In-Home End-of-Life Care Services in Asheville, NC
End-of-life care is an important and often misunderstood form of senior assistance, as it helps your loved ones achieve a degree of comfort at a crucial time. Choosing to pursue end-of-life care isn't an easy decision, however. The care recipient, their family, and the health providers should agree that it's the best course to take, and the care provider should be devoted to tailoring their care to the individual's unique requirements.
At Visiting Angels, our mission is to support seniors and their families in even the most challenging times. Discover how our end-of-life care can help your loved one enjoy a greater sense of security and comfort when they need it most.
What Is End-of-Life Care?
End-of-life care is an assistance service for individuals with terminal illnesses who are expected to live less than six months. Often, the choice to receive end-of-life care comes after a lengthy period of undergoing curative treatments. When these treatments don't have their desired effect, the recipient may elect to focus their care on improving their quality of life for the time they have remaining. The goal, then, is to help them feel as comfortable as possible by managing pain and other symptoms while offering opportunities for closure for them and their loved ones.
End-of-life care is similar to palliative care, but there's an important distinction between the two. Palliative care normally begins in the early stages of an individual's diagnosis, so they continue to receive curative treatments from medical providers while caregivers strive to relieve their discomfort. End-of-life care is an extension of the palliative process; however, the objective of the care shifts from treating the illness to preparing for its end — a care approach that involves establishing a comforting environment in which your loved one can achieve peace.
What Does an End-of-Life Caregiver Do?
An end-of-life caregiver's overarching goal is to provide comfort and support to your family member so that they can better enjoy the time they have with those who matter to them. At Visiting Angels in Asheville, our caregivers come to your loved one's place of residence — their home, nursing home, or another facility — to provide assistance services in accordance with their wishes. Our caregiving philosophy involves a whole-person approach. Fostering your loved one's physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being may include:
- Creating a comfortable and relaxing environment.
- Providing joyful companionship.
- Offering emotional support and a spiritual connection.
- Performing housekeeping tasks.
- Assisting your loved one with their personal care and hygiene needs.
- Helping your loved one with mobility as needed.
- Providing sympathetic assistance to your family.
We also tailor our end-of-life care services to your loved one's precise needs and preferences. You and your family member remain in control of the level and frequency of the care, and the details of the care plan remain customizable throughout.
How Can an End-of-Life Caregiver Help My Family?
End-of-life care can help your loved one and your family in many ways:
Maximizing Comfort and Improving Quality of Life
Choosing to end curative treatments allows medical and care providers to focus their efforts on improving the care recipient's quality of life. While curative treatments may have caused discomfort without improving symptoms, end-of-life caregivers can now concentrate on alleviating pain and helping your loved one feel more at ease.
Addressing Emotional and Spiritual Well-Being
End-of-life care also allows care providers to better integrate the emotional and spiritual elements of patient care. For our caregivers, that means being present for your loved one so they don't feel lonely, stressed, or anxious. In addition, an individual in their final days, weeks, or months might be seeking closure in many of the personal aspects of their life, and our caregivers strive to create an environment that fosters that outcome.
Meeting Your Loved One's Daily Needs
End-of-life care includes personal caregiving services, such as dressing, bathing, toileting, and light housekeeping. Good hygiene and a tidy space are essential for positive mental health, which in turn goes a long way toward helping an individual feel at peace. By meeting your loved one's daily needs, our caregivers strive to give your loved one the quality of life they want.
Providing Respite to You and Other Family Caregivers
When an individual is diagnosed with a terminal illness, the responsibility for their home and personal care duties often goes to the family members, who must balance these responsibilities with their other obligations. Having an end-of-life care provider, even if just for one or two days a week, provides well-deserved respite to family caregivers. Giving them the time to meet their own needs means that they can come back to their caregiving duties with a rejuvenated outlook.
How End-of-Life Care Works With Hospice
Visiting Angels caregivers specialize in providing comfort and relief assistance that complements, but doesn't replace, hospice services.
Generally, hospice care involves collaboration between health providers, such as nurses, counselors, and therapists, as well as social workers and volunteers, to address the needs of both the care recipient and their family. Visiting Angels' end-of-life care functions as a contributing factor in the larger care arrangement. As health and social service providers assist the family in their respective ways, our caretakers primarily address your loved one's physical and psychological comfort. Together with the other members of the care team, we holistically support your loved one's end-of-life wishes.
Find Out More About Visiting Angels End-of-Life Care in Asheville, NC
Pursuing end-of-life care is a challenging decision but one that can help your loved one enjoy peace and comfort. If you think that your family member could benefit from compassionate and customized end-of-life services, contact Visiting Angels in Asheville, NC. Call or text 828-665-3944 to speak with a member of our team, or send us a message online, and a coordinator will get back to you to schedule a free phone consultation. We look forward to getting to know your family and helping to provide your loved one with care and comfort.
Serving Asheville, Hendersonville, Black Mountain, Weaverville, Waynesville, and the Surrounding Areas
Visiting Angels ASHEVILLE, NC
24 Sardis Rd #H-IAsheville, NC 28806
Phone: 828-665-3944
Fax: 866-305-3446