Controlling Pain and Symptoms
Hospice of Northwest Ohio’s number one goal is to control pain and other symptoms so patients can stay alert and enjoy life to the fullest extent possible. Physicians and nurses combine their efforts to aggressively treat the discomfort each patient experiences, including:
- Pain
- Nausea and vomiting
- Shortness of breath
- Anxiety
- Constipation or diarrhea
- Many other symptoms.
Because our primary focus is palliative (comfort) care, our knowledge and expertise is unmatched in this area. Our goal is to get pain or other symptoms under control within 24 to 48 hours after a patient is admitted to our program, whether at home, in a nursing home or in one of our hospice centers.
Understanding Pain
Pain is very individual, and varies with the type and extent of disease. Patients may be suffering from:
- Cancer pain
- Bone pain
- Neuropathic pain
- Emotional or spiritual pain
Each one is treated by different types of medications or therapies. It is important, first and foremost, that an accurate assessment be made so that the most effective drugs or therapies are prescribed. Many times, patients entering our program have been taking numerous medications, but with little or no result, because they have been receiving the wrong combination of drugs for their situation.
No single drug is good for all types of pain. While Hospice of Northwest Ohio's physicians often prescribe narcotics or develop special drug combinations, it is not unusual for them to get great results with something as common as Motrin®. The real key is accurate assessment, plus constant monitoring of results.
Responding Rapidly
Hospice of Northwest Ohio’s physicians and nurses are extremely aggressive in their efforts to make patients comfortable and, if a medication isn’t working, will change their approach immediately to seek faster, better relief.
Patients and family members are encouraged to speak to their care team right away if there are concerns about pain, or changes to the effectiveness of treatment.