5 Reasons You Should Consider Hospice
Hospice?? Yes, hospice. Asked me to consider to work in hospice three years ago, and I would’ve answered in a loud resounding NO. I can say now, after working in hospice for 3 1/2 years, I can say nurses who are looking for a meaningful yet challenging nurse position should consider hospice.
I have listed the top 5 reasons why I think YOU should consider working as a hospice nurse.
#1 You will develop a strong relationship with your patient and their family.
I see my patients on a regular basis… either weekly or twice a week. Yes, our time is spent with me to asking them how they have been doing, are they needing any medication refills or supplies, or if they have any issues or concerns they are wanting to talk about. But, most of the time we spend getting to know each other. I love looking at my patient’s photos that are hanging on the wall and ask them to tell me what was going on that day the picture was taken. Or we talk about their wedding day, birth of their first child, or other special moments. You become invested and that’s a good thing. You become one of the family.
#2 You will provide an opportunity for the patient to live the remainder of his or her life with dignity.
As a hospice nurse our goal is to improve the quality of care and have the patient pass away with dignity. Free of pain or discomfort. Many people have a negative understanding of hospice or are afraid of what it means when hospice enters the home. Death isn’t something that we talk about at dinner parties. It is scary. It is sad. However, it is important to have all individuals to live their last days celebrating life and reminiscing. Hospice nursing provides the family to enjoy those last moments with their loved one.
#3 You will be educating the family and working along with the family to improve quality of life for your hospice patient.
There is a lot of education that is involved in hospice nursing. As I mentioned above, I am only in the home, at most, twice a week. I am not there administering the medications to the patient. I think I have only administered medications directly to the patient two in my whole 3 1/2 year career. The patient and the family are the ones administering the medications And, we teach the family (and patient) how to do that. We also teach the family to call us anytime during the day or night if they need help with a minor question or a major crisis. We educate families on the disease process and what that will look like. We never leave our families alone.
#4 You will learn a lot about history
One of my patient’s served in during World War II as an educator in Japan. She taught English to the Japanese women who lived around the base. I thought that was so fascinating and I loved looking through her pictures of when she was younger in her military uniform. She had a lot of wisdom to pass along not just to me but to anyone who came to visit her. My World War II veterans are my favorite as we grew up in two completely different lifetimes.
#5 If you had a personal experience with hospice.
If your family member or a friend has been on hospice, you understand that hospice nurses are one of the compassionate nurse field out there. I lost my father about 10 years ago. I was in my early 30s and at age where most people typically don’t loose their parents. The nurses that took care of my father were so kind and gentle. They respected him as a human being and not just a disease. They gave him a fabulous end to his life and I was very thankful to be present during that time. Even though I kept saying no to a variety of hospice opportunities, I finally said yes. I said yes because I felt that I could provide someone else’s father quality and dignity to his last days.