Last week we had an interesting presentation from the Palliative Care and Hospice of Southwest Georgia discussing the opportunities for support for those diagnosed with serious illnesses.
Palliative Care primarily focuses on improving the quality of life, while working along side specialists during treatment, assisting in explaining options for treatment, etc. They focus on symptom management, education, discuss advanced care planning and help with hospice transition as appropriate. You do not have to be diagnosed with a terminal condition to take advantage of Palliative Care.
Hospice typically assist with end of life issues for the patient as well as family and care givers. Hospice of Southwest Georgia serves six counties with staff located in each area. Focus is again on quality of life (physical, mental and spiritual) for those with terminal illnesses. They also offer bereavement support for 13 months for family after the death of their loved one. At this point, hospice is home-based care. However, Archbold is in the process of building and in-patient hospice center.