Understanding Home-Based Palliative Care for Seniors Aging in Place

Many seniors choose to age in place for the comfort and familiarity that living at home can provide.

In fact, multiple studies show that safely aging in place can lead to a better quality of life and improved overall health outcomes compared to living in a group facility or senior center. Seniors enjoy independent living and do not want to be confined in a living facility.

However, as seniors’ needs change over time, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can become a challenge for seniors and their family caregivers.

When facing health issues like a new diagnosis, chronic condition, or serious illness, understanding the palliative options available is an important factor in planning a senior’s continuum of care.

Healthcare access is a major social determinant for seniors, and being able to receive medical and personal care at home goes a long way toward overall quality of life.

Not sure if palliative care is the right in-home option for your needs? Here’s how our skilled nurses at NurseRegistry help seniors across California successfully age in place.

What is In-Home Palliative Care?

a senior receiving palliative care

Palliative care is a form of patient-centered care offered to anyone who needs pain or symptom management from surgery, chronic conditions, or life-threatening illness. Palliative care doesn’t replace other medical treatments.

Instead, our nurses work alongside a senior’s new or existing healthcare team to help provide comfort and specialized individual care.

Whether a senior is in active treatment or if they’re nearing the end of life, our in-home palliative care services aim to help improve a senior’s quality of life and these services are available at any stage of an illness, regardless of whether a condition can be cured.

Something to note is palliative care is not the same thing as hospice care. While palliative care is always provided as a part of a hospice care plan, hospice is meant for a senior’s end-of-life care, not just for managing their condition.

In fact, hospice care, even in a community setting, does very little to treat a condition and is mainly intended to ease pain and increase comfort level.

Do know that whatever illness you face, our Care Coordinators will match you with a nurse best suited to your changing needs and preferences.

What Are the Benefits of Palliative Care?

A happy senior and his palliative nurse

Multiple studies conclude that patients with serious illnesses benefit from palliative care, especially when included in the early stages of treatment.

Because palliative care is tailored to fit a patient’s needs and health status, nurses can provide a wide range of services to help seniors with the pain, symptoms, and stress an illness can bring.

This can make all the difference while aging in place. Here are some benefits seniors and caregivers can expect to receive from our skilled nursing staff.

Pain and Symptom Management

For seniors diagnosed with aggressive forms of cancer, the combination of either chemotherapy or radiation treatments can cause symptoms like nausea, fatigue, weight loss, and more.

NurseRegistry’s specialized oncology nurses can help seniors throughout their treatment journey to ease their pain and improve comfort, so they aren’t derailed by the more unpleasant side effects of treatment.

Again, since these services can be offered to anyone suffering from any condition, palliative care for cancer patients has become more prevalent over the years.

Seniors experiencing chronic respiratory issues can benefit from palliative care, too. Our skilled nursing staff provides specialty services, such as respiratory management, to help seniors and caregivers with tracheostomy care, ventilator, CPAP, and BiPAP monitoring.

Nurses can also assist with administering oxygen and breathing treatments or exercises, amongst other things.

Physical and Emotional Support

A private nurse holding a seniors hand for emotional support.

Family caregivers often feel overwhelmed and unequipped to provide the attention and medical care needed to help seniors safely age in place.

Palliative care can help seniors and caregivers deal with both the physical and emotional hurdles that come with a serious health issue.

Our nurses can provide medical support for Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), vital sign monitoring, wound care, medication management, and other services as requested.

Heightened emotions such as anxiety, fear, anger, or depression can magnify certain symptoms associated with an illness.

Palliative care providers offer a whole-person approach to treatment by assessing how a senior is managing emotionally and modifying care for increased comfort and peace of mind.

For caregivers and seniors alike, our nurses can listen to any fears, questions, or concerns they may experience and help find resources and support they need for their specific needs.

Continuity of Care

As a senior’s needs change, skilled nurses can educate patients, family members, and caregivers to provide an ongoing and up-to-date care plan.

Our nurses help to bridge the communication gap between a senior’s case manager and health team, allowing them to respond quickly and provide the best care possible if a condition becomes more complex.

Our staff can also help reduce the stresses of the unexpected by helping seniors and their loved ones create a long-term care plan that allows them to safely and happily continue to age in place.

NurseRegistry nurses can provide palliative care to seniors by improving their quality of life as they age in place. This also allows respite care for family members of the elderly individual.

If you have a senior loved one who could benefit from an in-home palliative care nurse, visit click below or call 866-916-8773 to speak with one of our Intake Specialists.

The post Understanding Home-Based Palliative Care for Seniors Aging in Place appeared first on NurseRegistry.

The post Understanding Home-Based Palliative Care for Seniors Aging in Place appeared first on NurseRegistry.



from NurseRegistry https://ift.tt/jsuWBFp

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Handle Grief After Losing a Patient

Image
Grieving is a natural process, and everyone reacts differently to loss. The grieving process can be irregular and unpredictable. Handling grief after losing a patient can be difficult, especially if you’re unaware you are grieving. People who are associated with the medical field often experience professional burnout. A nursing career can be incredibly rewarding, but there are certainly a variety of stressors. It is possible that this burnout may lead to post-traumatic stress disorder or depression. However, you don’t have to feel alone in facing your grief. In order to cope with grief, there are several things you can do. Knowing how to handle grief after losing a patient can help you cope with loss in a healthy way.   Definition of Grief Grief is a natural emotional response programmed by our body to happen when we have suffered a loss or trauma. It’s an unconscious process and has been deeply evolved over centuries to keep us safe from threats. There is no specific tim...
Read more

Concierge Nurse in Peninsula, California

Image
High-End Peninsula, California Concierge Nursing Care – Whenever and Wherever You Need It Is there anything you would not do to ensure your loved ones’ comfort as they age? You’re not alone. Everyone wants the ones they love most to receive the best care and treatment possible. In an ideal world, we’d be able to put our lives on pause and cater to their needs. As we all know, that just isn’t feasible in this day and age. We have careers, responsibilities, and families that demand our time and attention. Additionally, there is a good chance you lack the specialized medical knowledge needed to provide the high-quality care your loved one deserves. For those looking for a higher level of care, the alternative—being shipped away to nursing homes or frequent trips to medical facilities—is simply unacceptable. The thought of such arrangements is daunting, to say the least. Is that the life you want to promote for your loved ones? Convenient Peninsula, CA Concierge Medicine Services ...
Read more

How to Communicate with Dementia Patients

Image
As a home nurse for a person with dementia, you know that many challenges and obstacles may occur. Conditions that stem from dementia, including Alzheimer’s and other brain disorders, can make it more difficult for a patient to think clearly. Communication is often severely lacking, so patients may need help with caring for themselves or relaying their need for help. The disease can also result in mood swings out of frustration that lead to changes in behavior. It would affect how you can get through to the patient and how you can help provide for their needs. Understanding and incorporating some communication strategies to improve your relationship with a dementia patient will help significantly. Here are some communication techniques for effectively conversing with dementia patients for pleasant interactions. Assess the Situation First You must assess your situation and surroundings before you attempt communication techniques. For instance, ensure that your dementia patient ...
Read more