Palliative Medicine Q&A
Oftentimes, side effects of medical treatments can cause a variety of physical, as well as psychological symptoms. Palliative care focuses on preventing or easing pain, stress and suffering to offer the best quality of life possible to both the patient and family. Palliative care is beneficial at any stage of illness because it complements treatments, which are meant to cure the patient.
Palliative care is for anyone with a serious illness, while hospice care is generally for those in the final stages of illness who are no longer seeking curative treatment. You can receive palliative care at any age and any stage of an illness, and palliative care can be provided in conjunction with curative treatment and is not dependent on prognosis.
Patients can benefit by having more control over their care in a comfortable and supportive atmosphere that reduces anxiety and stress. They can also expect relief from symptoms such as pain, shortness of breath, fatigue, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping. Palliative care addresses the whole person. It helps patients carry on with their daily life and improves their ability to go through medical treatments. It can also help them to better understand their condition and choices for medical care. In short, they can expect the best possible quality of life.
Palliative care can help everyone involved! Patients as well as family caregivers are the special focus of palliative care. The patient’s doctors and nurses benefit too, because they know they are meeting the patient’s needs by providing care and treatment that reduces suffering and improves your quality of life.
Palliative care provides an extra layer of support and works in partnership with your primary doctor. Your primary doctor will continue to direct your care and play an active role in your treatment.
Palliative care services can improve the efficiency of other physicians treating the patient. Palliative care can address goals of care and symptoms, helping patients and families better understand their illness and set goals for treatment. Managing symptoms and having sincere discussions with patients and families about what they want and what they want to avoid, palliative care services can improve the care being given to patients by other physicians involved in the patient’s care.
Most insurance plans cover all or part of the palliative care treatment you receive, just as with other hospital and medical services. This is also true of Medicare and Medicaid.
For cancer patients who are undergoing treatments, palliative care services can help to provide symptom management that can help them feel better and anticipate problems that could keep them from receiving treatment.
One of the primary reasons patients go back and forth between the ER or hospital and home is unmanaged symptoms. Palliative care helps manage those symptoms better, anticipating problems and helping to keep patients out of the hospital and ER.
Contact the Corporate office of Homedica at 844-414-2072 or an office in your area. Locations in Louisiana and Alabama are listed on our contact us page.
