Hospice Orillia

Hospice Orillia offers practical, emotional, and spiritual support to those in our community coping with advanced illness, death, and bereavement.

Our volunteers and staff serve clients and their loved ones of all ages and backgrounds with compassion and respect while honouring their choices and supporting them throughout their life journey. We believe that death is a part of life, a rite of passage. There is much that can be done to help individuals and their families face this time with dignity and quality in their lives. Each person is unique and their distinctness will be respected within an atmosphere of confidentiality.

Hospice Orillia’s services are provided free of charge to anyone living with a life-limiting illness and/or their friends, family members, and caregivers at the client’s home, wherever “home” is.

Delirium: Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment

Delirium is an acute and often reversible disturbance in attention, awareness, and cognition, typically triggered by an underlying medical condition, medication, or environmental change. Early diagnosis is critical and involves identifying sudden changes in mental status, fluctuating levels of consciousness, and disorganized thinking, often through clinical tools like the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM). Prevention focuses on addressing modifiable risk factors, such as ensuring adequate hydration, promoting sleep, managing pain, avoiding polypharmacy, and supporting sensory input (e.g., using hearing aids or glasses). Treatment involves promptly identifying and managing the underlying cause, minimizing medications that can contribute to confusion, and providing supportive care, including frequent orientation, calm environments, and mobilization. A multidisciplinary approach is essential to improving outcomes and reducing complications.