What is Hospice Care?

The Hospice is not the building but the concept of total care of the patient
with a life-limiting illness. That care is medical, nursing, physical, emotional
and spiritual and encompasses not only the patient but also the family who
require support in managing their relative’s illness. In meeting all these
needs, patients are assessed and the care tailored to their specific
requirements. The care is provided by a multidisciplinary team in order
to meet the wide needs of patients with advanced disease.

What the Friends’ Hospice Paphos does.

There are three basic functions that the Hospice undertakes

1. Symptom control
2. Respite Care
3. Terminal Care

Symptom control

In the late stages of diseases such as cancer,
symptoms such as pain, vomiting, breathlessness can be very
distressing and sometimes difficult to control at home. In the Hospice,
these symptoms can be assessed by staff experienced in dealing with
advanced disease and a number of therapies used to alleviate them.
Medication can be assessed by the specialist team and alterations
monitored for effectiveness. The answer is not always simply to use drug.

Often, addressing issues such as fear and anxiety with patient,
understanding, explanation and the use of complementary therapies,
can allow the drugs to work more effectively and relieve the distress
that patients have. Symptoms may be aggravated by factors such as
where and how a patient sits, or what and how often the patent eats.
These things can be assessed in the Hospice and small alterations
can make a great difference to how somebody feels, and how they
cope with their symptoms.

Factors within the home may also aggravate symptoms. For example,
seats at the wrong height for the patient, or furniture making it difficult
for the patient to get about the house. These issues can be discussed
with the Community Nurses, and adjustments made to ensure the
comfort of the patient when they leave the Hospice.


Respite Care

Caring for somebody with a life-limiting illness is both
physically and emotionally exhausting. There are times when a carer
needs a short break from the task of caring full-time either to recharge
his or her batteries, or because the carer requires care himself.

Under these circumstances, patients can be admitted to the
Hospice for an agreed period of time. Sometimes the carer will
continue to help care for the patient, but with the back-up of
experienced and trained nurses and carers who can provide 24 hour care.

The respite is also appreciated by the patient who can see that the
everyday carer is getting a break and this helps the patient too.
Therapies such as massage and Reiki are available to respite
patients as much as to others, and can contribute greatly to the
sense of well-being when it is time to go home again.

Terminal Care

The function of the Hospice in this context is to
provide the patient and family with care which is compassionate,
dignified and professional. The care extended to the patient is
designed to relieve distress physically and emotionally, in calm
and peaceful surroundings.

The support for the family is an equally important part of this type
of care, and the presence of experienced and professional
staff can help to ease the distress of this time.
Emotional and psychological support can be given
to the family as well as complementary therapies as described below.
There is access to agencies which can help to deal with the
formalities following death.

In carrying out these three basic functions, the Hospice has a
large number of agencies and contacts with whom the specific
needs of individual patients may be met. There is a very close
relationship with the nurses from the Anticancer Association and
PASYKAF, who care for patients in the community. With their
assistance, patients can go home following symptom control
or respite, with a specific care package in place.

Complementary therapies -

The following websites may be of interest

www.helpthehospices.org.uk
www.anticancersociety.org.cy
www.cancercare.org.cy