Hospice Admission Process in Detroit,
MI | St. Marie's Hospice
A clear, fast hospice admission process across Detroit, Southfield, and Michigan. Same-day evaluations
available. Learn how to start hospice care with St. Marie’s.
HOW HOSPICE ADMISSION WORKS
AT ST. MARIE'S
From the First Phone Call to the First Visit — A Clear, Honest Walk-Through
Most families don’t know what hospice admission actually involves until they’re already in the middle of it.
That’s not a criticism. That’s just how this decision usually arrives — at the end of a long week in the hospital, after a hard conversation with a doctor, or in the quiet of a kitchen where someone finally says out loud what everyone’s been thinking for a while. By the time admission becomes the next step, families are exhausted. They’re scared. They’re not entirely sure what they’re agreeing to. And the people guiding them through it often assume they understand more than they actually do.
This page is for that moment. Here’s what hospice admission with St. Marie’s actually looks like, how long it takes, and what we’ll be asking of you along the way — written plainly, not in medical-form language.
The Short Version
Before the detail, here’s the structure most families want to see first:
Step 1
A phone call to our office (any time, day or night)
Step 2
A clinical evaluation, usually within 24 hours, often same-day
Step 3
Hospice election and benefit confirmation with your insurance
Step 4
Care plan development with the interdisciplinary team
Step 5
First nursing visit and equipment delivery, typically within 24 hours of admission
Step 1: The First Phone Call
Anyone can refer a patient to hospice. A physician, a hospital discharge planner, a daughter, the patient themselves. None of those calls is more “official” than another. We treat each one the same way.
When you call (800) 489-7977, you’re talking to someone who actually knows hospice — not a call-center agent reading from a script in another state. We’ll ask a few practical things:
- The patient's diagnosis and current condition
- Who their physicians are
- What insurance they have
- Where the patient is right now (home, hospital, nursing facility, assisted living)
That call usually runs 10 to 15 minutes. Nothing is committed yet. We’re just figuring out the right next step — most importantly, when our nurse should come out for the evaluation.
A pattern I see almost weekly: families wait to call until they “have everything ready.” There’s nothing to have ready. Call first. We sort the paperwork from there. That’s the part of the process we exist to handle.
Step 2: The Clinical Evaluation
This is the part most families have the most questions about — and the most quiet anxiety about.
The evaluation is when one of our hospice nurses comes to the patient — wherever they are — to do a full clinical assessment and talk through what hospice would look like for this specific person. In most cases, we can do the evaluation the same day or within 24 hours. For urgent referrals from hospitals, often faster.
Here’s what actually happens during the visit:
- The nurse reviews the patient's medical history and current symptoms
- They assess pain, breathing, mobility, and overall condition in person
- They explain what hospice care would include and answer questions directly
- They confirm hospice eligibility under federal Medicare guidelines (for Medicare patients)
The visit usually runs 45 to 90 minutes. Families almost always say afterward that it felt less clinical and more conversational than they were bracing for. That’s intentional. Admission isn’t a transaction. It’s the beginning of a relationship that will likely last weeks or months — and the tone is set in this first visit.
Step 3: Hospice Election and Benefit Confirmation
If the patient meets eligibility — and the family decides to proceed — there’s paperwork. This is the formal “election” of the Medicare Hospice Benefit (or commercial insurance equivalent).
What this involves:
- Signing the hospice election form, which formally enrolls the patient
- Confirming the primary diagnosis with the certifying physician
- Verifying insurance benefits — we handle this directly with the carrier
- Reviewing patient rights and responsibilities
Now, a point worth being direct about, because almost no hospice website addresses it honestly: families often hesitate at the election form because the language sounds permanent. It isn’t. Patients can revoke hospice at any time and return to curative treatment if their condition changes or their goals change. Patients can also transfer between hospice providers once per benefit period under Medicare rules.
I’ve worked with families who revoked hospice and re-elected later. I’ve worked with families who switched providers when the fit wasn’t right. The system is built to be flexible. The form is paperwork — not a closed door.
Step 4: Building the Care Plan
Within 48 hours of admission, the full interdisciplinary team — physician, nurse, social worker, and chaplain — develops the patient’s individualized care plan. This isn’t a template pulled off a shelf. It’s built around the actual symptoms, goals, and circumstances of the person we just admitted.
The plan covers:
- Medication and symptom management strategy
- Visit schedules for each team member
- Equipment and supply needs (hospital bed, oxygen, comfort supplies)
- Family support and education needs
- Spiritual care preferences
The plan isn’t static. It’s reviewed and updated as the patient’s condition evolves — sometimes weekly, sometimes more often when things are changing fast. (For more on who’s actually on the team, see Our Interdisciplinary Care Team.)
Step 5: First Visits and Equipment Delivery
Within the first 24 hours of admission, families can typically expect:
- A first nursing visit to begin clinical care
- Delivery of any urgent equipment (hospital bed, oxygen, etc.)
- Initial supply of comfort medications, ordered through our hospice pharmacy
- A direct phone number to reach our 24/7 on-call nursing line — including evenings, weekends, and holidays
After that, the rhythm of care begins. Visits are tailored to the patient — not a fixed template — and adjust as needs change.