Caring for someone with dementia has unique challenges. As their disease gets worse, the person you love fades away. It’s painful to watch, and it can be hard to care for someone who doesn’t know who you are, especially when they need more and more from you.
At VNS Health, we’ve been providing end-of-life care to people with dementia for decades. We know their needs and their caregivers’ difficulties. We understand why it’s important to maintain their routine and reduce their agitation. Our in-home hospice care for people with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias keeps your loved one safe and comfortable, in a place they know, with familiar faces nearby.
When we say “home,” we mean wherever your loved one calls home. It could be a house or apartment, nursing home, or assisted living facility.
What Is Hospice Care?
ople nearing the end of life:
- Medical care
- Emotional support
- Spiritual care
It also helps caregivers know what to expect and what to do.
In many cases, VNS Health can provide hospice care even if your loved one lives in a skilled nursing facility or memory care unit.
Benefits of Hospice Care for People with Dementia
Hospice for people with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias can:
- Keep your loved one out of the hospital, in familiar surroundings
- Manage their pain or other symptoms
- Give family members and caregivers the support and guidance they need, like maintaining routines
Dementia hospice care also includes:
- Medications and equipment delivered to your home
- A comfort pack, with medications to address symptoms as they occur and help reduce hospital visits
- Round-the-clock access to the hospice medical team through our caregiver helpline
Get More Informaton
Speak with a VNS Health team member about hospice care today.
When Should You Consider Hospice Care?
Your loved one’s health care provider has the expertise as well as tools and resources to help you figure out when it’s time for hospice care. If you notice any of these signs, consider hospice care:
- They need more day-to-day help with dressing, bathing, and using the toilet
- They stop swallowing
- They don’t recognize you or close family members
- They speak less and less
- They need help to walk, sit up, or hold up their head
It can be hard to think about hospice care. But talking to your loved one’s health care provider about hospice sooner rather than later gives you more time to experience the benefits and the peace that it can bring.
What to Expect from Dementia Hospice Care
The dementia hospice care team will work with you and your loved one’s providers to develop a care plan that focuses on keeping them safe, comfortable, and out of the hospital. Our hospice care also includes practical and emotional support for caregivers and family members.
Hospice services for a person with dementia include:
- Medical care, including medications and equipment delivered to the home
- Personal care, such as bathing, toileting, and feeding
- Emotional support and spiritual care
- Help with practical issues, such as advance care planning
- Other services, based on their care plan
The care team will also help you with:
- Knowing what to expect, and what to do in an emergency
- Teaching other family members how to maintain your loved one’s routine
- Making decisions about care and practical concerns
- Emotional support and spiritual care
- Support with family issues
- Respite care, so you can take a break and not miss important events like a wedding or graduation
- Grief support for 13 months to help you and your family through milestones and anniversaries
More Dementia Care Options
When we say “home,” we mean wherever your loved one calls home. It could be a house or apartment, nursing home, or assisted living facility. If your loved one isn’t ready for hospice, VNS Health can still help.
Is Hospice Care Covered by Insurance?
Medicare, Medicaid, the VA, and most private insurance companies cover hospice care. Insurance starts as soon as you are admitted into the hospice program.
Additional help, including home health aides and round-the-clock nursing care, is available to patients and families from VNS Health Personal Care. We have special discounted rates if your loved one is receiving advanced illness care from VNS Health already. Learn more about private care services from VNS Health Personal Care.
Where Does VNS Health Provide Hospice Care?
VNS Health provides hospice care in all five boroughs of New York City. Whether your loved one lives in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, or Staten Island, we bring hospice care to wherever they call home.
Related Services
Emotional Support & Spiritual Care
Emotional support and spiritual care for hospice patients and their families and caregivers.
Hospice Care at Home
In-home services provide your loved one with the support they need from the comfort of home.
