When Hospice Falls Short: How Joy Care’s End-of-Life Doulas Fill the Gaps
I received a call early this morning from a distraught former client who’s husband was on hospice at home. She hadn’t seen her regular hospice nurse in over a week, the phones to the company weren’t working, and her husband was extremely restless yelling “help” and trying to climb out of bed. She was afraid to leave his side, even for a minute, in fear of a fall or injury.
I raced over within the hour, and asked if her husband had been medicated. I explained to the wife that he was likely having sundowners, a common symptom at the end of life. The wife had given a small dose of morphine as per orders given a week ago, and was advised not to give anxiety medication, that it wouldn’t help him. I explained to her that there are three kinds of pain; physical, emotional, and spiritual. Not only did he appear to have physical discomfort but he was highly agitated.
I advised her to give both the morphine and lorazepam immediately. By just turning the bright lights out, providing a light massage to his back, and speaking to him in a soft voice, he began to quiet down. Once the medication began working, we cleaned him up and changed his linens. Within about 45 minutes, he appeared calm with no signs of pain. I instructed the wife to give the medication on a schedule, and provided teaching on what to expect and the importance of continuing to give the comfort medication.
Unfortunately, I receive calls like this all of the time. This poor wife was given absolutely no teaching with no support from the hospice. I made a call once office hours. I explained to the manager that I was an End of Life Doula hired by the family and listed the numerous problems we were having. The hospice did make things right. They sent a nurse immediately and started continuous care (around the clock nursing) to provide the support this grieving wife deserved.
Hiring an End of Life Doula can make such a big difference in the hospice journey. In DFW, there are over 300 hospices to choose from. How do you know what kind of care they will provide? How much experience does your nurse actually have? Is he or she properly trained in pain management? What if your loved one doesn’t want to die at home? What if there are specific traditions that your hospice team doesn’t understand? Joy Care Nurse Navigators has a team of Experienced End of life RN Doulas to help you walk this sacred journey.