My husband’s grandmother is in the process of dying, and because of this I wanted to write a post advocating hospice and palliative care. Palliative care focuses on making a sick person as comfortable as possible and reducing their symptoms and pain. Hospice is a palliative care program. For my husband’s grandma, a hospice nurse makes house calls at least once a day, more if necessary, to check on her and to do what is necessary to make the dying process less painful and to make her more comfortable.
After this experience, I would recommend hospice to anyone with a family member who is terminally ill. Hospice allows the person to die comfortably and as painlessly as possible, at home surrounded by family and friends. Having Grandma at home has helped all of us to be close to her in her last days and has provided a very unique and special experience for our family.
Yesterday we were able to sit around her and sing hymns of faith and other favorites. Her latest favorite has been “Up On the Housetop,” and she has even made up her own, more entertaining versions that we will all cherish.
This experience would have been much different in a crowded hospital room. Although this experience has been sad and difficult, having her at home with Hospice care has brought the rest of the family closer together.
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