Answers to common questions about hospice

What is hospice care?

Hospice care is intended to promote comfort care and enhance the quality of life for people with life-limiting illnesses by attending to the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of patients and their loved ones, wherever they call home. 

Who provides hospice care?

Based on the unique needs and wishes of each patient and their family, hospice care is coordinated with each patient’s physician and provided by our compassionate caregivers.

When is hospice care appropriate?

Hospice care may be initiated any time after a patient receives a life-limiting prognosis of six months or less and curative measures are discontinued. Care can be extended by a physician as needed.

What are the benefits of hospice care?

The primary goal of hospice is to provide comfort care and quality of life after aggressive measures for cure have failed.  Specifically, this means maintaining patients to be alert, comfortable and pain free in the place of their choice, in the manner they wish and to provide the support needed to live and die in their own way with dignity maintained.  

What services does hospice care cover?

Hospice care covers the full range of services needed to ensure a patient’s quality of life. This may include doctors, nurses, home health aides, social workers, volunteers and chaplains who focus on delivering timely end-of-life care that is well-coordinated, family centered and includes bereavement and counseling support.

How does Hospice Care of VNA support patients and loved ones?

Services offered by the hospice caregiving team include identifying patient/family needs and then designing interventions that will fulfill those needs, to implement the interventions, monitor the effectiveness and coordinate changes, as needed with other team members. Hospice Care of VNA will ensure continuity of care, consistent with the needs of the patient/family/caregiver.

What geographic area does Hospice Care of VNA cover?

In Kansas, we serve Johnson, Leavenworth, Wyandotte and Miami counties. In Missouri, we serve Cass, Clay, Jackson, Lafayette, and portions of Ray and Johnson, counties.

Does medical insurance cover hospice care?

In most cases, the cost of hospice care is covered by Medicare & Medicaid.

Coverage typically includes:

1. Physician’s services
2. Nursing care
3. Medical supplies 
4. Medications related to the illness for symptom and pain management
5. Durable medical equipment
6. Short-term acute inpatient care, including respite care
7. Home health aide services
8. Bereavement & spiritual counseling
9. Medical social services
10. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and dietary services

How can I get more info or request service?

Please call Hospice Care of VNA at 816-531-1200 for more information or to request services.