Hospice Care for Parkinson's Disease

When falls, swallowing, rigidity, or a change in thinking have advanced enough that a physician certifies a life expectancy of six months or less if the illness runs its normal course. Many people live longer and can leave hospice if they stabilize.

In Parkinson's, a dose given late can bring rigidity, pain, and panic back into the room. Hospice covers medications related to the hospice diagnosis. We keep the schedule the person already depends on and fold it into the comfort plan, rather than treating those medications as optional.

Aides and nurses teach safer ways to stand, turn, and move through a freeze. We bring a hospital bed and the equipment that makes a transfer less of a risk. The work is fewer falls and less fear in the house, not a promise that walking will return.

Yes. Many families are prepared for tremor and stiffness, not for confusion, seeing things that are not there, or a person who is no longer themselves at night. Late-stage cognitive change is part of this disease. We treat the fear and the restlessness, and we help the family understand what they are seeing.

Yes. Swallowing problems in late Parkinson's raise the risk of choking and infection. We treat secretions, adjust how the person is positioned, and support the family through any decision about feeding. We do not recommend a feeding tube or argue against one. We explain what to expect either way.

No. We care for people with heart disease, lung disease including COPD, dementia and Alzheimer's, stroke, kidney or liver disease, ALS and other neurologic illness, Parkinson's disease, and general decline with advanced age.

For most patients covered by Medicare Part A, nothing for the hospice services themselves. We verify your benefits and explain what is covered before care begins.

Yes. Say so on your first call and we will match you with a team member who can speak with you in Spanish.