Top 10 Hospice Myths

The reality of hospice care and how CNS provides end-of-life comfort and dignity.

As Utah’s first home hospice care agency, CNS has provided compassionate end-of-life care to Utah since 1928. We emphasize creating moments and experiences that provide peace of mind to our patients and their families.

Being admitted into hospice care or watching a loved one enter it can be a scary and overwhelming experience. Death is not easy to face, and that can lead to misconceptions or myths about hospice care. We’re here to clear that up and share how CNS helps patients and their families navigate this difficult part of life.

To qualify for hospice care, a patient is evaluated by at least two doctors who determine that the patient has a terminal illness with less than six months to live. When admitted to hospice, our patients do not receive treatments that help sustain life, but rather are provided care to manage their symptoms and comfort. Hospice care is comprehensive and includes an interdisciplinary team who work together to provide the best quality of life in each hospice patient’s final days.

Myth #1: Hospice is a sign of giving up hope.

Helping your loved one enter into hospice doesn’t mean you’re giving up on them or that you’re giving up hope for recovery. It just means that as far as the medical professionals can determine, they don’t see a way for medical science to cure the patient’s illness or ailment and all treatment options have been exhausted. With hospice care, the focus is on helping the patient and their loved ones have comfort and quality of life.

Myth #2: Hospice is a form of euthanasia.

Katie Sierer, a Registered Nurse (RN) shares, “Many of the patients I meet have preconceived notions about what hospice is. And they have good reason. We often hear the story about, ‘When my uncle or my grandma were sick, hospice came in and medicated them to death.’ So there is this conception that we're angels of mercy or that we euthanize our patients, and sometimes we’re working against these urban legends about hospice.”

Under current Utah law, euthanasia is not an option that patients, their families, or medical professionals can choose or perform. The CNS hospice team focuses on quality of life and comfort. Katie adds, “Patients often wait too long to go on hospice and so they come in on their deathbed. We might provide morphine at a safe (not lethal) dose which helps them relax in their last moments of life. The patient’s time of death is the same whether they were administered morphine or not.”

Myth #3: Once a patient decides to go on hospice, they can’t choose to go off.

If a patient qualifies for and decides to be admitted as a hospice patient, they aren’t bound to that decision forever. They can change their mind at any time. They might decide they want to get another medical opinion, continue treatment, go to the hospital, or visit their physician again. Liza Johnson shares, “If the patient starts to get better, we’re going to be their biggest cheerleaders, discharge them from hospice, and help them transition back into a different level of care.”

Myth #4: Hospice just helps address a patient’s pain levels during the dying process.

Hospice is so much more than symptom and pain management. CNS Medical Social Worker, Dave Leavitt, shares, “We also work to help people tap into the resources or strengths they have that can help them harness their resiliency. We look at what community resources might be helpful to help the patient or their family for everything from emotional support to insurance assistance.”

CNS Salt Lake and Tooele Area Manager, Liza Johnson, adds, “We look at the whole person—their medications and symptom management, spiritual and emotional needs, education, and even their living conditions. At CNS we also offer incredibly unique services for hospice patients such as the Senior Wish program, where CNS will help patients of all ages carry out a last wish. For example, a Senior Wish that CNS offers includes creating a hand mold of the patient for a lasting memento that they can leave behind for their loved ones. We also have the Honor Salute Program in which a team of CNS volunteers and staff perform a special ceremony honoring our veterans who are on hospice.”

Myth #5: Hospice is just for older people.

Hospice care is for anyone of any age with a terminal diagnosis. Because of CNS’s partnership with the Huntsman Cancer Institute, we have a high percentage of cancer patients, including people of all ages.

Myth #6: Only those with health insurance or Medicare can receive hospice services.

Many of our hospice patients are uninsured or underinsured. Additionally, many of our patients are younger in age and do not qualify for Medicare. The CNS Charitable Care Program plays a vital role in our ability to provide hospice care. CNS strongly believes that everyone should be able to experience end-of-life dignity and comfort, even if they don’t have the means to pay for hospice care. 

Our ability to help underinsured patients access hospice care depends on the generosity of our community members. To help others access this care, consider making a gift to the CNS Charitable Care Program at cns-cares.org/donate.

Myth #7: Hospice patients can only receive care in their own homes.

CNS generally serves our hospice patients wherever they call home, whether that be in a skilled nursing facility, their home, or the home of a loved one. In some cases when they need a higher level of hospice care, we partner with hospitals to provide General Inpatient Hospice (GIP).

Myth #8: Once a patient goes on hospice, they’ll die faster.

Most patients who go on hospice could have been admitted much earlier and benefited from hospice services for a longer period of time. In fact, many of those who do go on hospice as they enter the terminal illness phase, tend to live longer than those who don’t. CNS Area Manager, Liza, explains, “They live longer because they're more comfortable.”

Our patients are being given the very best care with their needs catered to. Katie shares from her experience as an RN, “So many people wait too long to go on hospice, and so they're not able to take advantage of the better quality of life that's provided when they're on hospice. On hospice, they have so many resources at their disposal, such as social workers, music therapy, or massage therapy.”

This phenomenon isn’t just anecdotal; the topic has been researched and results have shown that hospice can prolong the lives of those with certain conditions. According to a 2007 study from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), patients who are on hospice tend to live an average of 29 days longer than patients with a similar prognosis who are not on hospice.

Myth #9: Hospice only serves the patient.

Our hospice services not only include the patient but also their loved ones. The CNS hospice teams involve the families and provide education, support, and resources during the dying process.

Katie shares, “Our patients and their families are usually so grateful; it’s like relief just washes over them. They are often coming into hospice already exhausted from making decisions about treatment and all of the things that come with navigating a severe illness. When they finally go on hospice, they realize they can receive their care at home. They can have a nurse come in to help care for them and manage their medications. They can get all their education in one place. They’re not having to deal with six different doctors. When the patients and families really understand what hospice is, they’re so relieved and just so happy to have support.”

Myth #10: Hospice care is driven by the medical providers.

Katie sums it up well when she says, “Hospice really focuses on quality of life and I feel like it's the main type of medical care that's really patient driven. Our team goes in and asks the patient and their family what they want this period of their life to look like, and we collaborate with them to set goals. Then we do everything we can to help them achieve those goals and help them have this period be as comfortable as possible.

She continues, “Hospice is for the patient and the family, as the patient defines it. It looks different for every patient. When I’m starting the admission process, the patient or their family will often ask me what CNS will provide for them. I let them know that I’m their advocate and will collaborate with them to make their end-of-life experience easier. We really work to meet the patient where they are. It’s one of the most beautiful things about hospice and it's true nursing—true medicine—in the purest sense.”

We hope that dispelling some of the common misconceptions about hospice care will help you and those you love. After 94 years of serving our community, we at CNS continue to dedicate ourselves to this important work of providing exceptional moments and experiences that heal individuals and families by putting health, dignity, comfort, and well-being first. 

If you would like to learn more about hospice care and the services CNS provides, please visit us online at cns-cares.org/ or call 801-233-6332.