Jul 5, 2026
192: Cynthia Cisneros on Home Hospice, Symptom Management, and Team Support
Host Marie Betcher, a registered nurse and former hospice nurse, interviews Cynthia Cisneros RN in episode 192 about her nursing career and hospice experience. Cynthia describes studying at UCLA, earning a nursing degree in 1981, and working in orthopedics, pediatrics, oncology, and with early AIDS patients before moving into home health and then hospice, where she was mentored by a pioneer nurse, Margaret, and later worked in palliative care and home hospice evaluations. Cynthia emphasizes that families often wish they had started hospice sooner because it brings peace through symptom management, education, and emotional support from the full interdisciplinary team, including social workers, chaplains, pharmacists, and volunteers. She discusses the benefits of home hospice—control, no visiting hours, and 24/7 on-call nurse support—along with concerns about inconsistent comfort-med dosing in facilities and the need for education, including reassurance that morphine provides comfort and does not kill patients.
00:00 Welcome and Disclaimer
00:43 Meet Cynthia Cisneros RN
02:40 From Oncology to Hospice
03:58 Why Hospice Helps
05:37 The Hospice Team
06:37 Volunteers and Nurse Humor
07:43 Home Hospice Benefits
10:13 Morphine Myths and Facilities
13:19 On Call Support at Night
14:21 When Death Often Happens
16:03 Learn Before You Need It
16:41 Margaret and Early Hospice
18:33 Closing and Subscribe
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1. You can use Medicare.gov to help find a hospice agency,
This should be a list of Hospice Agencies local to you or your loved one.