answers to our most frequently asked questions
FAQs
Death and end-of-life topics raise many questions, especially when considering a hospice organization, that's why we've compiled as many answers as we can for you to review, in your time.
When you're ready, we're here to help.
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VIA Health Partners provides hospice care in the home, in long-term care communities, in hospitals, and in our 6 inpatient hospice houses.
Palliative medicine is health care for individuals of any age who have a chronic, life-limiting illness. Palliative medicine is active care. It is care that aggressively seeks to improve quality of life by focusing on physical symptoms as well as emotional, social, and spiritual needs. While palliative medicine emphasizes pain control and other symptom management, patients do not have to forgo curative or restorative care. Palliative medicine also reaches out to address the needs of family members and caregivers to maximize support to the patient. Palliative medicine is provided by our Palliative Medicine Consultants program.
Our staff nurses provide intermittent skilled nursing visits for pain and symptom management, plus education regarding care of the patient.
When ordered by a physician, we provide certified, in-home aide services to help patients with personal care, including bathing, skin, mouth, and hair care.
When a patient comes under hospice or palliative care, a plan of care is developed based on the needs of the patient and their family. This plan outlines the multilevel, clinical services that will be provided, and it is updated regularly to reflect the changing needs of the patient and family.
Our social workers provide counseling and support to the patient and family, including children, during this stressful time. Services may include assistance in identifying community resources, advice regarding financial, legal, and caregiving concerns that occur with a prolonged illness, as well as other individual services as appropriate.
Our staff chaplains provide and/or coordinate spiritual care for patients and families by helping them find the spiritual comfort, strength, and hope consistent with their own values, beliefs, and practices. Spiritual care can also offer the support needed to explore, clarify, or resolve spiritual issues of concern.
We recognize the special needs of those who have experienced the death of a loved one, and we provide the individual and group support necessary to face grief. Grief services are available to families and loved ones of our patients, and are also available to anyone who resides in our community.
If hospitalization is needed, the care team will coordinate this transition and maintain contact with the patient and their family during the patient's stay in the hospital. We have contracts with all hospitals in our service area.
When the patient's physician signs the hospice certification, it signifies that he/she believes that, in their best medical estimate, life expectancy is six months or less if the illness takes its expected course. However, patients will not be discharged from our care if they exceed that time frame, as long as they meet the criteria for receiving hospice care.
VIA Health Partners is the only provider of a specialized children's program in our eight-county service area. The Kids Path® children's program specializes in caring for the unique needs of seriously ill children and their loved ones.
We offer individual sessions for children, grief camps for ages 7-16, and short term grief support groups in partnership with schools.
Our specially trained staff and volunteers give presentations to civic groups, long term care communities, businesses, communities of faith, and other groups who want to learn more about our services and programs. For more information about arranging a speaker, please call 704.375.0100.