Services
Caregivers
When a person has a limited life expectancy, family members and other loved ones are suddenly tasked with being caregivers, often without much preparation or understanding of what to anticipate. Even if they have been providing care during a long-term or chronic illness, transitioning to hospice care can be a new and overwhelming experience.
How can Piedmont Hospice and Palliative Care Help?
Our mission is to provide comfort, care, and compassion to those we serve, including caregivers. Piedmont offers encouragement, guidance, and support as you make adjustments to your life. Additionally, we will provide information about available resources and services, with respite care being a major one. Encouragement, guidance, and support as you make adjustments to your life. Additionally, we will provide information about available resources and services, with respite care be
Photo taken by Chaplain Kitty Harrell
The Science Behind Holding Hands
The pressure of touch on the highly sensitive skin of the hand stimulates the pressure-sensitive Pacinian corpuscles, which send signals to the vagus nerve, which conducts signals to the hypothalamus, which in turn lowers the heart rate and blood pressure and contributes to the neurological management of stress responses.
Bereavement Services
Piedmont Hospice and Palliative Care provides much more than patient care. Losing a loved one is always hard to deal with and Piedmont Hospice feels that burden should not be met alone.
Our bereavement program consists of:
- Setting up a Plan of Care for the relatives of the deceased.
- Throughout a 13-month period, family members will receive visits, phone calls, and written correspondence from our staff to continue our support in their time of need.
- We also hold an annual memorial service for our clients, who have passed away. This is an opportunity to reflect on the lives of loved ones and have group bonding and support for family members, caregivers, and our professional staff.
Advance Directives
Piedmont Hospice and Palliative Care’s professional staff assists clients, family members, and caregivers in preparing their advance directives.
What Are Advance Directives?
Advance directives are legal documents that allow individuals to specify their preferences for medical treatment in if that they become unable to make their own decisions. There are different types of advance directives, including living wills and durable power of attorney for health care. A living will outline specific medical treatments or procedures an individual does or does not want to receive in certain situations. Durable power of attorney for health care, on the other hand, designates a trusted person to make medical decisions on behalf of the individual if they are unable to do so themselves. These documents ensure that a person's wishes regarding medical care are respected, even if they are unable to communicate them.
We can help with:
- Living Will - States which treatments you want or don't want if you are in a terminal condition or persistent vegetative state.
- Durable power of attorney for health care - Names a person you trust to make decisions about your health if you can't.
- Do Not Resuscitate - States that you do not want medical staff to try to restart your heart and breathing.