was to hear what was not said, and to stay in the

present moment, in order to respond to Diana’s

concerns with sensitivity, compassion and respect.

An Agrace grief counselor also met with Diana to

discuss her feelings of loss. She struggled with

the idea of not being there as her children grew

up—and the graduations and weddings she

would miss. Together, they

came up with a solution:

Writing cards for these

occasions in advance would

allow Diana to share words

of wisdom and convey

her love for her children

when these special days

occurred. Knowing her kids

would stay connected with

her even after she was gone

brought Diana great peace.

Learn more about whole person care Expert symptom management and whole person

care are critical to aggressively managing a

patient’s comfort at the end of life. You can learn

more about applying whole person care in your

everyday practice at Agrace’s 2012 End-of-Life Forum. Please see page 2 for registration details

for this October 15 full-day educational conference.

*Diana’s story is not the experience of a specific patient,

but illustrates common hospice patient experiences and

strategies Agrace uses to relieve patients’ distress.

Diana* held the oxygen mask tightly against her

face. Her lungs were failing. The pain from the

tumor in her chest was unbearable. She was

terrified of suffering and distraught about saying

goodbye to her children. Diana’s worst moment

was hearing, “There is nothing more we can do.”

There is more. When patients like Diana are

admitted to Agrace, explaining what we can do

is the first step. To relieve the many types of

suffering experienced by patients and families

at the end of life, we provide aggressive comfort

management. Interventions to mitigate suffer-

ing are identified through our interdisciplinary

approach to “whole person care,” which

considers the physical, emotional and spiritual

realms of each individual.

Diana’s suffering had multiple sources, includ-

ing pain, shortness of breath, fear and grief.

While her Agrace nurse and medical director

formulated a symptom-management plan with

Diana to quickly improve pain control and

breathing, the Agrace chaplain and grief

counselor helped her address spiritual concerns

and the losses she was facing.

Her spiritual distress was treated with the same urgency as treatment for her physical pain. The Agrace chaplain began

by listening to Diana’s hopes and fears. The

chaplain’s role was not to “fix,” but rather to

listen attentively and provide a caring presence

as Diana spoke. A key part of the interaction

Aggressive Comfort Management Relieves Suffering

5395 E. Cheryl Parkway, Madison, WI 53711 | Fax: (608) 276-4672

3001 W. Memorial Drive, Janesville, WI 53548 | Fax: (608) 755-5710

agracehospicecare.org

Referrals/Admissions: (800) 930-2770

Summer

2012

By Denise Gloede, RN, BSN, CHPN; Vice President of Access, Agrace HospiceCare

Denise Gloede VP of Access

Clinical Update, Summer 2012, page 2

When you refer patients to Agrace, our collabora-

tion with you can affect the quality of their

hospice experience. To help us maintain strong

relationships, each year Agrace surveys our

physician partners to learn how we can best meet

your expectations and the needs of our mutual

patients. We appreciate your collaboration with

us, as well as your thoughtful feedback.

On our 2012 survey, nearly all respondents (95%)

rated Agrace’s services as either “excellent” or

“very good.” Physicians also identified the four

most important aspects of partnering with us:

1. Agrace’s ability to manage symptoms

2. Ease of the referral process

3. Communication with Agrace staff about

their patients

4. Turnaround time from referral to admission

Of these four key factors, physicians rated their satisfaction with Agrace’s symptom management very highly. They also reported satisfaction with the ease of referrals and turnaround time. Communication was iden-tified as an opportunity for improvement.

In response to your feedback, Agrace’s clinical

leaders are examining our written and verbal

communication to physicians’ offices and looking

for ways to increase effi-

ciency and quality, while

eliminating unnecessary

communication and changing

any potentially confusing

communication. We’re also

working with a physician

partner to explore the use of

technology, such as EPIC.

If you have suggestions or

would like to give us more

feedback on improving

communication, please

contact Deb Jacobson, RN clinical outreach

coordinator, at (608) 513-5129 or by e-mail at

djacobson@agracehospicecare.org.

Physician Feedback Helps Strengthen Partnerships By Deborah Jacobson, RN Clinical Outreach Coordinator

Register Today for Agrace’s 2012 End-of-Life Forum

Bridging the Divide: Mind, Body and Spirit

Monday, October 15, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Alliant Energy Center, Madison

A full-day conference for health professionals,

social workers, counselors, chaplains and

others interested in improving end-of-life care

Keynote speaker: Dr. Tom Hutchinson, professor,

Department of Medicine;

director, McGill Programs

in Whole Person Care,

McGill University, Montreal

Registration deadline: October 5

Cost: $90 Register online at agracehospicecare.org or call (608) 327-7202 to receive a brochure

and registration form.

More clinical hospice news available online: Please visit agracehospicecare.org and follow the home-page quick link “Physician

Resources” to find back issues of “Clinical

Update” and Agrace’s “Partners on the Journey”

newsletter for long-term care facility staff.

Agrace Earns CHAP Accreditation Agrace HospiceCare was recently awarded

accreditation under the Community Health

Accreditation Program (CHAP) Hospice Standards

of Excellence. CHAP provides an expert, objective

review of community-based hospice services to

ensure that Agrace is compliant with current

state and federal regulations, as well as industry

standards of practice and care. Agrace has held this voluntary accreditation continuously since 2006, a reflection of our commitment

to providing excellent end-of-life care to the

patients and families you refer to Agrace.

Deb Jacobson RN Clinical Outreach Coordinator