elderly woman giving a hug to home carer

Home care professionals include nurses, caregivers, or therapists who provide short-term or long-term care of a patient in the home. Often, family members and carers find it hard to juggle on the job and are likely to burnout in the end while providing support for their patients.

People with illnesses or on after-surgery care know how immobility can be an issue. They resort to home care services and need assistance to carry on daily routines. For instance, someone who is aging, managing a health issue or disability, or recovering from a setback needs professional home care support if hospital admittance is not an option.

home carer giving medications to elderly

Why home care is better?

Compared to hospitalization, home care can be less stressful, inexpensive, healthy for the patient, and safe. It enables the individual more security and independence when managing a medical condition. Why do people turn to home care?

Ease of aiding patient in daily activities

Routines including dressing and bathing can be done easily at home because most items, belongings, or tools are there. Hospitalization requires you to constantly buy these things when you run out supplies. Plus, there’s more legroom and flexibility back at home.

Real-time observance and aid with safe tasks at home

The safe environment of home care is appealing as many carers find close observances of precautions around the patient. Of course, it all depends on the house design and organization. In the hospital room, everything can be jam-packed with belongings that can make one slip or collide into.

Flexible personal care and companionship

Home care allows regular activities and personal care like bathing, dressing, cooking or meal preparation, and other household chores to bolster independence. This so-called companion care allows room for flexibility of care to the patient. It eases them in doing house tasks so they can concentrate on healing their pain.

Intimate involvement of family

The family of the patient can be more involved in the care and treatment at home. This intimacy improves relationships and can work to enhance the mood and mental health of the patient. The family can help administer lifestyle changes and medications for a speedy recovery.

Comfort and faster recovery

Being at home is simply comfortable for patients than being cooped up in a hospital room or in unfamiliar vicinity. The patients have their belongings in place, the hominess, or familiarity which proves to be an effective healing factor. This further induces faster recovery as they’re in the comfortable settings of their own room.

home carer accompanying elderly man outside

Types of home care

There are different kinds of care services that you can customize according to your needs. You might need one or more of these types to determine what is best for you. Here are sample home care services:

Nursing care

Nursing care refers to professional nursing services for a longer-term. This type of care is preferably in the care for patients with chronic illness or disability. For instance, patients with traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis will need nursing care at home.

Inclusion may be of the following, but not limited to,

  1. Overseeing medications
  2. Feeding
  3. Checking of vital signs
  4. Ventilator administration
  5. Catheter care

The service is done through nurse shifting for 24/7 until the patient has healed.

Visiting nurse care

This home care service is more viable for short-term, nurse or physician care to help patients recover from an injury or injury. Examples of short-term disability are,

  1. Concussion
  2. Hip and hamstring strain
  3. Sciatica
  4. Ligament tear
  5. Inflammation

Likewise, visiting care is done through professional visits that last only for an hour or less.

Personal care

Personal home care assists the patient with tasks to achieve independence, self-sufficiency, and self-paced support. It leans more into assisting the patient with household works to enable independence, such as,

  1. Personal grooming
  2. Meal planning
  3. Administering medications
  4. Companionship
  5. Appointment assistance
  6. Etc.

Nursing care and visiting care are usually prescribed by a doctor, while personal care doesn’t need to be. The latter is an ongoing basis that might require 24/7 assistance with a possible live-in arrangement of the carer.

adjustable beds NDIS happy people

Tips for quality in-home care run

Too stressed to think about home care? Here are tips to get you started.

Choose a service conducive to your needs

Does the patient need 24/7 care? Do you want some sort of personal and household care rather than regular visits made by the doctor? Choose a service conducive to your patient’s needs. Mayhap, the patient experienced a serious ACL tear or strain that requires an hour observance by a doctor.

Hire a trained professional and licensed home care provider

Do a research of the agency if it’s licensed by your country or state to provide medical practices. Check whether their licensure is updated as well and whether their carers are insured. Have they received proper training as well? Make sure that these providers have passed requirements and regulations to operate.

Know the costs and coverage of the service

Maybe you can find free services in exchange for housing, live-in arrangements, and other benefits. Meanwhile, other providers have sponsored payments that are offered for short-term care of patients. Other insurance providers, like the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), can cover the specific needs of people with disabilities to make their lives easier.

Set an interview with the providers or carers

Interviewing the provider or carer will get you to know the character of the person taking care of the patient. What’s more, you can uncover their past works, experiences, familiarities, and how-tos in handling patients.

Organize and keep important files

Keep a file system for all health histories the patient has, the providers you’ve researched, or all the items you need for home care. This information will be useful later on in case the need will arise.

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