Respite care provides temporary relief for family caregivers through short-term inpatient hospice care (up to 5 consecutive days) or increased home support hours, both covered under the Medicare hospice benefit at no cost.
In Burbank and Pasadena, families can access respite at contracted skilled nursing facilities or through extended home health aide visits, allowing caregivers to rest, recover, or handle personal obligations without compromising their loved one’s comfort or safety.
Here’s what respite care actually looks like, how to access it, and what options are available to families in the Burbank and Pasadena areas.
What Is Respite Care Under Medicare Hospice?
Respite care is one of the four levels of hospice care defined by Medicare. It provides short-term inpatient care in a Medicare-approved facility, typically a contracted skilled nursing facility or hospice inpatient unit, so that family caregivers can take a break from the physical and emotional demands of continuous caregiving.
Key details:
- Covered for up to 5 consecutive days per respite stay
- Available as often as needed, though advance coordination is required
- Fully covered under the Medicare hospice benefit with a small daily copay (approximately $5 per day as of 2026)
- Your loved one receives the same level of medical care, symptom management, and comfort support they would receive at home
- You can visit anytime during the respite stay
Respite is not abandonment. It’s not giving up. It’s recognizing that you need rest in order to continue providing care, and it’s using a benefit that exists specifically for this purpose.
Inpatient Respite Care: What to Expect in Burbank and Pasadena
When you request inpatient respite, the hospice team coordinates placement at a contracted facility near your home. In Burbank and Pasadena, this is typically a skilled nursing facility that has a partnership with your hospice provider. The facility must meet Medicare hospice standards and have trained staff available to manage hospice-level care.
What happens during a respite stay:
Your loved one is transported by hospice-arranged medical transport (usually a non-emergency ambulance or wheelchair van) to the facility. The hospice nurse provides a detailed handoff to the facility staff, including current medications, care preferences, symptom management plans, and any equipment needs. During the stay, your loved one receives:
- All medications and treatments related to the hospice plan of care
- Assistance with personal care, bathing, and hygiene
- Meals and hydration support
- Repositioning and skin care to prevent pressure injuries
- Pain and symptom management overseen by the hospice medical director
- Access to social work, chaplain, and volunteer support as needed
You remain in control. You can visit anytime, call for updates, and request early discharge if you feel ready to resume caregiving at home. The hospice team stays involved throughout the respite stay and coordinates your loved one’s return home at the end of the 5-day period.
Extended Home Support as an Alternative to Inpatient Respite
Not every family wants or needs inpatient respite. Some patients become disoriented in unfamiliar environments, some caregivers prefer to remain nearby, and some families simply need more hands-on help at home rather than a full transfer to a facility.
In these cases, hospice can increase support at home through extended home health aide visits or additional nursing hours. While this doesn’t replace the full break provided by inpatient respite, it can give you enough breathing room to sleep, run errands, attend appointments, or simply rest in your own home while someone else manages direct care.
What this looks like:
- Increased home health aide hours, potentially daily or even twice daily for a temporary period
- Extended aide visits (4-6 hours instead of the typical 1-2 hours) to manage bathing, dressing, feeding, and personal care
- Additional volunteer support for companionship and light assistance
- Coordination with family or friends to share shifts while the aide is present
This approach works best when caregiver exhaustion is building but hasn’t yet reached crisis level. It’s also useful when the patient’s condition makes facility-based respite medically complicated or emotionally distressing. For more on how the hospice team structures daily support, read Gentle Daily Routines for Comfort at the End of Life Stage.
When to Request Respite Care
You don’t have to wait until you’re in crisis to ask for respite. In fact, respite works best when it’s planned before exhaustion turns into burnout or physical injury. Here are clear signs that it’s time to request respite care:
- Physical exhaustion: You’re not sleeping more than 2-3 hours at a time, you’ve lost weight, or you’re experiencing back pain, headaches, or other stress-related symptoms from the physical demands of caregiving.
