Hospice care usually implies caring for a senior with a physical ailment. Certainly, home hospice care does provide medical and nursing assistance to those who have suffered physical trauma. However, mental health is just as important as physical health. Hospice and palliative care patients with life-threatening illnesses often deal with psychological symptoms as well, which can affect their quality of life just as much as physical illness. Mental health issues can create many challenges in a person’s life and in their medical care. When a hospice patient is also diagnosed with mental health challenges, special care is taken to integrate mental health support into their plan of care.
In some cases, a senior’s mental health can precipitate the need for hospice care. Just like any other physical illness or injury, mental illness requires diagnosis and treatment. Hospice and palliative care aim to relieve suffering and improve quality of life so that patients and families can realize their full potential to live, even when their loved one is nearing the end of their life. If your loved one is dealing with crippling mental health issues, hospice care can help.
The Consequences of Untreated Mental Illness
Psychiatric issues are prevalent among patients facing serious illness, and they can have a profound impact on the quality of life and emotional well-being. They can also interfere with a patient’s capacity to make decisions, understand his or her situation, interact with caregivers, or reach final goals. There are many different types of mental illnesses that senior citizens can suffer from, such as anxiety disorders, mood disorders, psychotic disorders, eating disorders, personality disorders, and addiction disorders. When a person’s mental health is not properly supported, it can create even more problems in their life. These can include:
Decreased enjoyment of life
Social isolation
Family and relationship conflicts
Legal and financial challenges
Self-harm or harm to others
Physical health challenges including heart disease, high blood pressure, weakened immune system, asthma, obesity, and gastronomical issues.
For hospice patients, all of these issues can further complicate their life and negatively affect their treatment.
How Does Hospice Manage Mental Health Issues?
If you have a loved one experiencing mental health issues in hospice care, the first step is to have a conversation with their hospice team to determine what the next steps are and how to best go about them. The traditional hospice model has always emphasized the unique combination of physical, psychological, and spiritual needs that patients face at the end of life. However, the actual focus is centered primarily on physical symptoms. Hospice care teams in the United States typically do not include psychologists or psychiatrists, but in hospice care teams where psychologists and psychiatrists are core members of the treatment team, patient well-being is improved. When choosing the right hospice care facility for your loved one, ask if their care plan provides access to psychiatrists with hospice experience who can provide consultation to or be members of the hospice care team.
Your loved one’s hospice care team should support the patient’s treatment, regardless of the mental illness that he or she suffers from. In the best-case scenario, the qualified hospice care team can work with you to provide your senior with access to mental health professionals and develop a hospice plan that supports the individual’s treatment and management of daily life. These professionals can prescribe the proper medication to address the patient’s mental health issues, and the hospice care team can incorporate this medication into their care plan.
Unfortunately, many patients are not in the best-case scenario for mental health. Many patients with unmanaged mental health conditions can’t commit to their goals of care. They can often change their minds and reject hospice care. Although this is certainly their right, choosing to leave these symptoms unmanaged can make their situation even more stressful.
The Benefits of Incorporating Mental Health Services Into Hospice Settings
It is important to approach all things in life with a positive state of mind. At Illuminate Hospice, our team helps ensure that our hospice incorporates mental health services for everyone involved. We deeply understand that mental health is an everyday part of life and that every person, regardless of age, desires to have positive mental and emotional well-being. Our staff is trained to focus our learning techniques and actions to help your loved ones effectively control their emotions. We help our hospice patients deal with the pain that comes with accepting and understanding this part of their life so that they can be at peace with what lies ahead. Whenever a positive mental approach is made and a sense of calm is created, everyone benefits.
Peace- Encouraging a positive mental attitude in hospice patients helps them keep a sense of calm during this difficult time of their life. By doing so, patients are more likely to have a sense of peace and acceptance with their current situation.
Reduced Fears- Our hospice team can direct your loved one’s mind to a healthy point of understanding about the process ahead. This reduces fear in both the patient and those surrounding them.
Faith- Religion can place a major role in maintaining a positive mental approach during hospice. For some patients, integrating a faith-based end-of-life experience can contribute to a positive look ahead.
Memories- Revisiting fond memories with patients can remind them of the happy times in their life, helping them realize that they lived their life to the fullest and help the family create a happy ending together.
Coping Mechanisms- Helping the patient and family find acceptance with the destination will encourage a sense of mental release from the stressful situation. Learning to effectively cope and accept the things that we cannot change is an essential part of finding peace at the end of life.
With hospice mental health care, our team must first identify if the issue is related to mental health or if it is a symptom of their physical illness or side effect from their medication. Some mental health issues benefit from meditation, guided imagery, or proper medication. Our hospice care team can assist with this.
Hospice care and mental health are not one size fit all. Every plan of care is tailored to the individual and altered over time to best meet their needs.
Find out more about how Illuminate Hospice can support your loved ones with all their physical and mental health needs. We will gladly answer all your hospice questions.