Home visit

The HCA Hospice care nurse paid a first visit today. The nurse is a very warm and friendly Indian lady. She asked a series of routine questions and recorded all the medications that Dad is currently taking. She also took down details of patient's spouse and primary caregiver, and income details of immediate family members (in our case, the patient's children).

She also examined Dad physically and explained to us how they go about with the palliative care support. She will visit on a weekly or fortnightly basis to ensure that patient's condition is stable. A doctor will visit with her once a month, or as and when the need arises. And as and when they see the need through their routine checks, they will contact the oncologist-in-charge at NCC to feedback on Dad's condition.

Dad seems quite comfortable with her, and good thing is, she speaks Mandarin too. Let's hope that she'll be able to help lessen Dad's pain in the days to come.

HCA Hospice Care (HCA) is a registered charity that provides comfort and support to patients with life-limiting illnesses and their families. We do this through a hospice home care service and a hospice day care centre. More than 25,000 patients have been treated by HCA since it was founded in 1989.

We understand how lonely, stressful and traumatic it can be for patients and their families to deal with a life-limiting illness. Our aim is to provide pain and symptom relief as well as emotional and spiritual support for patients and their families.

HCA looks after more than 2,700 patients at home annually and the HCA Day Care Centre sees more than 250 patients who make more than 5,000 visits to our centre each year. We are indeed a small charity with a big reach. Find out more about our services for patients at HCA Hospice Services.

Besides caring for patients, we are also committed to providing training and support for caregivers who look after their dying loved ones at home. Find out how you can join these programmes at HCA Outreach Programmes.

Besides the adult caregivers, we also reach out to children and youths. With an aging population in Singapore and cancer being the number one cause of death, the numbers of elderly and persons with life-limiting illnesses will rise. HCA's goal is to help our younger generation to relate to and to learn how to care for the elderly sick. We have a Student & Youth Education Programme aimed at reaching students in the upper primary, second and post secondary age groups.

慈怀护理是一所注册的慈善机构。我们专为末期病患者以及其家属提供医疗护理与支援。自１９８９年成立至今，慈怀护理已经为多达２万名病患者服务。

我们了解病患者与末期疾病周旋时所面对的种种压力、挫折与孤立感。我们的服务宗旨不但是为病患者减轻疼痛与控制病症，同时也为他们及家属提供心理与精神上的支持及辅导。

慈怀护理每年为超过２千７百名病患者提供居家护理服务。我们的日间护理中心每年也有多达２５０名病患者接受疗程。其到访总次数高达５千次以上。慈怀护理虽然是一所小型的慈善机构，但是我们拥有广泛的支援与服务范围。