- Emotional depletion: You feel irritable, resentful, or emotionally numb. You’re crying frequently, having intrusive thoughts, or feeling detached from your loved one.
- Neglected personal health: You’ve postponed your own medical appointments, stopped taking your own medications, or ignored symptoms that need attention.
- No backup support: Other family members are unavailable, live out of state, or are unable to provide the level of care needed. You’re the only person managing all aspects of caregiving.
- Upcoming obligation: You have a scheduled surgery, a work commitment, or a family event (like a grandchild’s wedding) that you cannot postpone.
- Simply needing a break: You don’t need a clinical reason. Needing rest is reason enough.
How to Arrange Respite Care in Burbank and Pasadena
Respite care is not automatic. You need to request it from your hospice provider, and it requires advance coordination to arrange facility placement and medical transport.
- Step 1: Contact your hospice team. Call your hospice nurse or social worker and request respite care. Explain your situation honestly. You don’t need to justify needing rest.
- Step 2: Schedule the dates. Respite requires advance notice (typically 3-7 days) to coordinate facility availability and transport. If you know you’ll need respite for a specific event, request it as early as possible.
- Step 3: Prepare for the stay. The hospice nurse will review what to pack (comfortable clothing, personal items, any special comfort objects). The hospice team arranges all medical equipment, medications, and care supplies.
- Step 4: Use the time. Sleep. See your own doctor. Visit a friend. Sit in silence. Do nothing. The whole point of respite is rest. You’re not required to be productive.
- Step 5: Resume care at home. At the end of the respite period, your loved one returns home with the same level of support they had before. The hospice team coordinates transport and provides a full update on how the stay went.
For families who want to understand more about how hospice care levels shift based on needs, What Level of Hospice Care Do You Need? Initial Guide and Adjustment Signs explains the four Medicare-defined levels of hospice care and when each is appropriate.
What Respite Care Doesn’t Mean
There’s often guilt attached to requesting respite, and that guilt comes from misunderstanding what respite represents. Here’s what respite is not:
- It’s not abandonment. You’re not leaving your loved one alone. You’re ensuring they receive professional care in a safe setting while you rest.
- It’s not a sign of weakness. Needing rest is a biological reality, not a character flaw. Continuous caregiving without breaks leads to injury, illness, and worse outcomes for both you and the patient.
- It’s not permanent. Respite is temporary. Your loved one returns home after the scheduled period, and you resume caregiving with renewed capacity.
- It’s not the same as long-term placement. Respite is distinct from permanent nursing home placement. It’s a short-term service designed to support home-based hospice care, not replace it.
- If you’re feeling conflicted about accepting help or stepping back temporarily, you’re not alone. Many caregivers describe the same emotions.
Local Respite Resources in Burbank and Pasadena
Journey Palliative and Hospice works with contracted skilled nursing facilities and inpatient hospice units throughout Los Angeles County to provide respite care close to home. While the specific facility depends on bed availability at the time of your request, we prioritize placements in Burbank, Pasadena, Glendale, and the surrounding areas to minimize travel distance for family visits.
In addition to hospice-arranged respite, local caregivers in Burbank and Pasadena may also benefit from:
- Caregiver support groups offered through local senior centers and faith communities
- Adult day programs (though these are typically not appropriate for hospice-level care)
- Volunteer companion programs through hospice or community organizations
- Bereavement support (available through hospice both during and after the patient’s life)
For more on the full scope of support available, visit: Respite Care.
Experience Respite Care in Burbank and Pasadena
Hospice care exists to support both the patient and the family. When a caregiver collapses from exhaustion, it doesn’t help anyone. Respite care is a built-in protection against burnout, and using it is not a failure, it’s a responsible acknowledgment of your own human limits.
For families in Burbank, Pasadena, Glendale, and throughout Los Angeles County, Journey Palliative and Hospice provides respite care coordination, 24/7 nursing support, and comprehensive caregiver resources under the Medicare hospice benefit. Call us at (818) 748-3427 to discuss your situation and explore your options.
