 | Dorothy McPherson is the Executive Director at Progressive Home Health & Hospice which has been in operation here in Wichita since 1995. Progressive Home Health & Hospice is licensed in the State of Kansas and is also certified as Medicare, Medicaid, Champus, Blue Cross Blue Shield and PPK Provider. Dorothy is a Registered Nurse with over 18 years of nursing and business experience. Progressive Home Health & Hospice is located at 3500 N. Rock Road, Building 400, Wichita, Kansas or their phone is (316) 691-5050. Email Dorothy @progressivecare.com or visit our web site at www.progressivecare.com |
Hospice
2005-11-01 16:19:00
Gender issues
ANSWER: Generally, females tend to be the primary caregivers in a family setting so when a terminal illness strikes, it's easier for them to go into a caring, nurturing mode while males might have a more difficult adjustment. However, when faced with a terminal illness, the whole family is called to action regardless of gender. The Hospice provider can be a good source of education to assist families in this transition along with other community resources.As Hospice providers, we occasionally witness some anxiety from family members concerning the gender of the caregiver to be provided by the Hospice. Some of these concerns are cultural in nature where, for example, a spouse might not want a male caregiver providing care to his wife (client) or vise versa. These concerns are easy to deal with by simply being honest with the hospice provider and requesting your choice of caregiver by gender. Many Hospices have caregivers of both genders and are very willing to accommodate and are well equipped to deal with these biases. So regardless of gender, families can survive this difficult time by pulling together and utilizing support from Hospice staff.
