December 15th, 2022

Treating Pain in Elderly People

There are special considerations when treating pain in elderly individuals. Older adults are more likely to experience chronic pain due to natural changes and deficits in the body. And yet, their pain commonly goes unreported, misinterpreted, and undertreated. Why is this? Several misconceptions about pain in elderly people exist. Let’s look at a few. Many people—patients themselves and/or their care providers—incorrectly assume that pain is just a part of aging, and it doesn’t need to be seriously considered. Most of us start experiencing regular aches and pains as early as our 40s or 50s. Depending on the frequency of use […]

hospice chaplain talks with male patient

July 22nd, 2022

How can a hospice chaplain support a patient who is not religious?

Hope Hospice chaplains come from diverse pastoral education and personal spiritual backgrounds. This variety equips the team in assisting people from all walks of life. Some patients have specific religious affiliations or spiritual practices. Others have no faith traditions. For the latter, a chaplain can still provide deeply meaningful support during the hospice journey. A simple listening ear or quiet presence at the bedside can help a person find peace. Chaplains don’t try to convert people to a specific path. We witness and honor the path that people find on their own. A chaplain also can engage with a patient to […]

July 12th, 2022

Why You Should Start Hospice Sooner Than Later

Why should someone start hospice sooner than later? Making the decision to start hospice care for your loved one is overwhelming. It means acknowledging that the end is near. But the decision is also empowering, because an array of supportive care and assistance becomes available to both the patient and family. Nursing is just the start. Hope’s hospice program also provides: Social workers to assist with medical paperwork and resources. Home health aides for personal care. Comfort medications delivered to the home. Needed medical equipment, like a mechanized bed for the home. Spiritual care, whether religious/spiritual in nature or a […]

March 12th, 2021

Hospice Social Work in a Pandemic

In honor of Social Work Appreciation Month this March, we celebrate our wonderful social work team. Pandemic prevention measures have changed so much of daily life, and that includes how we deliver hospice services. Most nursing facilities and assisted living communities continue to restrict visits by outsiders, except for medically essential visits or when a patient is actively dying. Social work visits, though certainly essential to the hospice experience, are not classified as medically essential in these COVID-19 times. So, instead of our usual face-to-face interactions, we transitioned to other means of communication in most cases. Social isolation became the […]

An animatronic cat is presented to an elderly man.

January 15th, 2021

Hope Hospice Animatronic Pet Program for Dementia Care

Hope Hospice is using animatronic pets to help lessen the impact that pandemic-related isolation has had on its patients. Joy for All Companion Pets™ by Ageless Innovation are robotic dog and cat toys designed specifically to comfort older adults in need of companionship; early studies specifically charted the benefits for people living with Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of cognitive decline. The pets are battery powered and, when stroked, become alert and make lifelike noises and small movements. With a generous donation from NorCal Minis car club, Hope Hospice was able to purchase 20 Joy For All Companion Pet cats […]

July 23rd, 2020

Dementia and Appetite Decline

Persons living with dementia commonly exhibit challenges with eating, but the reasons vary. Let’s explore a few possible causes of appetite decline. Memory trouble. In the early stages of dementia, when a person may still be caring for himself or functioning with limited assistance, the problem might be simply forgetting to eat. When this problem is discovered, it’s a sign that care partners need to provide more frequent living assistance and check-ins. Vision decline. As we age, we naturally experience a narrowing of our field of vision. For a person living with dementia, this process is on overdrive and it […]

April 14th, 2020

Hope & the Hot-Air Balloon

Reflections of Hope: Remembering Our First 40 Years Hope’s official logo has evolved over time, and early versions are a far cry from today’s dove motif. Some digging revealed the story behind one with a hot-air balloon illustration that worked its way into our design in 1983. One of our patients at the time, a “bright, feisty widow,” according to our archives, had helped her husband manage two successful businesses. As a world traveler who believed in the benefits of risk taking, she had run river rapids at age 76 and had few unfulfilled wishes, except the desire to take […]

March 26th, 2020

The Role of Social Work in Hospice

When a family chooses the time for a loved one to go onto hospice care, they open the doors to a full circle of support that goes beyond nursing. One professional on the team is your medical social worker. What is the role of social work in hospice? Hope Hospice’s Veronica Martin, MSW, ASW, explains: A social worker is part of the hospice care team Each patient at Hope Hospice is assigned a social worker to be a part of the interdisciplinary team in developing a plan of care for the patient and family. The social worker is available to […]

January 30th, 2020

The Role of Spiritual Care in Hospice

At Hope Hospice, spiritual care is among the services we provide to patients, upon request. We serve patients and families from all walks of life and cultures. With that variety comes a spectrum of strong religious traditions, more fluid spiritual connections, and those who do not hold any transcendent beliefs. We asked one of our Spiritual Care Counselors, Reverend Melissa Tumaneng, to discuss some differences between the terms religion and spirituality, and to explain the role of spiritual care in hospice. What is religion versus spirituality, and are they connected? The nature of humans has been a subject of fascination […]

How to communicate your Five Wishes for end of life

October 28th, 2019

Five Wishes: Taking Control of Your Final Days

So much in life is out of our control, and, at times, the uncertainty causes frustration and stress. However, this doesn’t have to be the case at the end of life. The Five Wishes document is a way for you to communicate your desires for how you want to be treated—medically, physically, and spiritually—if you get seriously ill and/or death is near. For your family, Five Wishes ends the bedside guessing game of what you want or do not want at the end of your life. In simple language, the booklet guides you through documenting choices regarding such topics as […]

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