What Is Home Care?

What is Home Care?

Home care, is health care or supportive care provided in the patient’s home by licensed healthcare professionals. It is often referred to as home health care or formal care. Often, the term home health care is used to distinguish it from non-medical care or custodial care, which is care that is provided by persons who are not nurses, doctors, or other licensed medical personnel. Licensed personnel and others who assist the individual including caregivers and care assistants may help the individual with daily tasks such as bathing, eating, cleaning the home and preparing meals. For terminally ill patients, home care may include hospice care. For patients recovering from surgery or illness, home care may include rehabilitative assistance.

Do You Need Home Care?

Home Care might be for people who are getting older (aging in place). It could also be for people who are chronically ill, recovering from surgery, or disabled. A couple of other reasons to have home care would be a need for IV Therapy or injectables, wound or ostomy care, cardiac & pulmonary monitoring needs, a need for teaching of diagnosis and medication management, a need for pain management, a need for Rehabilitation via. speech, occupational or physical therapy.

Things To Consider

If you are someone who is considering Home Care here are a couple of things to consider.

1. What is your level of care?
2. What are you wanting out of the service
3. How soon do you need the care?
4. What kind of schedule do you want with the caregiver?
5. Do you need the caregiver to be able to drive?

If you are considering this type of service for a love one, ask yourself these questions;

Does your Patient:
• Understand his/her diagnosis?
• Understand what his/her disease(s) process is and how to manage it?
• Make frequent visits or phone calls to the doctor’s office?
• Have a new or an exacerbating diagnosis?
• Have a history of falls, balance, or other safety issues?
• Live alone, with or without a close-by relative?
• Have new or recent medication changes?
• Have multiple medications to manage?
• Required emergency care recently?
• Been recently hospitalized or had multiple hospitalizations?
• Experience shortness of breath, even while sitting?
• Have an unusual weight change lately; gain or loss

If you are still unsure or don’t know where to start, we recommend speaking to your or your loved ones doctor.

Here are a couple links with further information:

Home Care Services: MedlinePlus

Home care services: Questions to ask – Mayo Clinic