For someone who has an advanced illness but is not yet terminally ill, it can be difficult to find the right kind of care. Although aggressive, curative treatment may not longer be as effective as it once was, patients are still focused on living and maintaining a good quality of life. The Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) of Santa Cruz County, affiliated with PAMF, has stepped in to fill this unmet need with its Advanced Illness Management (AIM) program.

AIM provides care for people who are approaching the end of their lives but are not ready for hospice care. They may still be seeking life-prolonging treatment, or they may not be ready for hospice for emotional reasons. AIM nurses and social workers provide a full range of home health care services for patients with advanced illness. Services may include providing skilled intervention—such as modification of medications or diet—to discussing with patients the kind of care they would want if they could no longer make decisions by themselves. Patients are also eligible for other home health services, including physical, occupational and speech therapy, and the assistance of a home health aide.

“We help our patients maintain or improve their quality of life by helping them manage their symptoms, instructing them about their disease process and creating a care plan that is right for them,” Kathy McNutt, director of the VNA of Santa Cruz County, says. “Our goal is to optimize our patients’ comfort, minimize their symptoms and pain, and prevent unnecessary emergency room visits and hospitalizations.”

For many families, AIM helps a loved one with advanced illness transition from curative treatment to end-of-life planning, including encouraging the use of hospice services when necessary.

“Patients with advanced illness may be in denial or scared, and our social workers can help patients and their families have these difficult, crucial conversations,” McNutt says. “We’re here to help patients live the best life possible.”

To learn more about AIM, and for program admissions and referral questions in Santa Cruz County, visit http://www.santacruzvna.org or call 831-479-6633.