What is Hospice?

Hospice uses pain management techniques to compassionately care for the dying, states The Hospice Foundation of America. The first hospice in the United States was established in New Haven, Connecticut in 1974.Today there are more than 4,700 hospice programs in the United States. Hospice programs cared for 965,000 people enrolled in Medicare in 2006, and nearly 1.4 million people in the United States in 2007. Hospice is not a place but a concept of care. Eighty percent of hospice care is provided in the patient's home, family member's home and in nursing homes. Inpatient hospice facilities are sometimes available to…

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