Who provides hospice care from Sentara?
Our team comprises of carefully selected, screened professionals who deliver the same high-quality care that physicians and patients alike expect from Sentara. You can be confident that our staff treats patients and family members with the utmost care and respect.Our hospice team works with the patient, family, or caregiver to create a plan of care that focuses on each individual's specific needs and goals. The hospice interdisciplinary team has expertise in disease specific care, pain management, complex symptom control and grief/bereavement care.
Sentara hospice care team members include:
The patient’s primary care provider (PCP) is often a familiar and trusted presence. When a person enters hospice care, their provider may remain involved, working closely with the hospice team to support the patient’s comfort and overall well-being. This collaboration helps ensure that care stays consistent with the patient’s goals and values.
In many cases, the PCP shares important medical history, supports care planning, and may remain involved in decision-making or medication management, depending on the family's wishes and the provider’s availability.
Hospice care adds an extra layer of support, not a replacement, so the patient and family continue to benefit from the long-standing relationship and insights with their PCP.
Your primary care provider will be responsible for:
- Certifying your terminal diagnosis
- Assessing your needs, including managing symptoms and prescribing treatment
- Directing and approving the plan of care
- Coordinating your care with other members of your healthcare team, like specialists and nurses
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- Co-certifies the terminal prognosis with the primary care provider
- Leads the interdisciplinary team in the development of a plan of care
- Provides consultation to other healthcare team members
- Assessing patient and family needs
- Developing a plan of care and ensuring its implementation
- Coordinating team visits and care with hospice staff and/or primary caregiver and attending physician
- Ensuring symptom control and pain management
- Providing patient/family/teaching as necessary, with items such as administering medication
Home health aides are supervised by a nurse and assist hospice patients with personal care on a part-time basis. The hospice nurse schedules home health aide visits to meet the patient’s needs. Our hospice aides are experienced in end-of-life care and have been carefully selected to provide direct, personal care.
Personal care provided by the hospice aide may include bathing, hair care, shaving, skin care, linen changes, catheter care and straightening the patient's immediate surroundings. Our home health aides provide comfort measures and emotional support. They also help identify patient and family needs and report any changes in the patient's condition to the appropriate team member.
- Providing emotional support, counseling and guidance to the patient and family in coping with stress related to the illness
- Identifying community resources available to help
- Assisting the patient and family with planning nursing home placement, funeral arrangements, etc.
- Offering information about Advance Care Planning
- Providing bereavement counseling to families, including up to 13 months of counseling after the passing of a loved one
Spiritual care includes:
- Regular pastoral care visits and direct counseling to patients and/or their families
- Being on-call and available for crisis intervention
- Assisting with memorial service preparations
- Conducting funeral and memorial services as requested and contacting a patient's own minister for additional support if desired
- Bereavement support
- Coordinating continued bereavement services for the family
- Developing a bereavement plan of care to meet identified needs
- Planning an annual memorial service if desired
A vital part of hospice is the carefully selected, well-trained volunteers who work alongside our professional staff to share their skills, compassion and empathy.
These special hospice team members provide many different types of non-medical care support for our hospice patients and their loved ones. From non-medical direct patient care and family bereavement support to administrative and specialty support, volunteers are an integral part of our hospice program. They are good listeners, non-judgmental, adaptable and have a strong desire to reach out with love and concern for others.
Sentara Hospice volunteer non-medical services may include:
- Companionship and support to patients and families
- Letter writing
- Errands
- Respite time for the family
- Vigil volunteers
- Bereavement volunteers
- Special event volunteers
- Chaplaincy volunteers
- Administrative volunteers
- Specialty volunteers - pet therapy, massage therapy, music therapy
- Sewing, quilting, crocheting and knitting lap blankets, pillows and “Remember Me Bears” clothing