Hospice care is one of the many approaches in caring for terminally ill patients that provide palliative care rather than traditional medical treatment. Hospice care offers symptom management and medical treatment together with spiritual and emotional support for patients and their families at the end of life. One reason for committing older adults to hospice care is the failure to thrive. This is a syndrome of functional decline that is not usually part of normal aging.
Adult failure to thrive may present symptoms that include anorexia, weight loss, dehydration, weakened immune function, and depression. More often than not, patients who are failing to thrive have a prognosis of 6 months or less, irreversible nutritional impairment, and declined response to enteral or parenteral nutrition. While all of this may sound discouraging, there are ways to make patients live a better quality of life during their remaining time. If you are located on the West Coast and are in search of quality palliative care, contact our facility of hospice care in Los Angeles County, California.
We can help you or your loved one. Aside from administering medications that address the patient’s failure to thrive, our palliative care in Los Angeles County, California will also help patients in managing other symptoms. Since malnutrition is present, proper diet plans are to be devised, as well as the inclusion of daily vitamins and supplements. When appetite starts to drop, stimulants too must be given. Counselling, companionship, and group activities are also essential for older adults in coping with their condition.
Thus, you don’t have to be stuck in your failure to thrive. Depression, malnutrition, poor appetite, and reduced cognitive function can all be addressed properly. Contact us today at Compassionate Hospice Care, Inc., your reliable hospice in Burbank, California.
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