Introduction
Hospice Foundation of America (2007) stated that: “Hospice is a special concept of care designed to provide comfort and support to patients and their families.” HFA further explains that for one to qualify for hospice he/she must be having a life expectancy of six months or less and this type of care may even continue for more than six months but this normally requires a physician’s certification. English and Gong (2001) defined hospice as: “a concept of care in which the physical, psychological, spiritual and social needs of the terminally ill patient and his or her family are met”. According to them, hospice offers palliative care to the chronically ill with the center of attention being pain management and other symptoms that arise as a result of a terminal illness. It is not geared towards curative treatment.
Hospice in Kenya and United Kingdom
In this discussion, hospice services in Kenya and the United Kingdom will be discussed. Hospice in Kenya started in the year 1991 with the establishment of the Nairobi Hospice. Initially, hospice care was for terminally ill cancer patients, this has changed over years to cover care for AIDS sufferers. Rural settings have not been left behind with other hospice services such as home care setup (Bird, 2002). Currently, there are 17 hospice centers in Kenya under the national association known as Kenya Hospice and Palliative Care Association (KEHPCA, 2009).
Hospice in the UK has an umbrella body known as the National Council for Palliative Care (NCPC); this includes England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Hospice and palliative care in the UK is offered in health care and social settings. Hospice services are provided for clients across all age groups, i.e. the children, youth, and adults including the elderly (NCPC, 2009).
Differences and Similarities
Hospice care in the UK as compared to hospice in Kenya is more developed and at a ‘mature’ and advanced level. Owing to the early history of its early development way before Kenya’s hospice, it has undergone more advances that have ensured high-quality care and a wide variety of services. In Kenya, initially, it focused on Cancer patients and currently includes even AIDS sufferers, this shows that it is still ‘young’ as compared to hospice in the UK which covers a wide range of terminal and chronic illnesses. In the UK, youth and children are well established and developed, this is not the case in Kenya who has no hospice care specifically for these special groups. The UK hospice has an ethical committee that specifically deals with ethical issues; this demonstrates the high level of quality and integrity of services offered. The Kenyan case is so different in that the ethical, and or professional conduct is guided by those codes of conduct of the professionals involved; there is none specifically for hospice.
As already mentioned, in both countries, there is an umbrella body that guides and controls hospice services. Kenya’s health care system is similar to that of the UK and therefore is similar in terms of training hospice professionals. Most training agencies come from the UK. The type of hospice services is similar in both countries; they are both guided by similar practices.
Conclusion
Hospice is an integral part of health care that is spreading its wings worldwide with new standards of care and practice being developed hence living the better option in the provision of end life care to dying patients.
Works cited
- “Hospices.” Kenya Hospice and Palliative Care Association. 2009.
- Bird, B. “Report on IAHPC Traveling Fellowship to Kenya.” 2002.
- English, D. and Gong, J. (2001). “Why hospice care belongs in nursing homes; part 1”. Nursing Homes, 50.4 (2001):46.
- “Choosing Hospice.” Hospice Foundation of America.
- National Council for Palliative Care, 2009.