Health Care Professionals

Hospice of Huntington: An Extension of Your Practice

We believe you will regard our care team as an extension of your practice, working in tandem with you to provide comprehensive palliative care, as well as spiritual and emotional support for both the patient and his/her family members. Our programs can provide many comforting, cost-effective benefits to your patients, their families and your staff.

The Right Care at the Right Time

As healthcare professionals, we dedicate ourselves to the well being of our patients. But when a cure no longer seems viable, helping our patients and families live life to the fullest for as long as possible through the last stages of an illness is the next step in the continuum of care. At this stage, hospice and palliative care is the right care at this time that can enhance your patients' hope for quality of life, minimize their pain and symptoms and address many physical, emotional, spiritual and financial challenges that can accompany late-stage illness.

Referral Benefits to Your Patients and Their Families

Your approved plan of care delivered in the setting you and your patient decide is optimum: home, assisted living, nursing home, or our Emogene Dolin Jones Hospice House, or other inpatient settings. Please note: CMS's regulatory criteria for inpatient hospice options include short-term stays for pain and symptom management, not long-term residence.
Peace of mind for patient and family through care team focused on their individualized needs
Round-the-clock access to our care team with evening, weekend and holiday visits as necessary
Reduced out-of-pocket expenses with full range of benefits covered by Medicare, Medicaid, VA and most major insurers
Medications and medical equipment/supplies related to the hospice diagnosis delivered to patient's residence
Bedside education to increase confidence of caregivers in providing support for their loved ones
Assistance with pain and symptom management, advanced directives, funeral planning and connection to community resources
Comforting complementary therapies including: Massage, Music, Pet and Aromatherapy
Focus on keeping patients in their most comfortable setting
13 months of bereavement support for surviving family members

Benefits to Your Practice

Referral process easy and timely: Same-day admissions seven days a week
Assistance in proper documentation with reimbursement for such things as office visits/consults
Dedicated on-call staff to answer patient and family calls 24-hours a day
Consultation and collaboration with our Board-certified Hospice and Palliative Care Medical Director and Physicians
Input into whether to continue care of your patient or transfer care to our physicians
Reassurance that your patients are receiving care from an accredited hospice agency
Satisfied patients and families who appreciate the help and support made possible by your referral to Hospice of Huntington

The Benefits of Early Referral

The sooner a patient begins hospice care, the more positive an impact Hospice of Huntington can make on the quality of life for the patient and his/her entire family. But consider these facts:

Only one out of every four eligible patients ever gets referred for hospice care
The national average length of hospice stay is 36 days despite the fact that Medicare will cover six months with additional 60-day benefit periods for as long as medically indicated.
28 percent of hospice patients die within seven days of referral.
The national average cost of a hospital day for a terminally ill patient is $2500 compared to $123 per day for a hospice patient cared for in the comfort of home.

Not Sure When to Refer?

Prognostication has never been an exact science. One simple rule of thumb is to ask yourself: Would I be surprised if this patient were not alive in six months? If you answered "no," then your patient may be eligible for hospice care. For diagnosis-specific Medicare/Medicaid criteria to determine timely hospice and palliative care eligibility, call us at 304.529.4217. We welcome the opportunity to work with you in supporting your patients so that they may receive the specialized care they so deserve at the end of life.

Some Examples of Referral Criteria by Diagnosis

ALS
Does your patient with ALS have any of the following:

Rapidly progressing disease
Dyspnea at rest
Needs O2 at rest
Poor oral intake of food or fluid
Weight loss
Recurrent infection (such as pneumonia, pyelonephritis, or sepsis) or recurrent fever after antibiotics
Decubitus ulcers
Vital capacity < 30% of predicted
Desire not to be intubated
Desire not to be hospitalized
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Dementia
Does your patient with Dementia have any of the following:

Difficulty speaking intelligibly
Difficulty sitting up
Difficulty smiling or holding up the head
Decubitus ulcers
Infection during the past year (such as pneumonia, pyelonephritis, or sepsis) or recurrent fever after antibiotics
Weight loss
Poor oral intake of food or fluid
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

HIV Disease
Does your patient with HIV Disease have any of the following:

