SECTION 558.834. Hospice Counseling Services

(a) Counseling services must be available to a client and family to assist the client and family in minimizing the stress and problems that arise from the terminal illness, related conditions, and the dying process.

(b) Counseling services must include bereavement, dietary, and spiritual counseling.

(1) Bereavement counseling. Bereavement counseling means emotional, psychosocial, and spiritual support and services provided before and after the death of the client to assist with issues related to grief, loss, and adjustment. A hospice must have an organized program for the provision of bereavement services furnished under the supervision of a qualified professional with experience or education in grief or loss counseling. A hospice must:

(A) develop a bereavement plan of care that notes the kind of bereavement services to be offered to the client's family and other persons and the frequency of service delivery;

(B) make bereavement services available to a client's family and other persons in the bereavement plan of care for up to one year following the death of the client;

(C) extend bereavement counseling to residents of a skilled nursing facility, a nursing facility, or an intermediate care facility for individuals with an intellectual disability or related conditions when appropriate and as identified in the bereavement plan of care; and

(D) ensure that bereavement services reflect the needs of the bereaved.

(2) Dietary counseling. Dietary counseling means education and interventions provided to a client and family regarding appropriate nutritional intake as a hospice client's condition progresses. Dietary counseling, when identified in the plan of care, must be performed by a qualified person. A qualified person includes a dietitian, nutritionist, or RN. A person that provides dietary counseling must be appropriately trained and qualified to address and assure that the specific dietary needs of a client are met.

(3) Spiritual counseling. A hospice must provide spiritual counseling that meets the client's and the client's family's spiritual needs in accordance with their acceptance of this service and in a manner consistent with their beliefs and desires. A hospice must:

(A) provide an assessment of the client's and family's spiritual needs;

(B) make all reasonable efforts to the best of the hospice's ability to facilitate visits by local clergy, a pastoral counselor, or other persons who can support a client's spiritual needs; and

(C) advise the client and family of the availability of spiritual counseling services.

Source Note: The provisions of this §558.834 adopted to be effective October 1, 2013, 38 TexReg 6628; transferred effective May 1, 2019, as published in the April 12, 2019 issue of the Texas Register, 44 TexReg 1893; amended to be effective April 25, 2021, 46 TexReg 2427