Fall 2021 Caring Hands Volunteer Newsletter

The 5% Rule We know we tell you just how important you are to the patients,

families and teams here at Hospice of the Chesapeake. During

W hat kind of volunteer services are included in the calculation of those hours? According

to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, examples include visiting with

National Hospice and Palliative Care Month, we thought it would

the patient, which in turn provides some respite for the caregiver and support for the

welcomed onboard to remind you just how significant a role

and the phone calls made by our caring and companionship callers. The key is that the

be beneficial to revisit the training you received when you were volunteers play.

Most specifically, we are going to take a deep dive into the

5-percent rule. You may remember learning during your

orientation about the Hospice Medicare Benefit of 1982, which

helped to make hospice services more accessible by including it for Medicare reimbursement. Among the measures included in the

legislation was the unique requirement that at least 5 percent of

total patient care hours are completed by volunteers.

family. It can also include integrative arts, such as reiki, music therapy and pet therapy volunteer has direct contact with the patient and the family.

Volunteers may assist in ancillary and office activities that support direct patient care activities, such as making phone calls, filing,

assisting with patient and family mailings, and data entry.

It is also required that these patient hours are performed by

volunteers who have been trained following specific guidelines.

The NHPCO said that training should include: Hospice goals, services and philosophy; Confidentiality and protection of the patient's and family's rights; Family dynamics, coping mechanisms and psychological issues

surrounding terminal illness, death and bereavement;

Guidance related specifically to individual responsibilities.

We are required to document these trainings and be able to demonstrate that our

volunteers are aware of their duties and responsibilities and who they report to before

being assigned to a patient and family or given administrative duties.

During the pandemic, the 5-percent rule has been waived in recognition of the impact

social distancing has had on volunteering. We do anticipate that when we return to a

normal state of affairs, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services most likely will remove the waiver and return to the five-percent requirement. In an effort to stay

consistent and on track we ask that you continue to complete your progress notes and track your time which is of utmost importance to the care we provide our patients.