In 2022, CMS shared one family’s hospice experience as a part of a presentation at the NHPCO Annual Leadership and Advocacy Conference CMS Update. As a result, NHPCO developed a video case study and discussion guide based on this family’s hospice experience to dispel myths of hospice care.

The video and discussion guide can be used as in-service education, as education for new staff, and as part of a hospice’s ongoing evaluation of compliance with the hospice regulations and assurance of quality hospice care. We urge hospices to use this case study as a learning experience and as a Quality Assessment Performance Improvement (QAPI) topic.

Each of the issues discussed in the case study are addressed by hospice professionals in detail. The excerpts below can be used individually or in combination to help educate hospice staff. For example, nurses may be interested in Excerpt #1: Nursing and Aide Visits and Excerpt #3: Family Calls on an Almost Daily Basis. For more educational suggestions and target audiences, please refer to the discussion guide below.

One Family’s Hospice Experience – A Case Study Video

      • 0:00 – Introduction and Case Study
      • 12:55 – Excerpt #1: Nursing and Aide Visits
      • 17:03 – Excerpt #2: No Continuous Home Care
      • 21:23 – Excerpt #3: Frequency of Nursing Visits
      • 27:45 – Excerpt #4: Family Calls on an Almost Daily Basis
      • 36:03 – Excerpt #5: Patient Can No Longer Swallow – Medication Challenge
      • 43:39 – Excerpt #6: Haldol Not Working
      • 48:50 – Excerpt #7: Number of Inpatient Care Days
      • 56:34 – Hospice Physician GIP Documentation
      • 1:02:05 – Excerpt #8: Call to Action
      • 1:05:25 – Final Reflections

Regulatory Lessons Learned from One Family’s Hospice Experience Discussion Guide