T.J. Samson | Destination Health | April 2021

now open W hen someone is near the end of life, they deserve skilled and compassionate care to ease their journey. T.J. Regional Health now offers that kind of care in a specially designed residential hospice home. Recently, Shanti Niketan Hospice Home opened in Glasgow. It’s a new option for the com- munity. It gives people who need hospice services and their families a way to receive that care away from home. Most people who opt for hospice services can get them at home with regular visits from a hos- pice nurse. But in between hospice visits, people at the end of life typically rely on family caregiv- ers to help take care of them. For some families, that isn’t possible.They may live out of state, for instance. Or they may not be able to provide the level of medical attention that a person needs, says Karla Turner, RN, BSN, Hospice Clinical Coordinator with T.J. Home Care Services. At Shanti Niketan Hospice Home, hospice patients receive 24/7 nursing and other end-of-life care in a setting that has been designed to feel like home. THE COMFORTS OF HOME The idea to build a local hospice home surfaced in 2015 among the health system’s board of direc- tors, Turner says. In the years that followed, many generous donors helped to make Shanti Niketan Hospice Home happen. The 10,400-square-foot facility, located at 1020 Glenview Drive in Glasgow, includes eight patient rooms that are designed to look and feel more like a home than a hospital. Features include: ● Kitchen and living spaces. ● Private areas for families and guests. ● A private patio for each room. Upon request, hospice patients’ beds can even be moved onto the patio for enjoyment of the outdoors, Turner notes. ● Dedicated prayer and meditation rooms. ● A patient spa room. ● Sleeping accommodations and laundry area for guests who wish to stay with their loved one. DEDICATED CARE Hospice offers specialized services that focus on improving quality of life for people who have been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness. “We focus on providing compassionate care so that people may live their remaining life as fully and as comfortably as possible,” Turner says. Hospice treatments help control pain and other symptoms. Patients and their families also receive emotional and spiritual support. “We treat the person, not their disease,”Turner says. To qualify for hospice, patients must be thought to have six months or less to live, and they must not be receiving treatments meant to cure their illness. The hospice care team includes a medical direc- tor, registered nurses, hospice aides for personal care, a chaplain for spiritual services and a medical social worker. MORE THAN ONE OPTION Most insurance plans pay for hospice. If you would like to receive hospice care, talk to your doctor. You can also get more information by calling: ● Shanti Niketan Hospice Home: 270-659-3300 . ● T.J. Samson Home Health to learn about hos- pice services provided in the home: 270-651-4430 . A specially designed home for hospice patients SHANTI NIKETAN HOSPICE HOME Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Platteville, WI Permit No. 7 T.J. Samson Community Hospital 1301 N. Race St. Glasgow, KY 42141 APRIL 2021