Patient Care
Hospice is about living. It’s about giving people access to what they need so they will have the best possible quality of life during such a difficult time. Patients who choose hospice have made the decision, along with their doctors and family, to change cure goals to comfort goals and opt for palliative care. The main medical focus becomes symptom management, including pain control and insuring the patient is comfortable.
An Interdisciplinary team oversees the care of each patient at Hospice of Northern Colorado. This team consists of physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, volunteers and our medical director. Team members visit patients where they are most comfortable- in their home setting. Below outlines how each discipline can help aid our patients and their families.
Physician Relationships
Patients can maintain their primary care physician when entering hospice care. The primary care physician works with HPCNC’s Medical Director to coordinate care.
HPCNC Medical Director
Patty Mayer, MD is Hospice of Northern Colorado’s Weld, Morgan and Larimer County Medical Director. Dr. Mayer is board certified in hospice and palliative care, as well as in Rheumatology and Internal Medicine. Dr. Patty Mayer has had a private rheumatology practice in Greeley for 12 years. She received her Medical Degree from the University of Arizona and she also has a Masters Degree in Bioethics from the Union College/Mt Sinai Bioethics Program. She and her husband Dr. Paul Hurst have lived and practiced in Greeley since they moved here in 1992. They have two daughters and two dogs and enjoy running, hiking and skiing in their spare time.
Our Nursing Care
Our registered nurses act as the patient’s case manager. They make regular scheduled visits to the patient to provide expert pain management and symptom control. Our case managers conduct training with the primary caregiver so they can provide for the patient properly and safely. While the loved one is under hospice care the case manager provides a complete spectrum of nursing services.
Our certified nurses’ assistants (CNA) provide personal care and support with activities of daily living. They help provide hands on care such as feeding and bathing. They also perform limited household services to maintain a safe and sanitary environment in the areas of the home used by the loved one.
Our nursing staff also provides prescription medications for pain and symptom control, as well as medical equipment and the supplies necessary to promote and maintain patient comfort. We are focused on pain free management; therefore we provide assistance with personal care and activities of daily living.
Our Social Workers
Individuals faced with a life-threatening illness will experience many changes in their lives. Hospice social workers help them assess their strengths and prioritize their needs while providing supportive counseling. The social worker educates the family about the importance of quality of life issues, as well as coordinating resources for financial and households needs, advanced directives, transportation and planning special events.
Our social workers provide assistance with practical and financial concerns and they facilitate communication between the family and community agencies. They provide emotional support, counseling, and bereavement follow-up, while evaluating the need for other supportive services.
Our Spiritual Care
Hospice care embraces all aspects of life; physical, emotional and spiritual. Our staff makes spiritual care a priority especially when it comes to meaning, relationships and peace with God, among other things. A terminal illness can create struggle or crisis and a supportive presence of a hospice chaplain can be a tremendous help to our patients and their families.
Our chaplains provide spiritual support and are often a liaison between our patients and their religious community. They can offer compassionate services ranging from crisis help, to private and group grief support. Chaplains also often assist with memorial services and funeral arrangements.
Chaplains are sensitive to spiritual needs of individuals facing life-limiting illness. The spiritual care staff is available to hospice patients and their caregivers and work closely with their clergy or other spiritual support systems in the community.
Our chaplains are trained to work with patients of all faiths, and also with those who do not identify with any religious faith. Chaplains can help with both spiritual issues nd existential questions such as “why is this happening?”, “how can I go on?”, or “howcan I find meaning in what is happening to me?”
Volunteers
Our trained volunteers provide a number of important services. Volunteers offer direct patient support, companionship and caring help. Volunteers can assist the primary caregiver by sitting with the patient to provide the caregiver respite from the often overwhelming task of providing around the clock care for a loved one.
