Sometimes, cancer treatments stop working or long-term remission is no longer possible, despite the best patient’s and doctors’ best efforts.
During these unfortunate times, hospice can do a lot. Three Oaks Hospice ensures you or your loved one is cared for and that they are surrounded by the people and things that they love. Hospice does not add days to peoples’ lives. Thre Oaks Hospice adds quality to peoples’ remaining days.
When is the right time for hospice?
Cancer can be a very difficult disease, and we commonly hear people say they wish they had gone to hospice sooner. The patient’s oncologist or attending physician is generally the doctor who orders a hospice evaluation. Hospice is treatment designed for patients who have a life expectancy of six months or less. At this point, patients are considered to have advanced-stage cancer, and they can benefit from hospice services. Common signs of advanced-stage cancer are:
- Treatment is no longer fully effective
- Malignancy is progressing despite treatment.
- The patient is steadily weakening.
- The burden of treatment outweighs the benefits of treatment.
How can Hospice help my loved one or me?
Cancer.gov states that patients who utilize hospice services report a higher quality of life than those who don’t. Hospice patients can take comfort in knowing that they are not alone in their treatment. Patients receive care based on their specific health issues, and they specify what services they receive and don’t receive.
An interdisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, bereavement specialists, and volunteers provide hospice care. Every member of the Three Oaks team is experienced in guiding people through the difficulties of advance-staged cancer.
View our services page to see the service that Three Oaks Hospice provides our patients.