Hospice of the Comforter

Since 1963, when President John F. Kennedy designated February American Heart Month, the American Heart Association has joined forces with the medical community, corporations, government health agencies and concerned citizens to raise awareness and develop programs to prevent and fight the number one killer of Americans, heart disease. In the time it takes you to read this paragraph, around 25 seconds, a fellow American will have had a coronary event of some kind. Add a little over a half a minute to that, and someone will die from one.

Heart disease does not discriminate, and is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Even women as young as 25-54 years are affected: it is the third leading cause of death in this age group.

Awareness, prevention, surgery and numerous other medical therapies continue to assist patients and their families face the challenges of heart disease. But for some, this condition shortens life drastically. Almost half of men who have a heart attack under age 65 die within 8 years.

In many cases, heart disease is not diagnosed for years because of the heart’s remarkable ability to compensate for the decline that is occurring. The heart eventually begins to have difficulty doing its job. At this point patients develop symptoms such as energy loss and shortness of breath, prompting a visit to the doctor.

Doctors are unable at this time to cure heart disease, but can offer much in the way of medicine and even surgical interventions to relieve symptoms and in some cases slow the progression of heart disease.

Physicians of all specialties, including Cardiology, Pulmonology and Internal Medicine can consult with Hospice of the Comforter’s doctors to determine if a referral to our services would be beneficial to patients and families who find the symptoms of this disease more challenging to manage.

Patients and their loved ones should also consider these factors when making the decision to choose hospice’s comprehensive care and management of symptoms of End Stage Cardiac Disease:

• Are heart medications no longer helping to manage your symptoms?
• Are you noticing that the symptoms are occurring even at rest?
• Is shortness of breath or pain so severe that you can no longer do what you want and need to do?
• Are hospitalizations becoming more frequent?
• Are there other existing medical conditions such as lung disease or kidney dysfunction?
• Has your physician told you that procedures or surgeries are not an option?
• Are you and your loved ones seeking comfort care to improve quality of life?

Your answers and a discussion with your doctor can help you make a decision about your goals of care.

Hospice of the Comforter provides patients and families with compassionate and expert care that addresses the above as well as sleeplessness, anxiety and depression that commonly develop.

Our team will coordinate appropriate medication management and can also determine which medical equipment may be needed. Most cardiac and symptom management medications related to your diagnosis, as well as assistive equipment, are covered under the Hospice Medicare Benefit and they will be delivered to your home. Hospice physicians consult with pharmacists who specialize in the types of medicine needed for your care, and continue to manage your progress to ensure your quality of life is optimum.

Other members of the hospice team are nurses, who partner with you and your family to provide compassionate and quality care. The hospice certified nursing assistant can help with personal care when needed and our social workers and chaplains meet with you to provide supportive emotional and spiritual care for both the patient and the family.

Hospice of the Comforter also has volunteers who are part of this caring team who come together to give you and your family an improved quality of living. We currently have over 500 volunteers, and many of them come to us because they have had a loved one receive our services. Our volunteers provide an invaluable service to our patients and families as well as our own team members. These devoted people respond to special requests, look to see where they can be of most assistance, and give of their time and talent.

Click here to visit the Heart Failure Society of America, which provides education for patients and families.  It offers information on how someone with heart disease can best discuss questions and concerns with their physicians and families. It also describes the various health care services that may be provided as heart failure progresses, including the hospice option for end of life care.

A conversation starter for a meaningful discussion may be a simple statement such as “I’d like to talk about what kind of help we may need since my heart failure seems to be worsening.” It can be a great relief to all when the door is finally opened to talking about hospice care for improving quality of life for you and those you love most. 

The American Heart Association is the longest running volunteer organization in the United States, founded in 1924. It is also the largest.

National Wear Red Day is a day when Americans nationwide wear red to show their support for women's heart disease awareness. This observance promotes the Red Dress symbol and provides an opportunity for everyone to unite in this life-saving awareness movement by showing off a favorite red dress, shirt, or tie, or Red Dress Pin.

Participate in National Wear Red Day! Everyone can support the fight against heart disease in women by wearing red on February 4, 2011.

^{Roger V, Go, A, Lloyd-Jones, D, et al. Heart disease and stroke statistics—2011 update. a report from the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee . Circulation 2011;123:e1-e19}

^{CDC. National Center for Health Statistics. Leading Causes of Death by Age Group, All FemalesUnited States, 2006. Hyattsville, MD: Department of Health and Human Services}

^{CDC, Center for Heart Disease and Stroke Prediction. Men and Heart Disease Fact Sheet. http://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fs_men_heart.htm}