Services Available
Who Provides Home Care?
Home care agencies are primarily concerned with the treatment or
rehabilitations of patients who need skilled nursing care or therapy. Their
patients are predominantly under the care of a physician, and the skilled care
they received through the home health agency is furnished in accordance with
a physician's order. A physician will authorize a coordinated plan of treatment
for home care services and periodically review the delivery and effectiveness
of those services, sometimes recommending changes.
Nurses
Registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) provide
the direct skilled nursing services for the patient, supervise other caregivers
as required and coordinate patient care with the physician. They also train
family members and friends in functions they perform to assist the professional
caregivers and maintain the patient when professional services no longer are
necessary. Skilled nursing service may include catheter changes, dressing changes,
wound care, IV therapy, and medication administration.
Home Care Aides
Trained paraprofessionals assist with bathing, grooming, dressing,
cooking and cleaning. Home care aide services can be indispensable and are supervised
by the nursing staff of a home care agency.
Social Workers
Social workers assist the patient and family in vital areas including
evaluation of the financial circumstances and ability to pay for necessary home
care services. Knowledgeable in community resources, they direct people to needed
to pay for necessary home care services. Knowledgeable in community resources,
they direct people to needed local support systems.
Therapists
Physical, occupational, speech and respiratory therapists provide
essential services according to the needs of the individual patient. Physical
therapy is concerned with the restoration and prevention of disability following
disease, injury or loss of body part. Therapy may involve gait training, exercises
to increase muscle strength, training to use walker, patient and family education
or rehabilitative treatment to restore mobility and independence.
Occupational therapy is concerned with an individual's capacity to perform these
daily living tasks essential to a productive and satisfying life. Therapy may
involve teaching skills that will assist the patient in the management of personal
care and cooking preparation. Speech pathologists are concerned with disorders
in the production, reception and perception of speech and language. Speech therapists
provide restorative therapy, diagnostic and evaluation services and therapeutic
services.
24 Hour On-Call Availability
Care is available seven days a week. If a problem should arise, a
registered nurse is on call 24 hours a day to offer advice over the phone and,
if necessary, to make a home visit.
How Is Home Care Paid For?
Home care is paid for by a variety of sources including Medicare,
Medicaid, Social Services Block Grant, Older Americans Act, private health insurance,
Veterans' Administration, workers' compensation, health maintenance organizations
(HMOs), Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs), CHAMPUS, social services organizations
and patient/private pay and county taxes. Services usually paid for are skilled
nursing, therapies, home health aides and homemakers.
We Are Here For You
As your neighbors, we share the interests and concerns of the communities
we serve. Our goal is to provide high quality home health care at a price you
can afford. So, if you or a loved one needs our help or you just have a question,
please feel free to call. We can help you stay where you want at home.