[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 188 (Tuesday, November 28, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2239]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING HOSPICE CARE

                                 ______


                              HON. JAY KIM

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 28, 1995

  Mr. KIM. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize hospice care, which 
is considered one of the more humane traditions of health service 
delivery in the United States; providing palliative medical care and 
supportive social, emotional, and spiritual services to the terminally 
ill, as well as support for the family.
  Hospice care involves a team of professionals, including physicians, 
nurses, therapists, home care aides, social workers, counselors, and 
volunteers who help terminally ill patients and their families, 
primarily at home, share the final days in peace, comfort, and dignity. 
Hospice offers an effective alternative to hospitals and nursing homes 
employing more than 33,500 full-time professionals and approximately 
11,000 volunteers who together served more than 280,000 individuals 
last year alone. These hospice caregiving teams help patients, as well 
as their family members with one of the toughest transitions in life. 
They are able to do so by eliminating the physical pain associated with 
an illness, as well as supplying necessary psychological, spiritual, 
and emotional support in a program primarily based in the home that 
treats the person, not the disease; focusing on the family, not the 
individual; and emphasizing the qualify of life, helping patients and 
their families the opportunity to reclaim the spirit of life.
  It is an honor to pay tribute to these dedicated professionals who 
demonstrating their caring, compassion, and charity on a daily basis.

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