Houston is known for being the top city for cultural diversity, passing New York City and Los Angeles. Understanding how different cultures approach death is very important. Through hospice, we provide grief services for everyone involved, but cultural practices are often overlooked. There are many transitions that happen at the end of life and through...

Hospice care isn’t always the easiest thing to talk about and many people don’t have a clear idea what hospice actually is. Even after 25 years, most Americans aren’t aware of the advantages hospice brings. This mostly comes from our country’s resistance to talk about death. However, hospice is undoubtedly this best choice for end...

Contact: Debbie Mosbacher 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com May 23,2016 Sometimes family members are the first to learn of a loved one’s cancer diagnosis. How does a family decide if they should or when they should tell the person who has the cancer? Are some people too emotionally fragile, too young, or too old to know? Most people...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com   Hospice and palliative care nurses work in collaboration with other health providers (such as physicians, social workers, or chaplains) within the context of an interdisciplinary team.  Composed of highly qualified, specially trained professionals and volunteers, the team blends their strengths together to anticipate and meet the needs of the...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com A terminally ill patient’s deteriorating medical condition, increased physical safety needs, and the 24-hour demands of final-stage care often mean the primary caregiver will need additional in-home help, or for the patient to be placed in a hospice or other care facility. In many cases, patients prefer to remain at...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com What is hospice care, and what is its purpose? Hospice is the term for a special program of care for terminally ill (dying) patients and their families. Rather than trying to cure an illness, hospice efforts aim to make the patient comfortable, ease pain and other troublesome symptoms and support...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com Dementia is not a specific disease. It’s an overall term that describes a wide range of symptoms associated with a decline in memory or other thinking skills severe enough to reduce a person’s ability to perform everyday activities.Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of cases.Vascular dementia, which occurs after...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.408.7999 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com Last week, I met someone in a coffee shop that had worked for ten years at a retirement home for the elderly. We had an enjoyable conversation about how several people would come in and request volunteer work or be searching for volunteer services in his area. I could relate to his...

Contact: Maria Patino 832.410.3198 accreditedhospicesofamerica.com As people grow older, they face an often dizzying array of options for managing their health and well-being. Fortunately, taking care of everything by oneself at home or moving to a nursing facility are not the only choices. In-home services are a very good option for many older adults who...

Many people find themselves at loss for words when they find out someone they know is suffering from cancer. Even with the best of intentions, they can find themselves saying things that are hurtful without realizing their impact on the cancer patient. Caring for someone close to you who has been diagnosed with cancer is...