hospice House
Granite VNA opened New Hampshire’s first Hospice House in 1994 to help provide community members with a peaceful and supportive end-of-life experience.
We Honor Veterans
Granite VNA’s Hospice Program is a proud We Honor Veterans Partner Provider that serves a growing segment of our patient population – our veterans. As a Partner Provider, our agency recruits and trains Veterans and others who want to support Veterans who are hospice patients.
Interested in Hospice Services?
Contact our admissions team at (603) 224-4093 | (800) 924-8620. We accept referrals seven days-per-week, 24 hours-per-day, year-round.
We strive to provide services within 24 hours of receiving your doctor’s orders.