The Role of the Hospice Team: What Does the Patient/Family Need?

Presented by Jennifer Kennedy

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Video Runtime: 41 Minutes; Learning Assessment Runtime: 12 Minutes

This course provides an overview of the role of the hospice team in caring for a patient and their family at the end of life. Participants will learn to identify the members of the hospice interdisciplinary team and their individual and joint responsibilities for providing comprehensive palliative care. The course will review the differences between a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary team approach in meeting patient and family needs related to symptom management and preparation for death and bereavement.

Meet your instructor

Jennifer Kennedy

Dr. Jennifer Kennedy is the vice president for quality and standards at Community Health Accreditation Partner (CHAP) and is a nationally recognized hospice expert. She has more than 35 years of experience as a leader and nurse in diverse healthcare settings and has worked in hospice and palliative care for the last 20+…

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Chapters & learning objectives

The Hospice Team Defined

1. The Hospice Team Defined

The Medicare hospice regulations define the structure of the hospice interdisciplinary team and why this type of approach to care is preferred for seriously ill patients at the end of life. This chapter discusses the foundation for utilization of an interdisciplinary team approach in care and how it benefits a patient/family at the end of life.

Who Are Part of the Hospice Team?

2. Who Are Part of the Hospice Team?

Medicare regulations require specific disciplines be part of the hospice interdisciplinary team so that the patient/family is provided with holistic care. Core professional services within the Medicare Hospice Benefit include the physician, nurse, social worker, spiritual counselor, and bereavement counselor. This chapter will describe each member of the hospice team, their role, and their responsibilities to the rest of the team and to the patient/family.

Identifying Patient and Family Needs

3. Identifying Patient and Family Needs

The hospice team is focused on accurate and speedy identification of patient and family needs through the use of comprehensive assessment at admission and continuously throughout the hospice service period. This chapter will examine the interdisciplinary team assessment process and targeted content in the assessment that identifies the needs of the patient and their family.

Team Development of the Hospice Plan of Care

4. Team Development of the Hospice Plan of Care

The interdisciplinary hospice team works together with the patient, their family, and the patient’s primary physician to develop a patient centered plan of care. The plan of care serves as the roadmap for the hospice team to provide holistic palliative care to the patient and their family. This chapter will describe the hospice team process for the development of the plan of care and define how the hospice team completes a continuous assessment and plan of care update cycle until the patient’s death or discharge from hospice.