Page 14 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, February 26, 2021 avvya yavvy en oniorior avvy S ior io iori by Jim Miller How to Choose a Hospice Care Program Dear Savvy Senior, Where can I turn to fi nd a good Medicare covered hospice provider? My husband’s mother has a terminal condition and wants to die at home, if possible, so I’m helping out where I can. Sad Sandy Dear Sandy, Hospice is a wonderful option in the last months of life because it off ers a variety of services, not only to those who are dying, but also to those left behind. Here’s what you should know about hospice care, along with some tips to help you choose one. Understanding Hospice Hospice care is a unique service that provides medical care, pain management, and emotional and spiritual support to people who are in the last stages of a terminal illness – it does not speed up or slow down the process of dying. Hospice’s goal is to simply keep the patient as comfortable and pain-free as possible, with loved ones nearby until death. The various services provided by a hospice program comes from a team of professionals that works together to accommodate all the patients’ end-of-life needs. The team typically includes hospice doctors that will work with the primary physician and family members to draft up a care plan; nurses who dispense medication for pain control; home care aids that attend to personal needs like eating and bathing; social workers who help the patient and the family prepare for end of life; clergy members who provide spiritual counseling, if desired; and volunteers that fi ll a variety of niches, from sitting with the patient to helping clean and maintain their property. Some hospices even off er massage or music therapy, and nearly all provide bereavement services for relatives and short-term inpatient respite care to give family caregivers a break. Most hospice patients receive care in their own home. However, hospice will go wherever the patient is – hospital, nursing home or assisted living residence. Some even have their own facility to use as an option. To receive hospice, your mother-in-law must get a referral from her physician stating that her life expectancy is six months or less. It’s also important to know that home-based hospice care does not mean that a hospice nurse or volunteer is in the home 24 hours a day. Services are based on need and/or what you request. Hospice care can also be stopped at any time if your mother-in-law’s health improves or if she decides to re-enter cure-oriented treatments. How to Choose The best time to prepare for hospice and consider your options is before it’s necessary, so you’re not making decisions during a stressful time. There are more than 4,300 hospice care agencies in the U.S., so depending on where you live; you may have several options from which to choose. To locate a good hospice in your area, ask your mother-in-law’s doctor or the discharge planner at your local hospital for a referral, or you can search online at Medicare.gov/care-compare, which provides lists and ratings of hospice providers in your area. When choosing, look for an established hospice that has been operating for a few years and one that is certifi ed by Medicare. To help you select one, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization off ers a worksheet of questions to ask CaringInfo.org. Medicare Coverage Medicare covers all aspects of hospice care and services for its benefi ciaries. There is no deductible for hospice services although there may be a very small co-payment – such as $5 for each prescription drug for pain and symptom control, or a 5 percent share for inpatient respite care. Medicaid also covers hospice in most states, as do most private health insurance plans. For more information, see the “Medicare Hospice Benefi ts” online booklet at Medicare.gov/pubs/pdf/02154-medicare-hospice-benefi ts. pdf. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. ~ Home of the Week ~ SAUGUS...Lovely 6 room 3 bedroom 1 bath Ranch located on side street corner lot. One level living offers fireplace living room spacious eat in kitchen sliders to family room overlooking yard side door to deck 3 bedrooms hardwood floors and ceiling fans. Lower level game room partially finished great extra space. This home has central air central vacuum shed deck 2 car garage wide driveway plenty of parking close to store restaurants highway access Just move in! Offered at $519,900 335 Central Street, Saugus, MA 01906 (781) 233-7300 View all our listings at: CarpenitoRealEstate.com View the interior of this home right on your smartphone. COVID-19 Contributes to Uptick in Opioid-Related Deaths B altimore, MD, February 24, 2021— Telemedicine and tele-mental health services have emerged as valuable resources for those battling addictions during our country’s expanding opioid crisis. The availability of remote healthcare services gives hope for those struggling with their addictions against a backdrop of social isolation, explains Dr. Paul Christo, an Associate Professor in the Division of Pain Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and he adds, clinicians need to advocate to their patients that online treatment options are available. Dr. Christo, who is on the frontlines working to curb the impact of the opioid crisis, also wants patients to know that critical medications for maintaining sobriety can now be prescribed by telehealth or telephone. "The number of fatalities from opioid-related overdoses could be nearly 30 percent higher than reported due to missing information or incomplete death records,” he says. “The worst fear is that because of social isolation, people are not being found or treated immediately." The opioid epidemic today progressed in three phases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The fi rst involves deaths caused by prescription opioids, the second, an increase in heroin use, and the third, a surge in the use of synthetic opioids or fentanyl. Experts say the U.S. is right in the middle of the third phase of the epidemic, due to the increasing availability of fentanyl and increasing rates of overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids. According to a recent study there were 632,331 drug overdoses between 1999 and 2016. Most of these deaths (78.2 percent) were drug overdoses with known drug classifi cation. Moreover, 21.8 percent were unclassifi ed drug overdoses. A further investigation revealed that for unclassifi ed drug overdoses, 71.8 percent involved opioids, translating to 99,160 additional opioid-related deaths. There were over 70,000 drug overdose deaths in 2017, according to an estimate from the CDC. Based on fi ndings from the new study, over half of those deaths — about 47,000 — are suspected of having involved opioids. Another study on opioid overdoses found that the number of drug overdose deaths decreased by 4 percent from 2017 to 2018. In 2018, more than 67,000 people died from drug overdoses, making it a leading cause of injury-related death in the United States. Almost 70 percent involved a prescription or illicit opioid of those deaths. “COVID 19 impacted the drug supply chain by closing borders on some regions, and it led to the higher death rate,” Dr. Christo explained. He added that drugs become more challenging to get, and the potency of overdose goes up. It also impacts the price, everything goes up, and in that sense, it becomes more deadly each day, according to Dr. Christo. About Dr. Paul Christo Dr. Paul Christo serves as Director of the Multidisciplinary Pain Fellowship Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He is the author of Aches and Gains, A Comprehensive Guide to Overcoming Your Pain. Dr. Paul Christo also hosts an award-winning, nationally syndicated SIRIUS XM radio talk show on overcoming pain called, Aches and Gains®. For more information about Dr. Paul Christo, please visit www. paulchristomd.com.
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