CD4 count < 25 cells/mcL or viral load > 100,000 copies/mL
Weight loss
Debility
Chronic diarrhea
Serum albumin < 2.5 gm/dL
Antiretroviral therapy no longer effective or too toxic
Cancer such as CNS or systemic lymphoma, visceral Kaposi's sarcoma
AIDS dementia or progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy
Infection such as Mycobacterium avium complex bacteremia, toxoplasmosis, Cryptosporidium
Ongoing substance abuse
Other comorbid disease such as CHF, liver disease or renal failure that may shorten survival
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Cancer
Does your patient with Cancer have any of the following:

Weight loss
Metastatic disease
Progression from an earlier stage despite therapy
Desire not to take further cancer therapy
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Liver Disease
Does your patient with Liver Disease have any of the following:

Protime > 5 seconds over control or INR > 1.5
Serum albumin < 2.5 gm/dL
Ascites
Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis
Hepatorenal syndrome
Hepatic encephalopathy
Recurrent variceal bleeding
Malnutrition or muscle wasting
Ongoing alcoholism
Hepatitis B antigen positive
Refractory hepatitis C
Hepatocellular carcinoma
Plan for liver transplantation but no donor organ available
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Kidney Disease
Does your patient with Kidney Disease have any of the following:

Creatinine clearance < 15-20 cc/min or serum creatinine > 6 mg/dL
Cachexia or serum albumin < 3.5 gm/dL
Uremia
Hyperkalemia
Uremic pericarditis
Fluid overload or oliguria
Hepatorenal syndrome
GI bleeding, DIC or platelets < 25,000
Infection such as HIV or sepsis
Other comorbid disease such as heart, liver, or chronic lung disease that may shorten survival
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Stroke or Coma
Does your patient with Stroke or Coma have any of the following:

Weight loss
Serum albumin < 2.5 gm/dL
Dysphagia or aspiration
Poor intake of food or fluid
Coma for 3 days with absent verbal, withdrawal, or brainstem responses, or serum creatinine > 1.5 gm/dL
Infection (such as pneumonia, pyelonephritis, or sepsis) or recurrent fever after antibiotics
Decubitus ulcers
Large-volume hemorrhage, ventricular extension of hemorrhage, midline shift, or obstructive hydrocephalus by CT
Large infarcts
Basilar or bilateral vertebral artery occlusion
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Heart Disease
Does your patient with Heart Disease have any of the following:

Symptomatic CHF despite diuretics and vasodilators
Angina at rest despite medical management
Angina at rest and not a surgical candidate or refuses surgery
New York Heart Association Class IV disease
EF < 20%
Refractory symptomatic SVT or ventricular arrhythmia
History of cardiac arrest
Unexplained syncope
Cardiogenic brain embolism
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

Lung Disease
Does your patient with Lung Disease have any of the following:

Dyspnea at rest despite bronchodilators
Declining functional status
FEV1 < 30% predicted
Falling FEV1 (by > 40 mL/year)
O2 saturation < 88% or pO2 < 55 mmHg on room air
pCO2 > 50 mmHg
Cor pulmonale (right heart failure
Weight loss
Resting tachycardia
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Other comorbid disease that may shorten survival
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing

General Debility
Does your patient with DECLINING STATUS have any of the following:

Recurrent or intractable infections
Weight loss
Decreasing serum albumin or cholesterol
Dysphagia or aspiration
Poor oral intake of food or fluid
Worsening symptoms such as pain, dyspnea, cough, nausea/vomiting, or diarrhea
Hypotension (systolic blood pressure < 90 or orthostasis)
Ascites, pleural or pericardial effusions
Venous or lymphatic obstruction from tumor
Weakness
Altered level of consciousness
Increasing pCO2 decreasing pO2 or SaO2
Increasing calcium, creatinine, liver function tests, sodium or potassium or decreasing sodium
Increasing tumor markers such as CEA or PSA
Difficulty speaking intelligibly, sitting up, smiling, or holding up the head
Decubitus ulcers
Frequent ER or hospital visits
Desire not to be hospitalized if the illness worsens
Difficulty with feeding, ambulation, continence, transfer, bathing, or dressing