Our Ask An Angel correspondent is Arlene Petersen, Life Care Navigation Specialist in the area of senior home care.
Q My husband is scheduled for a surgical procedure in the near future. His doctor spoke to us about getting care in the home once he is released from the hospital. After talking with several friends, I became confused about the different types of home services available. Can you help explain what is available?
A The health industry can be very confusing. It almost has a language of its own! I work with many people who, just like your husband, will be discharged from the hospital with a directive to get help at home. Just what does that mean and what does that look like?
When a patient is discharged from the hospital, the doctor and hospital’s first concern is patient safety. Another area of concern is making sure the patient stays healthy so he or she does not rebound back into the hospital. This is a concern for the hospital because if a patient is re-admitted within 30 days for a specific diagnosis, the hospital may be flagged for the patient’s re-admission. This may come in the form of denying payment to the hospital for services. You can only imagine the importance of patient safety and successful recovery at home!
So what exactly does the doctor mean when he prescribes home health services? If the patient requires medical assistance in the home, such as wound care, physical therapy, or IV care, then home health would be prescribed. Since Home Health services are usually medical in nature, they typically are a Medicare covered expense. Keep in mind that home health and home care are very different services.
If a patient is discharged with instructions to have home care, different considerations must be understood. Home care falls into the non-medical care category. The types of services that home care provides are custodial in nature, such as hygiene assistance, meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication reminders, taking care of errands or shopping, and transportation to appointments, just to name a few. Home care is similar to having a personal assistant by your side to help with the day-to-day activities of living. Since these services are non-medical in nature, they are paid for privately by the patient. There are some cases where funds are available to help pay for some of the costs associated with home care, and it is worth your time to investigate these options through your local senior services organization.
There are eligibility requirements for Home Health services. Your doctor will prescribe home health with those requirements in mind. More info can be found on www.medicare.gov.
Discharge planners typically recommend home care services to help a patient recover safely at home. The services of a home care agency are paid for privately, and some folks are hesitant to enlist the help of an agency. However, it is important to understand how a personal caregiver can help a patient recover quickly.
Some considerations include recovering safely in the privacy of your own home. Your husband needs to recover safely at home, and a caregiver can assist him with many things. They are specifically trained to care for a patient in the home environment. Most of us enjoy the comfort of our own home, and that helps us heal. Caregivers have trained eyes to watch for red-flag changes in a patient.
• Have a question for our angel correspondent? You can send our angel an email to apetersen@visitingangels.com or send your question via mail to Ask An Angel, 65 Woodbury St., South Elgin, IL 60177.
