hospice ?

[huckster]

how do they come up with amount of time someone has left?

 

[eclectics]

how do they come up with amount of time someone has left?

The medical doctors treating the patients in question have a consult with the hospice and is usually able to give them a pretty accurate time frame, albeit a general one. There are lot's of variables, so an exact time frame is impossible.

 

[pumba]

when my sisters doctors said six months they hit it right on the head......she had six months to live and she made it to that date.....she had hospice coming to her home the last week and then we took care of her (siblings and her children and grandkids).....we said we could do what they were doing .....she died peacefully at her home with everyone around her......
My neighbors mom died a few weeks before my sister and she went to the hospice house that is in the area....she needed that support....

 

[pearlieq]

The medical doctors treating the patients in question have a consult with the hospice and is usually able to give them a pretty accurate time frame, albeit a general one. There are lot's of variables, so an exact time frame is impossible.

Exactly what I was going to say!

With my MIL it was driven by her doctor but the admitting director for the hospice was part of the discussion as well.

 

[Poohnatic]

The time someone has left is based on the doctors treating the patient's opinion. This is usually determined by the illness and previous patients at the same level of illness.

For instance, my SIL was given 3 to 6 months by her doctor and then was given in home hospice care. The nurses treating her at home, because they had more first hand care experience, then told my MIL and other SIL she probably had 6 weeks-tops. It was at this point that my DH and sons went to NY to be with her. She survived six weeks from the date she was admitted to hospice care.

My mom's situation was the same diagnosis and chemo was started. If she had opted for it, she would have gone into hospice much sooner. Six weeks after diagnosis and beginning chemo, she was admitted to the hospital. She was in the hospital for a week, then she entered a hospice facility and passed 5 days later.

It's not exact. The hospice facility my mother was in (Woodside in St.Pete) had told us of patients who were there for a year, then it was determined that they were in remission and they left the facility. When patients enter Hospice, they (or their surrogate, which I was for my mom) agree that they will no longer pursue chemo or other life saving measures. Instead, they'll receive care to keep them comfortable and out of pain.

I guess it will always vary. The cancer that SIL and my mother both had is one that Hospice has a lot of experience with (small cell lung cancer), so they could accurately assess that they were within the six month guideline. My FIL lived a lot longer than anyone expected with the stage of emphysema he was in.


Suzanne

 

[PoohnPglet]

There are also very specific signs that they can look for when the time becomes more imminent.

The hospice nurse that my grandfather had gave us a booklet that had a breakdown of these signs and their approximate timeframe. Some of my family was very disturbed by this booklet, but as his primary caregiver (AZ hospice is WAY understaffed) it was very helpful to me.

If it is something you might find helpful, you could ask your local hospice if they have something like it. (I am so sorry, but I cannot think of the title.)

 

[Philadisney]

It is true that they are not all exact - my aunt was given two months tops, and lived for another year.

 

[Cinderellafifi]

Every situation is different. My experience is with both my parents dying from cancer. In cancer situations, Hospice is usually called upon when the ill person needs constant pain control - and the family needs a helping hand. Obviously, it will depend upon how long one waits to request Hospice - in addition to the ferociousness of the disease. My father was gone within 48 hours of requesting Hospice. My mother was much more shocking - she was alert, "fine", did her own admittance interview (we were keeping her at home), and passed away 5 days later. Her whole Hospice team was shocked.

Hospice was truly a blessing my life when I was losing a huge part of myself as my mother slipped away.

Good luck to you.

 

[chyam]

The time someone has left is based on the doctors treating the patient's opinion. This is usually determined by the illness and previous patients at the same level of illness.

For instance, my SIL was given 3 to 6 months by her doctor and then was given in home hospice care. The nurses treating her at home, because they had more first hand care experience, then told my MIL and other SIL she probably had 6 weeks-tops. It was at this point that my DH and sons went to NY to be with her. She survived six weeks from the date she was admitted to hospice care.

My mom's situation was the same diagnosis and chemo was started. If she had opted for it, she would have gone into hospice much sooner. Six weeks after diagnosis and beginning chemo, she was admitted to the hospital. She was in the hospital for a week, then she entered a hospice facility and passed 5 days later.

It's not exact. The hospice facility my mother was in (Woodside in St.Pete) had told us of patients who were there for a year, then it was determined that they were in remission and they left the facility. When patients enter Hospice, they (or their surrogate, which I was for my mom) agree that they will no longer pursue chemo or other life saving measures. Instead, they'll receive care to keep them comfortable and out of pain.

I guess it will always vary. The cancer that SIL and my mother both had is one that Hospice has a lot of experience with (small cell lung cancer), so they could accurately assess that they were within the six month guideline. My FIL lived a lot longer than anyone expected with the stage of emphysema he was in.


Suzanne

Just had to say that my mother too was at Woodside, I couldn't have asked for better care for her there, and what beautiful grounds.

 

[phillybeth]

Well, initially they go by doctor's estimates of time left without treatment- i.e. 6 months to live, 3 months, etc.

Knowing when someone is in the final stages of life? There are general guidelines, and most hospice workers have seen enough people at the end of their days they can give pretty accurates guesses- a few more days, a week or so, or time to get the family together.

 

[TallyLassie]

With my father, the doctor gave him the amount of time that he was expected to live. The doctor did not tell him, until he asked.

In our area, hospice will only take cases of patients that are no longer receiving any treatment. Hospice takes over the prescribing of pain medication, which they were experts. They would come day or night.

In his final days hospice was able to tell us that it would only be a short amount of time based upon his breathing. They were really a great group of people. Don't know how they do it...

 

[justaquestion]

Usually they know based on vitals, breathing, eating,..etc.

I have a story.

My mom's twin had breast cancer, she held on for six years!!
Hospice called all of us in the middle of the night to come in, this was it.
At this point, everyone was as ready as they could be to let her go. Much suffering at the end.
It was the next day and my aunt was still hanging on, but her breathing was getting worse.
My mom adjusted her pillow to make her comfortable, she started breathing better and hung on for another two weeks!!

It wasn't funny at the time, but now everyone calls my mom if they are feeling so sick to come adjust their pillows!

 

[eclectics]

Don't know how they do it...

Me either. They are all angels on earth as far as I'm concerned.

 

[sugarpie]

I've done some hospice nursing & usually it's a group decision involving the patient, family, and caregivers that there will be no life extending measures taken and comfort is the main priority.

There's a lot of factors used to come up with an estimate for how long a person has left, but it's impossible to be exact. A patients readiness to let go can be a huge factor.

 

[Disney Doll]

It's what most folks would call an "educated guess". No one is God, so no one really knows when sooemone is going to die. Buit bloodwork results, appearance, skin color, respiratory status etc. can give us a pretty good idea. Even with all that though...soome folks still surprise us.

My DMIL was given 4-6 weeks by her doctor, a well-respected and much-loved MD who is a friend of ours to this day. She lived 3 months. I have cared for people who you could look at and say "maybe a month" and they died the next day.

There are many factors which contirbute to the dying and death process, and not all of them are concrete and factual. Religion, faith, readiness, a sense of having all their "earthly" things accomplished...these things also contribute to the dying process. Many folks "wait" to see someone. Many folks die sooner than expected because they want to do it on their own terms. Dying is one of the only times when we are truly alone...no one can go with us.