Polaris Hospice partners with physicians and healthcare teams to provide seamless, compassionate hospice transitions for patients facing a terminal illness. We work alongside your care team to ensure patients receive expert symptom management, emotional support, and dignity-centered care wherever they call home.
Our hospice team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, serving patients and families throughout Arizona's East and West Valley communities. Whether you're considering a hospice referral or need guidance on eligibility criteria, we're here to help.
The decision to enter hospice or palliative care is ultimately up to the patient and family members, but the patient's physician typically makes the initial referral. While a physician's professional judgment ultimately determines whether a patient is referred to hospice care, there are established criteria to consider when making this recommendation.
Some of the criteria doctors typically consider relevant when referring a patient to hospice care include:
Hospice care is a specialized form of end-of-life care designed for patients with a terminal illness who are expected to live six months or less if the disease runs its normal course. Once a patient and their family decide to stop pursuing curative treatment, hospice focuses entirely on comfort, dignity, and quality of life.
Polaris Hospice takes a patient-centered approach, working alongside referring physicians to manage symptoms including pain, nausea, breathing difficulties, and other challenges. Our interdisciplinary care team includes physicians, nurses, social workers, hospice aides, chaplains, and volunteers, all coordinating to address physical, emotional, and spiritual needs.
With care available in private homes, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes throughout Arizona's East and West Valley communities, Polaris Hospice helps patients receive compassionate care wherever they feel most at peace.
Our comprehensive services support both patients and their healthcare providers
While curative treatment may have stopped, medication and therapies are used to manage the patient's pain and symptoms effectively.
Polaris Hospice offers respite care to temporarily take over caregiving responsibilities, allowing family caregivers to rest and recharge.
Our services are available around the clock. Patients receive expert medical care alongside mental health support, companionship, and spiritual guidance.
Hospice care is covered by most major insurance providers, including Medicare Part A, Medicaid, and many private insurance plans. The Medicare Hospice Benefit covers virtually all hospice-related costs, including nursing visits, medications for symptom management, medical equipment, and bereavement support for the family.
Because disease outcomes often fluctuate, coverage is not typically limited to six months even though hospice care is intended for patients with a terminal diagnosis. As long as a physician provides a referral indicating an expected lifespan of six months or less, the actual course of the disease may necessitate a longer or shorter time spent in hospice care.
Hospice benefits typically cover regular visits from hospice staff members, including nurses, counselors, home health aides, and volunteers. Hospice programs also provide medical supplies and equipment necessary for end-of-life care. Polaris Hospice works with patients and families to navigate coverage options and minimize financial concerns.
Polaris Hospice is dedicated to compassionate, dignified care at the end of life. Our hospice team works closely with each patient's physician and family to create a comprehensive care plan that focuses on comfort, symptom management, and quality of life.
Our core values center on a commitment to listen, care, and serve. Treating patients with dignity and compassion is at the heart of everything we do. We believe that every patient deserves personalized attention and that every family deserves support during one of life's most difficult seasons.
Polaris Hospice takes a team-oriented approach, working closely with primary care providers to ensure patients have everything they need for optimal comfort. Coordination with referring physicians and existing healthcare teams helps keep symptoms under control and ensures that any changes in health status are communicated promptly during regular home visits.
Polaris Hospice serves Arizona's East and West Valley communities, ensuring that caring, compassionate hospice and palliative care are available to patients where they live. We provide on-site care in the home or wherever the patient calls home, whether that's in their residence, a family member's home, or in a medical facility.
Contact Our Hospice TeamProfessionals dedicated to compassionate end-of-life care
Medical oversight, care planning, and coordination with referring physicians and existing healthcare providers.
Skilled nursing care, symptom management, and medication administration.
Personal care assistance, daily living support, and comfort measures.
Emotional support, resource coordination, and family counseling services.
Spiritual care, counseling services, and support for patients of all faiths.
Speech, occupational, and physical therapy services to maintain comfort and function.
Professional counseling for patients and families navigating end-of-life emotions.
Companionship, respite support, and additional family assistance.
Conversations about hospice care can be challenging for both healthcare providers and families. Many patients and family members associate hospice with "giving up," but in reality, hospice is about choosing care that prioritizes comfort, dignity, and quality of life during a terminal illness.
Healthcare providers play a critical role in helping patients and families understand that hospice care is a positive choice. Starting the conversation early, before symptoms become overwhelming, allows patients and families to fully benefit from the support hospice provides. It also helps prevent caregiver burnout by bringing in professional assistance sooner.
A member of the Polaris Hospice team can also assist during these difficult conversations, helping reduce concerns or misunderstandings about what hospice care involves and what to expect.
Patients and families often have concerns when first learning about a hospice referral. Letting patients know that hospice services include treatment for pain and other symptoms, even after curative treatments have ended, can help ease the transition. Emphasizing that hospice focuses on the patient's quality of life and provides caregivers with support that makes interactions with loved ones more fulfilling can help families make an informed decision.
Patients often want to spend the final days of life at home, surrounded by family and friends. Hospice care makes this possible. Because Polaris Hospice provides services wherever the patient calls home, patients can spend the remainder of their life in a familiar, comfortable setting with loved ones nearby.
Hospice care does not hasten death. The focus is on maintaining the patient's quality of life and providing a peaceful, comfortable environment. Even though aggressive treatment of the terminal condition has stopped, pain and symptom management continues as needed to ensure the patient remains as comfortable as possible.
End-of-life care extends beyond physical symptom management. Polaris Hospice provides comprehensive emotional and spiritual support for patients and their families through our team of chaplains, counselors, and social workers. These professionals address the emotional, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of the end-of-life experience.
A patient's family and loved ones are provided with up to 13 months of bereavement support after the passing of their loved one. Social workers assigned to patients are also available to help with the paperwork and arrangements necessary during care and after the death of a loved one, reducing the administrative burden on grieving families.
For healthcare providers, knowing that your patients will receive this level of holistic support can make the referral conversation easier and more reassuring for all involved.
The hospice care process begins with a referral from a physician or family member when curative treatments are no longer an option or when the patient has decided to stop seeking treatment. Once a referral is received, the patient is assessed to determine eligibility and the services needed. A nurse will visit the home at this point, and family caregivers can discuss any concerns with the hospice care team before services begin.
After a care plan is in place, support visits are scheduled in the home to help manage the patient's symptoms and maintain the best possible quality of life. In addition to regular nurse visits, counselors, hospice aides, spiritual advisers, and hospice volunteers may visit over the course of care. Medical equipment and supplies are provided based on the patient's plan of care as needed.
A care coordinator manages the hospice team so there is always a convenient point of contact for referring physicians, family members, and caregivers. As the patient nears the end of life, bereavement counselors reach out to the family to help navigate the grief process.
During the last days of life, the patient receives visits from a registered nurse and a social worker on the Polaris Hospice team. To start the hospice referral process, healthcare providers can contact Polaris Hospice using our convenient online form or by calling us directly.
Polaris Hospice, LLC
Glendale, Arizona
(602) 710-7589
polarish2021@gmail.com
POLARIS
