This discussion article highlights the challenges of providing hospice care in nursing homes since the start of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic and illuminates practice changes needed in nursing homes. The article provides an overview of the expectations of hospice care, explains the differences in delivering hospice care during the COVID-19 pandemic, examines social isolation and emotional loneliness and the role of familial caregivers, and describes policy changes related to the COVID-19 affecting hospice care delivery in nursing homes. This article answers the following questions: (1) How did residents receiving hospice care have their needs met during the COVID-19 pandemic? (2) What areas of nursing home care need to be improved through governmental policy and restructuring? This article also summarized the lessons learned as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and provided practical implications for nursing, specific to changes in hospice care deliveries for nursing home residents.
Delivering Hospice Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Meeting Nursing Home Residents' Needs