Social Services

INTEGRIS Health Hospice offers social services to every patient and his or her family members. Within a few days of admission, the social worker will contact the patient and/or the family to schedule an initial visit. During this visit, the social worker will assess patient and family resource needs, as well as coping and emotional needs.

The social worker can assist with:

• Understanding the emotional fluctuations during this time of uncertainty
• Reviewing options for end of life home care
• Linking community resources with patient and family
• Facilitating communication within and between patient, family, friends and community
• Assisting patient and family in understanding the emotional aspects of death, dying and grief
• Decision making and problem solving surrounding multiple issues
• Information concerning advance directives, durable power of attorney financial/legal concerns.

You may have found the grief process began before your involvement with hospice, or you may have had a grief response when you were diagnosed. This is a time when we are challenged to live with intense emotion, often not understanding from where these feelings come. Whether you are the patient or the caregiver, anticipatory grief can be confusing and feel like a roller coaster ride of emotions. Your social worker can help decrease the feelings of vulnerability and loss of control through understanding and education.

We know being a caregiver is demanding, and we do all we can to lend support. The social worker is available to help with understanding the experience of caregiving and finding additional resources such as:

• Feelings of guilt when wanting or needing a break
• Anger because you feel no one understands
• The frustration of unsolicited advice from friends and family
• Can cause you to have health issues
• When it seems no one brings comfort or knows what to do or say.

Our social workers can provide education about accessing community agencies or offer individual or family counseling around coping with grief. Through supportive care, the social worker is present for our patients and families. The social worker is part of the hospice team and collaborates daily in caring for you or your loved one.