Dealing with end-of-life issues is not easy. It can be especially difficult for those who will be left behind, like you and other family members. Hospice can be the right solution, but there’s often an element of uncertainty that you and other family members might experience. Here’s how you can start to know it’s time to think about hospice elder care.

Time Is Short

So often medical professionals attach a timetable to a patient’s battle. If that has happened for your senior, she may be nearing the last few months of the projected timetable that she was given. When time is that short, it often makes sense for your elderly family member to use the time that she has left in a different way. Instead of heading into hospitals and treatment rooms, she may want to be at home with her family and friends.

The Pain Is Too Much

Pain is a massive issue for people at the end of life. Depending on your senior’s other health concerns, her pain may be difficult or impossible to manage in the ways that she has managed it in the past. As her health deteriorates further, that can cause even bigger issues. Hospice care can help your senior to find ways to think about pain management that are out of the traditional box. This type of care offers her different choices than she might have had otherwise.

Treatments Aren’t Working

At some stage, your senior and her medical team may have a conversation about which treatments are working and which are just not viable any longer. It’s also possible that your elderly family member determines that some of the procedures and treatments she’s been undergoing are just not anything she wants to continue. All of that is valid and all of that can be a reason for your senior to opt into hospice elder care.

Your Senior Says She’s Ready

Some seniors just know that it’s time to look into hospice care. That might be the case for your elderly family member. If she’s already talking about hospice, that likely means that she’s ready for the types of care options that hospice can offer to her and to you. Getting more information now can answer any lingering questions.

These clues can help you to open up the conversation about hospice elder care with your elderly family member and your family. When you and your senior are ready to talk about next steps, her doctor and hospice providers can help with that, too. This doesn’t mean that your senior is giving up, it just means that she needs and wants a different type of treatment plan.

If you or a loved one have questions about Elder Care in Princeton, NJ, please contact the caring staff at Serenity Hospice. Call today, we can help:  (609)-227-2400