Perhaps you have heard the words palliative care and hospice care used interchangeably. Well, that's primarily common because both of them aim to alleviate the pains of people suffering from serious illnesses.

However, although palliative care and hospice care share a lot in common, they have significant differences. The first is that hospice care is an end of life care. As you read further, you will learn what that means and see the striking differences between the two types of care.

What is Palliative Care?

Palliative care is a special kind of medical care for patients who suffer a severe long-term illness, such as heart failure or cancer. This type of care intends to help you feel better emotionally, spiritually, and physically while they receive treatment.

Typically, the aim is to improve their quality of life by handling these illnesses' emotional, social, and spiritual side effects. Palliative care includes pain relief, counseling, or nutrition advice. Palliative care may commence once the doctor diagnoses the illness or during treatment.

What is Hospice Care?

Hospice care is for people whose doctor has diagnosed them with a terminal illness and believes they have six months or less to live. Hospice care is not a means of attempting to help cure your condition.

The goal is to help you feel better and get the most out of your left time. So, there is no curative treatment given at this stage of the illness.

Differences Between Palliative Care and Hospice Care

1. When They Are Available

The critical difference between palliative care and hospice care lies in when they're available. Palliative care is available from the time the doctor diagnoses you with the illness. By this, it is not dependent on the stage of your condition, and you can receive palliative care alongside your curative treatment.

On the flip side, hospice is an end of life care. So, this means they provide hospice care for people whose sicknesses are no longer curable and, therefore, are nearing the end of their life. So, to qualify for hospice care, your doctor must have estimated that you have six months or less to live.

2. Where You Get the Care

Palliative care is usually available in the hospital or wherever else you are getting your curative treatment. So, if you are getting your treatment at home, the caregiver can come to your home. However, most times, you get palliative care in the hospital or an outpatient clinic.

You get hospice care in a place you can address as your "home," although it is not necessarily so. It could be a hospital, a nursing home, a hospice facility, an assisted-living facility, or even your own home. The point is, you can get your care wherever you choose to spend the last days of your life.

3. Who Provides the Care

Palliative care may be given by:

A team of doctors

Nurses and nurse practitioners

Registered dietitians

Physician assistants

Social workers

Therapists

Psychologists

Chaplains

Some doctors and nurses specialize in providing palliative care. However, your doctor may still be helpful if they are not a specialist in this field.

Hospice care is given by:

A doctor or nurse(s) who specialize in hospice care,

Your primary doctor,

Pharmacists,

Social workers, and

Counselors

However, if you are at home, your family members may provide this care.

4. Payment for Care

Majorly, palliative care is a part of health insurance, although the amount of coverage may vary. Specifically, this means that your palliative care will only last as long as the duration of coverage. Also, the illness you are treating has to be covered by your insurance plan.

In the same vein, health insurance also covers hospice care. However, you may not have to pay for hospice care, and once you meet the life expectancy requirement, you can have access to care. Medicare and Medicaid also cover hospice care.

Bottom Line

Palliative care and hospice care are essential to help relieve pain and support people suffering from serious illness emotionally, spiritually, socially, and even physically.

Nonetheless, they differ in who qualifies for them, where you get them, who provides them, and how one goes about paying for them. So, now know more about palliative care and hospice care, specifically about the differences between them.