What is Home Health Care?

This column is dedicated to…You and enhancing the quality of your life at home.   

  

I am the owner/operator of CareMinders © Home Care in Whiting and am privileged to serve Southern and Western Ocean County and surrounding communities. 

Since I first opened my office, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting so many wonderful folks.  The scenic beauty of the area reflects the friendly attitudes of the residents and it is a joy to work and interact with all of you.

 As Certified Senior Advisor, and the primary caregiver for my own family, I understand well the challenges and new realities we face as our loved ones change with time, illness or injury.  Enough of me...  Let’s get started with the basics!

What is Home Health Care?

This question is one I am often asked at my speaking engagements and during discussions of home care services for a family’s loved one.  To the surprise of many, it is a service that has been available for quite some time… 

History of home care

Nurses have been visiting the sick in their homes for more than a century.

At one time most nurses worked in home care.  Their primary duties were directed to treatment of infectious diseases and helping new mothers.

Early in the twentieth century, insurance broker Metropolitan Life began offering   visiting nurse services to its policyholders.  The American Red Cross followed suit

by establishing a visiting nurse program focused on serving those in rural areas.

The rise of chronic degenerative diseases as the leading cause of death initiated an

 increased demand for hospital care home care services subsequently decreased. 

 Rising hospital costs and campaigns conducted by nursing organizations returned

home care back to the forefront. Medicare legislation was enacted in 1965 providing

some benefits to home care patients.  Medicaid, the state medical assistance program for the poor, followed shortly afterward and included provisions for home care.

The National Home Care Association was founded in 1982 to provide high-quality care to hospice and home patients, and acts as the voice of the home care industry.  

Who receives home care?

Home care may be provided to anyone regardless of age and appropriate where care is not easily or solely provided by family members.  Service offerings extend to the terminally ill who wish to die at home, disabled or chronically sick adults or infants,  children whose parents want to keep them in a secure home environment, and individuals who need assistance due to disability or are recuperating from a hospital stay. Medication administration, pain management, assisting with routine tasks, or providing companionship or therapeutic treatment is also available. Services are available 24 x 7 and may involve rotating teams of specialists. Home care enables the patient to live as self-sufficiently as possible within the security of their home.  

Who provides home care?

Home care is usually provided by home care organizations, which include home health agencies, hospices, and companies that specialize in medical equipment and supplies, including drug infusion therapy and pharmaceuticals.

Home care providers:  

Depending on the patient’s needs, these agencies provide nurses, doctors, therapists, homemakers and HHAs, social workers, and volunteers. Whereas other agencies might provide just nurses or other specialists, home health agencies can call on a large team of health workers and coordinate the care depending on the needs of the patient.

Hospices: Terminally ill patients and their families are cared for by hospices. Interdisciplinary teams provide medical and emotional support to the patient and his or her family. Hospice services also focus on pain management and keeping the patient as comfortable as possible while helping to prepare him or her for eventual death. The care of the terminally ill is known as palliative care. Patients can remain with their loved ones and with a greater degree of privacy and independence so that they can end their lives in dignity. Medications and equipment may also be provided. Most hospices are Medicare-certified and licensed according to state requirements.

Home Care agencies:  Provide non-medical, personal care, skilled nursing services and therapies according to their licensing.  Services are contracted either as hourly or on a live-in basis.  Assistance with shopping, meal preparation, bathing, dressing, housekeeping, medication reminders, child care are just a few of the offerings available.

Full service agencies are licensed, bonded, and supervision is provided through a registered nurse.  Patients continue to live comfortably in their own familiar environment near their friends, family, and social networks.

Home care equipment: Drugs, equipment, and professional services for patients receiving intravenous therapy are provided by pharmaceutical and infusion therapy companies. Such companies employ pharmacists to prepare solutions and arrange their delivery.  Nurses show patients how to self-administer the drugs.  

As dealers in durable medical equipment and supplies products such as respirators, wheelchairs, catheters, and items used in caring for wounds are provided. Staff members are available to instruct patients on how to use the equipment, but dealers do not usually provide a medical staff.  

Home care for those in assisted living programs

A significant number of elderly Americans currently live in housing known as “assisted living” (AL). Some level of nursing, housekeeping services, and perhaps meals are provided on site. Many believe that home care services are never required by those living in AL programs because of the services they already receive There are many situations where skilled home care is appropriate, including after a fall or loss of mobility that requires rehabilitation therapy.  Home Care can be customized to fill in areas of care not support by an individual’s current AL arrangements.  Groups advocating the rights of the elderly claim home care helps keep AL patients out of nursing homes.

Ethics of home care

Special ethical or legal issues may arise owing to the unique circumstances of home care. Home Care providers are expected to follow a code of ethics, principles, or standards of conduct in dealing with patients. Those working in home care are encouraged to follow special provisions relating to the dignity and privacy of the patient’s home, and the physical and emotional boundaries of the relationship between the caregiver and patient. Home Care providers may refuse to treat a patient in his or her own home if they think that the home is not the most appropriate setting for the patient’s care, and may also decline to visit a home or particular neighborhood due to safety concerns.

Future of home care

Home Care is for everyone and is a wonderful service in this day and age and is expected to grow markedly in the years to come.  Shorter hospital stays due to medical advances have positioned home care as an appropriate way to follow up treatment and recovery. The variety of services offered by home care providers is also expected to expand.  New projects and technologies are currently under development that will increase improvements to home care services.

                                          Warmest Regards and a Happy Holidays at Home,

                                              

                                                   Catherine Stelianoudakis Prochaska, CSA  

                                                                                                                                                  

                                             homefront67@live.com