Hospice Caring Project

940 Disc Drive
Scotts Valley, CA 95003
tel 831.430.3000
fax 831.430.9272
http://www.hospicesantacruz.org/

A Team of Caring Professionals
The Hospice Team addresses medical, emotional, spiritual and practical needs. The patient and family are at the center of this team. Together, wishes and needs are identified and a specific plan of care is created. Team members make periodic visits to provide ongoing support and instruction to educate the family in homecare. Here are some of the ways the team provides help:

• Nurses work closely with the patient's doctor, focusing on comfort and safety.
• Social Workers help coordinate caregiving & planning, and provide anticipatory grief support to the family.
• Home Health Aides assist in patient's personal care.
• Chaplains are available to offer spiritual support to patients and families.
• Volunteers assist with transportation, errands, companionship and more.
• Grief Support Staff and trained volunteers facilitate various grief counseling groups for families for 13 months after the patient's death.

Goals of Hospice Care

• To provide effective pain control and symptom management.
• To support the quality of life for the patient and family.
• To educate the patient and their loved ones so they may make their own choices about what's important to them.
• To help the patient and loved ones resolve end-of-life issues.
• To support the loved ones through their grief and loss.

Who Do We Serve?
Hospice Caring Project provides care to patients ranging in age from infancy to over 100 years old. We are honored to serve people from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds, religious beliefs, socio-economic backgrounds and sexual orientation.

What Kind of Illness?
While approximately 40% of the Hospice Caring Project's patients have terminal cancer, hospice care is available to all patients with life-limiting illness including terminal lung, heart, kidney or liver disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and more.

How Are Referrals Made and Who Is Eligible?
A patient’s physician, the discharging hospital, the patient, a family or any other participant involved in the patient's care can make a referral for hospice care.

To be eligible for hospice care, the following conditions must be met:

• The patient's physician believes the patient has six months or less life expectancy if the illness takes its natural course.
• The patient and caregiver agree and understand that the plan-of-care is comfort directed, not cure directed.
• A caregiver or plan for caregiving is available during the stages of the patient's illness.

What Happens After A Referral Is Made?
Once our admissions department obtains an order and certification from the patient's physician for hospice care, a call is made to the family to assess their needs and explain the hospice services. An appointment is then made with the patient and family. A nurse visits the patient and family members and provides in-depth information on what can be expected. Once the patient is admitted into hospice care, members of the hospice team (nurse, social worker, home health aid, chaplain and volunteers) schedule visits as needed to make sure the patient is comfortable and the family is supported.

Who Pays For Hospice Care?
Hospice Care is covered by Medicare, HMOs, Medi-Cal and most private insurance providers, which pay the hospice program a per diem rate intended to cover all expenses related to hospice care. These payments, however, fall short of actual costs and Hospice Caring Project relies on the support of a growing community of donors to cover the shortfall. We believe in everyone’s right to end-of-life care in comfort and dignity, and no one is denied hospice services due to lack of insurance or ability to pay.

When is the Right Time to Call?
If you’re wondering about the right time to begin hospice care, now is the right time to call. So often, we hear families express how they wish they had called sooner. Calling isn’t a commitment, only an opportunity to become educated and better prepared. Hospice care is available to anyone who has been certified by a physician as having a life expectancy of six months or less if the illness runs its normal course. Even if the patient lives longer than six months, hospice care is available with the doctor’s recertification.

Are All Hospices the Same?
No. The Hospice Caring Project is the oldest and most experienced hospice program serving Santa Cruz County and northern Monterey County. Since 1978, we have served the need for medical, emotional and spiritual care for individuals and families confronted with life-limiting illness. We are honored to have the opportunity to assist so many people and will continue to expand our capabilities as the need in our community grows.