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Community Hospice supports the whole family

Family Caregiver Support

As a caregiver, you want to provide the best possible care to your loved one. Community Hospice supports the whole family – we’re here to help you focus on the things that matter most. Our care teams manage pain, help your loved one feel as comfortable as possible, and help you understand what to expect. We teach you how to help your loved one.

Community Hospice understands that caring for a seriously ill loved one at home can be frightening, yet that is where most people want to spend their last days.

As a family caregiver, you want to provide the best possible care to your loved one. But where can you get help to do that—while making time for yourself and family, work and social needs?

Community Hospice is here to help you and your loved one. We know that the whole family feels the effects of advanced illness. In fact, we’ve found that families often need as much, if not more, attention as the patient.

Click the links at right to learn more about the benefits we offer family caregivers, regardless of whether you or a loved one is receiving Community Hospice care.

  • Helping Family Caregivers

    • How does Community Hospice help family caregivers?

      When Community Hospice is involved in your loved one’s care, you are free to focus on the things that matter most. Our professional care teams manage pain, help your loved one feel as comfortable as possible, and help you understand what to expect.

      Along with managing pain and symptoms, dispensing medications and providing personal care, we teach you how to help your loved ones when we’re not with you. We also can get your loved one out to enjoy activities, or stay with them at home while you take a break. We’ll also be there to help you through the practical matters, such as insurance paperwork or finding community resources. For those hard times, we’ll offer you counseling and emotional support.

      We offer you our presence, whenever you need us to lean on. Our compassionate staff will guide you through your most challenging questions and issues. We’ve been there many times before, and we’ll be there for you, too—in person or on the phone. When you choose us, you’re never alone.

      After the death, we remain by your side, offering at least 13 months of bereavement support from our team of licensed mental health professionals and bereavement specialists.

       
  • Why Involve Community Hospice?
    •  

      Why should we involve Community Hospice?

      Some family caregivers may not want to seek help for a loved one with advanced illness. They may believe they can do it all themselves, and that asking for help is admitting defeat. Others may think that a hospice provider will take over or tell them what to do. Still others just want privacy.

      For all of those reasons and many others, the call to Community Hospice is not easy to make. Still, many family caregivers tell us that they wish they had called us sooner. Why?

      You might start with our compassionate staff, who ensure your loved one’s comfort. Because we know that pain takes many forms, we offer interdisciplinary care, meaning we consider one’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs at every visit. While we help your loved one find peace, we give you peace of mind.

      We provide specialized therapies, medications, equipment and supplies, which are covered by government and many private insurance plan benefits. These services are based on an individualized plan of care that we develop specifically with your loved one’s needs in mind. By coordinating these services, we remove the burden and confusion you might experience if you had to arrange them through multiple agencies.

      We honor your wishes and choices, and we provide care in line with your needs. We encourage you to walk freely with your loved one, on your terms and at your pace.

      The most frequent comment we hear from family caregivers goes something like this: “Once you came in, I was able to just BE with my loved one.” Allow us to walk with you, so you can enjoy more quality time together.

  • We’re not ready for hospice care. Can you still help?

    • Community Hospice embraces all family caregivers in Northeast Florida. We want you to be the best caregiver you can be, and we’ll help you find the support that’s right for you.

      For new and experienced caregivers alike, we recommend you include the following in your “caregiving toolbox”:

      Talk about what you want, and put your wishes in writing

      It’s never too early to talk about advance care planning, for yourself or a loved one. When you appoint a healthcare surrogate or grant a power of attorney, you give someone authority to make important decisions about your care on your behalf when you cannot. Advance directives are written statements telling others how you want to be treated when you can’t speak for yourself. Community Hospice provides free copies of the Five Wishes advance care planning document. Get yours by calling 904.268.5200, or email us today.

      Attend a caregiver workshop

      Each year, Community Hospice, in cooperation with the Caregiver Coalition of Northeast Florida, presents a series of free “Caring for the Caregiver” workshops throughout Northeast Florida. There, you’ll find the tools to provide excellent care – for yourself and your loved one – share stories and build friendships with fellow caregivers. You’ll hear topics such as managing the challenging behaviors of Alzheimer’s patients, preservation of assets and many others. You’ll also learn about organizations that can help make your caregiving journey easier.

      Find other community resources

      You can find a variety of low- and no-cost support services for seniors and their caregivers—including meals, transportation, volunteer visits, support groups and much more—through the members of the Caregiver Coalition of Northeast Florida.

      Learn more about hospice care before a crisis

      If you or your loved one with advanced illness is not already receiving Community Hospice care, call 904.407.6500 (866.253.6681 toll-free) to speak with one of our Admissions specialists, or to schedule a no-obligation information visit at a convenient time and location. We answer all calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

      Get help from a professional grief counselor

      If you are anticipating days to come when a loved one will not be with you, or if you were a caregiver whose loved one has already died, you still can get help. Community Hospice’s licensed Community Grief professionals offer individual consultations, family and couples counseling, support groups, and educational events, programs and materials to help you cope with your loss. Services are available at no charge to families of Community Hospice patients who have died in our program. A fee is applied to community participants and may be adjusted based on one's ability to pay. For more information, call 904.407.7001.

Call for Help

Request Care
904.407.6500 (866.253.6681 toll-free)

Main Number
904.268.5200 (800.274.6614 toll-free)

904.268.5200 (800.274.6614 toll-free)