Learning how to care for your loved one

Montgomery Hospice and Prince George’s Hospice provides our patients and families with a copy of our ‘Hospice Care for our Patients and their Caregivers’ Handbook, as well as several other resources and training videos. Our hospice care team reviews the information contained in this handbook and use it as a training tool to assist caregivers with learning about hospice and how to care for their patient – including nutrition, medication, and safety.

VIDEO

Training for caregivers & families

On the right, you can preview 10 key topics useful to hospice caregivers and families, when tending to a loved one’s care.

Contact Montgomery Hospice and Prince George’s Hospice if you or a loved one is struggling with a life-threatening illness.

Care for the caregiver

As a caregiver, it can be hard to focus on your own needs when you are caring for a hospice patient. If you share caregiving duties, the stress of caregiving may create tensions among family and friends, even as you pull together to care for your loved one.

Taking care of yourself may seem selfish, but it is a necessity, and finding ways to replenish yourself is essential. Here are some suggestions that may help.

  • Get sleep when you can. Have someone else look after your loved one if you need to rest – or you may want to request a volunteer.
  • Eat regular, balanced meals. Our volunteers can help with grocery shopping and light meal preparation.
  • Maintain routines such as bathing, hair care, dental and medical appointments.
  • Do some physical activity, even if it is just going for a short walk.
  • Accept help from other caregivers and volunteers.

Caregiving can be isolating. It is important to keep in touch with others who are supportive of you.

  • You may want to make regular phone calls to stay in touch, or you may ask your friends to call you regularly.
  • You may want friends and family to visit, or you may want your space and privacy.
  • Our volunteers can visit with patients, so you can take a break and get support for yourself from friends and other social networks.

When your family member is ill, you may find yourself riding the waves of an anxious and vulnerable time.

  • Our social workers help patients and families cope with and adjust to the difficult challenges they are facing. We can also help with difficult conversations that patients and families may want to have, but don’t know how to start.
  • Our counselors can also ease burdens by helping with practical matters, such as providing information about planning funerals and memorial services.

If you would like to talk with a counselor about thoughts, worries or concerns you may be experiencing, we are available to help.

To help people cope with spiritual distress, we offer non-denominational spiritual care, available to people of any or no faith. Our chaplains (also called pastoral counselors or spiritual counselors) help patients and families identify what is important and meaningful to them and help them find their own answers to questions they are asking.

  • Even if patients and families have their own spiritual support, they may want to talk with a chaplain. Our chaplains have extensive experience helping people who are struggling with questions related to the end of life.
  • Our chaplains have ties to diverse faith communities and can help patients find a spiritual support from their own tradition, if that is what they prefer.

We also respect the wishes of any patient or family member who does not want contact with a chaplain.