Our Home Hospice program territory covers all of Clinton, Eaton, & Ingham counties, as well as parts Gratiot, Ionia, Jackson, Montcalm, & Shiawassee counties. The majority of hospice patients receive hospice care in their home setting, which can include nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and adult foster care homes, in addition to private residences. Hospice has contracts with most of the Mid-Michigan nursing homes to provide hospice care in those facilities.
Home Hospice care is designed to provide support to allow the patient to remain in their home setting throughout the course of the disease through the end of life. Hospice staff provide medication, equipment, supplies and the support and education to patients and their caregivers in the home to manage symptoms and improve quality of life but 24-hour care is not covered by hospice. Patients in the home must have willing caregivers to assist them to the end of life with the support of the hospice team.
Patients in Home Hospice are eligible to receive all hospice benefits, including respite care and general inpatient care. Respite care is coverage of up to five days at a nursing facility to provide temporary relief to the patient’s caregivers. General inpatient care is provided for symptom management that cannot be managed at home and is available at several local UM Health-Sparrow hospitals, including UM Health-Sparrow Hospital, UM Health-Sparrow Carson, and UM Health-Sparrow Clinton. Patients return home after the five-day respite and from general inpatient care when symptoms are controlled.