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Hospice Care at Lakeside


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36 minutes ago, Natasha said:

When you refer to hospice do you mean "impending death" or "long-term seriously ill, and then death"?

I guess I mean both...obviously not sure what the differences are in terms of care.

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Sandrita--The term "hospice care" did make me wonder, as it did others, exactly what you have in mind. Hospice care often means spiritual and emotional support for the terminally ill, as well as attention to their physical needs.

I don't know of such a place at Lakeside, but it might exist. However it would require attendants to speak the language of the patient, and that's not common here, in my experience.

My husband was a resident at Casa Nostra last year for several months. He's now, I'm glad to say, at home with me, cat and dog.

However his time there gave me a close-up look at Casa Nostra and I would highly recommend that you talk to the director, Delia Villanueva. She runs a tight ship. Her aids are well trained. Her residents run from those who are recovering from surgery, for example, to those who require great care. Some I saw are obviously on their way to the end of their lives, and they got great, caring attention. I was impressed.

Casa Nostra is in Riberas. Call 765 3824. If this place is not what you had in mind, Delia will know what is in the area and will be helpful.

Lexy 

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Sandrita, I am sorry to say that complete hospice care as we know it in the U.S. is not available lakeside. There is a sad history of attempts to do so. There are people providing various aspects but no central services.

Valerie Rhoda, a local licensed therapist, would be a great resource for you. She runs several support groups including several for people with serious illnesses and one for those care giving for people with serious or life-threatening illnesses. She is plugged into the available community resources. Her phone number is 766-4522 and her email is valerie_rhoda at yahoo.

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16 hours ago, Xena said:

Hospice is not about "waiting for death." Telling that to people needing help is a disservice.

Sandrita, here is a link you may find helpful. It provides a starting point for you and others newly facing a difficult and painful situation. Best of luck to you.

http://www.nhpco.org/about/hospice-care

How is it a disservice?  Should we also bannish saying "someone has died" in favor of "no longer with us"? Death is a normal and natural part of life and not something to to be feared nor something that we need to hide from by discussing it in neutral or politically correct terms. There is nothing wrong with saying waiting for death. It is something we are all doing  one way or the other. Its what you do with the time you have left that makes all the difference and both palliative and hospice care seek to improve "what time remains" for those patients "in need of it". There are courses available in Canada and I would guess Stateside as well that teach you how to face and deal with death in an open and frank manner that also teaches you not to fear it. Is there anyone out there who has certification in this field and who would be willing to start courses? There appears to be a need.

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A few days ago there was a meeting about this subject at the Civic Centre on the Ajijic Square.

A non-profit organization spoke of introducing "Close to death" palliative care to the community.

Although the organization had the word of many local doctors that they would attend the meeting,

not one of them showed up.  

A handful of Mexican locals attended. The meeting was in Spanish.

 The speakers gave sincere and convincing reasons why this type of clinic should be part of our community.

    

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Semalu, the disservice was in just saying "waiting for death" as opposed to informing people about what hospice does (as you outlined in your response to me). Your first comment made hospice sound passive when in truth it is active. You short changed hospice and the person looking for help. A big problem for hospice and the those needing hospice services is getting help for people before the final few weeks of life. Part of their reluctance in seeking hospice care is hearing that hospice is just about waiting for death and not about living every day until the last one and living it without unbearable pain.

You took the time to clearly explain to me what you assumed I do not know. I wish you had done it for the OP instead of dismissing hospice as "waiting to die." We would then not be having this discussion.

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Hola Sandrita,

There is a fabulous group of retired hospice administrators, hospice nurses, and gerontologists from North America at the lake. They would like to create a hospice and are currently working on a business plan.  It may take up to a year to establish.

In the interim, the only 24/7 palliative care and hospice in Jalisco is in Guadalajara, provided by the non-profit www.JuntosContraElDolor.com, United Against Pain. It is a model of care that includes comfort, pain relief and integrative support - physical, psychological, spiritual (non-denominational), and practical - for the patient and family members. The founder, a palliative care physician, Dra Susana Lua Nava, drives with her team of volunteers to various parts of Jalisco, including the lake, to provide services.

Dra Lua was a speaker at Open Circle on the Lake Chapala Society grounds on May 8. Open Circle is selling DVD's of the presentation should you be interested.

Note: Hospice Cristina, established in Guadalajara in 2002 by a dedicated hospice nurse, went out of business in 2015.

You are welcome to write me at wellnessshepherd@aol.com if I may be of more assistance.  If you do write, please put "hospice" in the header.

Blessings and thank you for your inquiry, Wendy Jane Carrel

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13 hours ago, Wendy Jane said:

Hola Sandrita,

There is a fabulous group of retired hospice administrators, hospice nurses, and gerontologists from North America at the lake. They would like to create a hospice and are currently working on a business plan.  It may take up to a year to establish.

In the interim, the only 24/7 palliative care and hospice in Jalisco is in Guadalajara, provided by the non-profit www.JuntosContraElDolor.com, United Against Pain. It is a model of care that includes comfort, pain relief and integrative support - physical, psychological, spiritual (non-denominational), and practical - for the patient and family members. The founder, a palliative care physician, Dra Susana Lua Nava, drives with her team of volunteers to various parts of Jalisco, including the lake, to provide services.

Dra Lua was a speaker at Open Circle on the Lake Chapala Society grounds on May 8. Open Circle is selling DVD's of the presentation should you be interested.

Note: Hospice Cristina, established in Guadalajara in 2002 by a dedicated hospice nurse, went out of business in 2015.

You are welcome to write me at wellnessshepherd@aol.com if I may be of more assistance.  If you do write, please put "hospice" in the header.

Blessings and thank you for your inquiry, Wendy Jane Carrel

I sent you a PM.

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  • 3 years later...
1 hour ago, Ellen Ray said:

Can anyone answer the question about if Hospice that is for last Weeks before death?

Considering you pulled a post that is over three years old perhaps you should ask it as a new question. OR search for palliative; there are more recent threads.

 

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I was a hospice and palliative care administrator in the US. In the US, hospice Medicare hospice  coverage required a "limited life" diagnosis of 6 mths. or less. I have no idea what it is is/was here. I suggest you read the article in last week's Guadalajara Reporter about efforts to increase hospice care in Mexico.  I would support and be involved in a hospice care program here.

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11 hours ago, kam said:

I suggest you read the article in last week's Guadalajara Reporter about efforts to increase hospice care in Mexico.  I would support and be involved in a hospice care program here.

A few years ago when a family charitable  trust centered in Silicon Valley was looking for worthy projects to fund, I suggested an interactive and immersive software/DVD/Web based curriculum preparing particularly Spanish speaking students for work in English oriented but general gerontology and hospice. If it was my field and I spoke Spanish, I'd definitely look into the possibility...

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One of the big problems in Mexico is payment for service. NOB we have Medicare or private insurance that will provide for such service. I don’t think there is such a source of funds here in Mexico. Patient’s relatives may want the best for them but after weeks turn to months and expenses continue funding hospice care becomes a problem.

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I wish someone would look at Hospice Mazatlán as a model of what could be done here with by those with health care experience...it is a fabulous organization with legal non-profit designation AND has garnered a number of federal and state recognition s and assistance.

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