When someone is living with a terminal illness, the licensed hospice team addresses the person’s medical, emotional and spiritual end-of-life needs. However, families may still need additional help with personal care, meals, companionship, household routines and supervision between scheduled hospice visits.
Horizon Care Services provides private-duty home care alongside hospice throughout Palm Beach County, Martin County and St. Lucie County. Our caregivers can supplement the hospice plan with practical, nonclinical assistance based on the client’s needs, requested schedule and caregiver availability.
Horizon Care Services is not advertising itself as a hospice provider through this program. We do not determine hospice eligibility, certify a terminal diagnosis or replace the physicians, nurses, social workers, therapists, chaplains or aides assigned by a licensed hospice organization.
Hospice is specialized care for people with a terminal illness who have chosen comfort-focused care instead of treatment intended to cure the terminal condition.
A licensed hospice provider develops and manages the hospice plan of care. Depending on the individual’s circumstances, the hospice team may address:
The exact services, visit schedule and availability of hospice team members are determined by the hospice provider and the patient’s plan of care.
A person does not need to wait until the final days of life to ask questions about hospice.
A family may wish to speak with the person’s physician or a licensed hospice provider when:
Horizon Care Services cannot determine whether someone qualifies for hospice. Eligibility must be evaluated and certified by the appropriate physicians and hospice provider.
Hospice may be provided in:
Many people receive routine hospice care in their own homes. The frequency and duration of hospice visits depend on the person’s condition, the hospice plan and the applicable level of care.
Routine hospice care at home does not necessarily mean a hospice professional remains in the residence continuously. Families should ask the hospice provider exactly how frequently team members will visit, whom to call after hours and what support is available during a crisis.
Private-duty caregivers and hospice professionals have different responsibilities.
The hospice provider manages clinical end-of-life care related to the terminal illness. Horizon caregivers can provide additional assistance with everyday activities when those services are included in Horizon’s private-duty care plan.
Weakness, fatigue, pain or limited mobility may make personal-care activities more difficult.
Depending on the care plan, a Horizon caregiver may assist with:
Care is provided with attention to the client’s privacy, comfort, preferences and dignity.
The presence of another person can be meaningful when family members cannot remain in the home continuously.
A caregiver may provide:
Caregivers provide emotional encouragement but do not offer professional mental health, grief or spiritual counseling.
When permitted by the client’s hospice plan and written dietary instructions, a caregiver may assist with:
The hospice team or another qualified healthcare professional must address loss of appetite, nausea, dehydration, swallowing difficulty, weight loss and other clinical concerns.
Caregivers do not create medical diets or change food textures, fluid consistency or swallowing precautions.
A caregiver may provide approved assistance with:
Caregivers use only transfer methods and equipment for which they have the appropriate training and authorization.
Clinical positioning schedules, pressure-injury prevention plans and specialized transfer techniques must come from the hospice nurse, therapist or another qualified healthcare professional.
A caregiver may provide medication reminders according to written instructions included in the private-duty care plan.
The hospice team remains responsible for clinical medication management related to the terminal illness. Unless an appropriately licensed professional is assigned and the service is authorized, Horizon caregivers do not:
Medication questions and symptom concerns should be directed to the hospice nurse or prescribing healthcare professional.
Family members may have less time and energy for household responsibilities while caring for someone receiving hospice services.
Depending on the care arrangement, a caregiver may assist with:
These services do not include heavy cleaning, professional sanitation or hazardous-waste removal.
Family caregivers often provide much of the everyday support for someone receiving routine hospice care at home. Private-duty respite can give family members time to:
Horizon’s private-duty respite services are separate from any inpatient respite benefit supplied by the hospice provider.
Assistance may be arranged for several hours, recurring visits, evenings, overnight care or more extensive support, depending on the client’s care plan and caregiver availability.
Some families need additional help during evenings or overnight hours.
Depending on the assessment and available staffing, Horizon may arrange:
These private-duty arrangements are not the same as Medicare’s continuous home-care level of hospice care. Continuous home care is a specialized hospice service provided during qualifying periods of crisis and must be arranged by the hospice provider.
With the client’s authorization, Horizon Care Services can coordinate the nonclinical home-care arrangement with the licensed hospice provider.
Coordination may include:
The hospice team remains responsible for the hospice plan, terminal-illness care, clinical symptom management, medications, medical equipment and healthcare instructions.
During scheduled care hours, a Horizon caregiver may observe and report changes or concerns to the client, an authorized family member or the hospice team.
Caregivers do not clinically assess symptoms or determine whether a change is part of the dying process.
Families should obtain written instructions from the hospice provider explaining:
Caregivers should follow the client’s established hospice instructions and emergency plan.
Unless an appropriately licensed professional is assigned and the service is authorized, Horizon’s private-duty caregivers do not provide:
These services must be delivered by the hospice provider or another appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
The hospice provider generally determines which equipment and supplies related to the terminal illness are included in the hospice plan.
Depending on the plan, equipment may include:
The hospice provider, equipment supplier or another qualified professional remains responsible for ordering, delivering, installing, adjusting and explaining the safe use of equipment.
Horizon caregivers use only equipment for which they have the necessary training and authorization.
Under Medicare, hospice eligibility generally requires certification that the person has a life expectancy of six months or less if the terminal illness follows its expected course.
A person may continue receiving hospice beyond six months when the hospice physician properly recertifies eligibility. Six months is therefore an eligibility guideline—not a prediction that the person will live exactly six months.
Medicare’s hospice benefit may cover qualifying services related to the terminal illness when care is provided or arranged by a Medicare-certified hospice.
Horizon’s supplemental private-duty caregivers are not automatically included in the Medicare hospice benefit. Families are responsible for verifying:
Review Medicare’s hospice coverage information or contact Medicare, the hospice provider or the client’s insurance carrier for individual coverage questions.
Horizon Care Services provides supplemental private-duty home care throughout Palm Beach County, Martin County and St. Lucie County.
Communities served include North Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, West Palm Beach, Wellington, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Tequesta, Stuart, Hobe Sound and Port St. Lucie.
Service availability depends on the client’s location, requested schedule, care plan and caregiver availability.
If someone you love is receiving hospice services and your family needs additional help with personal care, companionship, meals, household routines or overnight support, Horizon Care Services can help you explore a supplemental private-duty care arrangement.
Call 561-776-7757 (toll-free 877-227-3890) or contact Horizon Care Services to discuss private-duty home care alongside hospice.
This page is for general informational purposes and is not medical, hospice, legal or insurance advice. Questions about hospice eligibility, symptoms, treatment and covered services should be directed to the person’s physician, licensed hospice provider, Medicare or insurance carrier.
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No long-term contract · No membership fees · Cancel anytime
If you're currently experiencing an emergency situation, it would be best to call 911.
