HEALTAHR TCARE
THE GIFT OF DYING WELL
By Rafael J. Sciullo
Rafael J. Sciullo
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2017 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 137
Each year in November, Suncoast
Hospice, a member of Empath
Health, participates in the
celebration of National Hospice
and Palliative Care Month. Activities,
information and events are happening
across the country to raise awareness about
providing the best end-of-life care possible
for our loved ones and how we can help
families heal after the death of a loved one.
With the holidays fast approaching, it can
be a difficult time for many people who
are grieving these losses as well.
We all know we’re going to die someday,
but is it possible to die well? This is a
question many of us prefer not to think
about in in our daily lives. However, for
people facing an uncertain future, it is
reality. The answer will likely be different
from person to person, depending on
individual personalities, interests and
desires. However, for most people, dying
well simply means being physically
comfortable, at peace in your own home,
surrounded by your loved ones doing the
things you love until the very end. This is
often made possible by the best hospice
care.
Hospice, by definition, is a team
approach to providing specialized care
for people facing a life-limiting illness or
injury. It includes expert medical care, pain
management and emotional and spiritual
support for patients and their families.
But more simply, hospice care supports
living one’s life to the fullest with dignity
regardless of how much time remains.
Seven in 10 Americans said they would
prefer to die at home according to a Time/
CNN Poll. Statistics show that only 25
percent actually do according to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention. In a
recent national survey, the overwhelming
majority of respondents agreed that
expertise in keeping a terminally-ill patient
as comfortable and as pain-free as possible
is the single most important service to
with a specialist to provide support when
needed. It is the unique nature of hospice
that allows for the feeling of family and
comfort to become a vital part of the
patient’s care. This concept of more family
interaction explains the overall goal of
hospice – creating more moments of life
before a life is over. Hospice helps create
memories that might not otherwise occur.
It is the quality of these memories, after
all, that can define dying well.
Hospice also doesn’t end when a person
in our care dies. Suncoast Hospice provides
counseling and bereavement support to
patients’ families and loved ones for up
to a year after a death. This can include
individual counseling, support groups,
community memorial services and other
types of support. In fact, the approaching
holidays can be an extremely difficult
time for families and loved ones and we
encourage you to reach out for support if
this is you. We have a series of workshops
called “Hope for the Holidays” you can
find on our website that are open to anyone
who has experienced the death of a loved
one. If this is a difficult time for you, please
don’t do it alone. We’re here to support
you.
Suncoast Hospice is celebrating our
40th anniversary this year and we are
honored to say we’ve served more than
167,000 patients and families in that time.
On November 16, 2017, we will host a
community memorial service honoring
those we’ve served. If you would like to
celebrate the memory of a loved one, please
join us. You can learn more about the event
and register online at EmpathHealth.org. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: Rafael J. Sciullo is
president and CEO of Empath Health, a
nonprofit integrated network of care for
those affected by chronic or advanced illness.
For more information about services, call
(727) 467-7423 or visit EmpathHealth.org.
consider when caring for a loved one
experiencing the end-of-life. This is the
heart of hospice care.
One of the great myths of hospice, for
many who have not experienced it, is that
hospice patients are merely lying in beds,
barely conscious. When a person seeks
hospice care at an appropriate time, it can
actually improve his or her quality of life.
Research shows that health care providers
feel responsible to discuss hospice with
their patients when the time is right, as
it provides a kind of care that they are
unable to give. Nearly three-fourths of
family caregivers agree that hospice
care is a better choice for a terminallyill
individual. Of this group, 69 percent
believe that involvement in hospice makes
a positive impact on the patient’s family
as well.
Another hospice myth is that families
lose control over what happens to their
loved ones. The facts are that a family
works with their hospice provider and can
be trained to serve as a primary caregiver,