How can we serve you?

Hospice care is available to anyone who:

Is diagnosed by a physician with a terminal illness with a limited prognosis, generally six months.
Resides in one of the towns served by Franciscan Home Care and Hospice Care in either a private home or skilled nursing facility.
Desires a palliative approach to symptom management.
Is referred by the physician, the patient, family, friends, clergy, or agency personnel.

What Levels of Hospice Care are available?

There are four levels of hospice care available from Medicare Hospice Benefit because patients require different intensities of care during the course of their disease.

Routine Home Care

Hospice is paid the routine home care rate for each day the patient is under care of the hospice. Routine care includes all aspects of care from nursing to home health aides regardless of volume or intensity of service.

Continuous Home Care

Continuous Care is as necessary to maintain the terminally ill individual at home (does not have to be continuous) within a 24-hour period of time. A minimum of eight hours of direct hands on care by a RN or LPN must be provided within a 24-hour period of time. Frequent medication adjustment to control symptoms in a period of a crisis.(Not a sentence)

Short Term Inpatient Care

Care that cannot feasibly be provided in a home setting. An acute change in patient’s symptoms require aggressive nursing care, intensive management of symptoms. This is usually in a skilled nursing facility or a hospital setting.

Inpatient Respite Care

Provided in a skilled nursing care facility or hospital setting. Hospice pays the facility an inpatient respite care rate for each day of which the beneficiary is in an approved inpatient facility and is receiving respite care. Payment for respite care may be made for a maximum of five continuous days at a time including the date of admission but not counting the day of discharge.

Bereavement support is initiated with the start of hospice to gather pertinent information that will help provided adequate care to family and friends for at least one year after the patient’s death. Franciscan Hospice Care delivers this assistance with a team of individuals who make regular visits, calls and personalized mailings to help integrate the loss experienced by those who remain.