Council on Aging - Answers 2024-25 - 23

COUNCIL ON AGING - SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Navigating Care Choices: Understanding
Home Health, Hospice, and Palliative Care
The responsibility of caring for a loved one comes with many decisions. They may include the
choice between home health care, hospice care, and palliative care. Each of these options offers
services tailored to different needs and circumstances.
What is Home Health Care?
Home health care is a service
that allows people to receive
professional medical care in
the comfort of their homes.
Home health care services can
include skilled nursing, physical
therapy, wound care, medication
management, and more. Home
Health often follows an illness,
hospitalization, or surgery.
Typically, home health is short
term and likely covered through
your loved one's health insurance.
The services offered through
home health care vary, but
include:
n Wound care, education,
intravenous nutrition (or other)
therapy, injections, monitoring
an illness or unstable health
status.
The goal for home health care is
to help your loved one(s):
n Recover in a comfortable
environment, regain
independence at home, become
more self-sufficient as they heal.
Home Health Care vs.
Hospice Care
The main difference between
home health care and hospice
care is the end goal. Home
health care aims to help you
recover and function well in
your environment as you do
so. Hospice care, on the other
hand, is end-of-life care. Its
primary goal is to enhance the
quality of life during the final
stages of an illness. Hospice care
can be provided at home, in a
hospice facility, or in a hospital.
It prioritizes comfort, pain
management, and emotional
support.
Hospice Care vs.
Palliative Care
Palliative care is easy to confuse
with hospice care, but it's a
completely different approach
to care with different primary
goals. Palliative care is also about
comfort, not necessarily endof-life
comfort. Instead, it's an
interdisciplinary form of medical
care aimed at providing relief
from the symptoms and stress of
a serious illness, regardless of the
stage of the disease. Its primary
focus is on improving quality
of life, managing symptoms,
and addressing emotional and
psychological needs.
Integrating palliative care
Your loved one(s) care team can
integrate palliative care into an
existing treatment plan from the
moment of diagnosis, offering
support alongside curative
treatments. This approach
ensures that the patient's
physical, emotional, and spiritual
well-being are all considered.
As such, it can pair with home
health care if desired.
How to Choose a Treatment Path
The first step to ensuring you make the right choice for your loved one is to start by assessing their
specific needs, goals, and prognosis. To do that best, consult with relevant healthcare professionals,
including the primary care physician, specialists, and social workers, to get a full picture and
understanding of the available options.
Excerpts reprinted from the Caregiver Resource Center article titled Navigating Care Choices. To learn more
Visit www.caregiveroc.org
Council On Aging - Southern California | 714-479-0107 | www.coasc.org
Answers Guide 24/25
23
HEALTHCARE & WELL-BEING

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Council on Aging - Answers 2024-25

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