Venture House Info Soft

Posts Tagged ‘Meal Preparation’

Home Health Care is a supportive kind of care that is provided to the patient in his own home by insured and bonded health care professionals. It is a skilled care that can also be given by the family members, friends, primary caregivers, or voluntary caregivers. The term Home Health Care refers to the care that is offered to the patient by licensed personnel. It is a skilled nursing care.

The primary aim if Home Health Care is to make it possible for the person to remain in his home setting instead of using institutional-based, long-term or residential nursing care. The health care professionals render the health services to the client in their own home. These services are generally a combination of life assistance services and professional health care services.

The life assistance services incorporate help with the regular tasks like laundry, meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication reminders, shopping, transportation, errands and activities of daily living (ADL). ADL refers to six basic activities of your regular routine that features: bathing, dressing, eating, transferring, walking and using the toilet. It reflects the patient’s capacity for self-care. The professional home health services contains psychological or medical assessment, pain management, wound care, physical therapy, medication teaching, disease education as well as management, occupational and speech therapy.

We are aware that many a times people like to receive care in a familiar atmosphere with the love, patience and understanding of the friends and family that surround them. The elderly care professionals design services that specifically help the patients increase and strengthen their ability to care for themselves in their homes. Good health and well-being, no doubt, begins at home with an understanding that illness can affect the loved ones as well as the patient’s hopes and aspirations.

Helping the patients to become independent is extremely important for us. A number of Home Senior Care services are offered for the patients who experience illness, surgery or hospitalization or the ones who are facing a new health diagnosis that needs a consistent change in their daily lifestyle. In the centers, they use unique care plans, medical treatments, comprehensive assessments, medication management and effective symptom control. The physical rehabilitation services helps to restore the functions that are impaired because of surgery, illness or accident.

Elderly Health Care also caters to the newly diagnosed disease like heart failure, diabetes, or pulmonary disease. They guide the patients to combine the self-management skills in their daily lifestyle. Nowadays, the Senior Health Care services specialize in caring for the patients having a number of medical conditions that demands infusion therapy or IV. Through the advancements in the Home Health Care technology, the hospital stays of these patients are often reduced considerably, and the treatment is offered in the comfort and privacy of home. This enables the patient to live productive and rich life in a comfortable home setting.

Most elderly people eventually are faced with the fact that they can no longer live alone and this can be a very stressful time for them. They feel they are losing their independence and are no longer useful to themselves or others. You can make this easier on your parents if you talk about it before that time comes and make plans together as to how it will be handled.

Your parents have probably lived in their home for a long time so the best solution is probably home care. You can try to find a home health care provider on your own, but it would not be wise to do this without checking both their references and their background. You would also need to learn about the state laws regarding taxes, insurance and bonding. You are probably better off using the help of a professional agency. A good agency supplying home care aides will have a good business record and ensure their caregivers have been checked out thoroughly.

The home care companion can help with walking, meal preparation and light housekeeping, while a certified home health aide can help with bathing and dressing in addition to other tasks. A home care agency manages their home health care aides and the home health care aides take care of your family member, so you can take care of your own responsibilities. This allows you to maintain a good relationship with your parents and enjoy each others company to the fullest.

A licensed home care agency supplies caregivers to people who need either non-medical services or licensed home health care. Agency employees are certified, screened and have a thorough background check done for your protection. The agency takes care of all wages, insurance, taxes and bonding. Some even have vans that shuttle their caregivers right to the client’s home, assuring prompt and reliable service.

Of course, experience is one of the most important things to look at when contracting a home health care provider. Be sure to ask for references and for any client success stories they may have.  The most trusted home health care providers in your area will have numerous references and testimonials for you to review. The agency you select should also be a member in good standing of the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

One of the greatest benefits that can come from working with these professionals is the relationship which develops between the client, their family and the caregiver and supervisor. The family soon learns to trust the caregiver to take care of the client and the client accepts and soon enjoys the arrangement, allowing everyone to relax and enjoy life again.

Home health care can provide you with services in the comfort of your own home, these services are generally coordinated by a care agency. Some services offered are skilled nursing care, physical and occupational therapy, speech-language pathology services, and medical social services as advised and ordered by your doctor. A home health aide can administer additional services. These may include personal care, some housekeeping, meal preparation, and general health management. This type of care can help facilitate staying in the home for senior citizens and disabled individuals.

In order to determine the services you will need, health care professionals from a Medicare-certified home health care agency will work with you and your doctor in evaluating your needs and writing your care plan. Home health care agency staff will teach you and your caregivers to continue care such as wound care, therapy, and disease management. Reaching and maintaining your best physical, mental, and social well-being is the ultimate goal of in-home care.

If you are leaving a hospital or skilled nursing facility, the discharge planner can help you to set up in-home care. You can choose the specific agency you will use, but your choice may be limited by the services an agency offers, your insurance coverage, and the availability of the agency.

Services Covered

In order to be eligible for Medicare coverage, the health services used must be both reasonable and necessary in the treatment of an illness or injury. A home health care agency certified by Medicare may provide the following services:
Part-time or intermittent skilled nursing care by a registered or a licensed practical nurse Personal and occupational therapy Speech-language pathology services If you are receiving skilled care or other therapy from the home health care agency, you may also receive part-time or intermittent home health aide services (including help with activities such as bathing, getting dressed, and using the bathroom) and medical social services (including counseling and help finding resources near you) Certain medical supplies that are part of your care, including wound dressings Durable medical equipment such as a walker
Cost

Medicare-approved home health services are free. Durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, and oxygen equipment are available at a discounted price-20% of the Medicare-approved amount-and the Part B deductible applies.

Your Rights

If Medicare does not cover a certain service or supply, your home health care agency will give you a Home Health Advance Beneficiary Notice, which says that Medicare will not pay for the item or service in question. Be sure to read this notice carefully; if you sign the notice and Medicare does not cover the cost, you may have to pay for it in its entirety.

You will also receive a Notice of Medicare Non-Coverage before your Medicare-covered services come to a close. If you believe your services are ending too soon (before you have had the chance to recover), you may file for a fast appeal. Instructions detailing how to go about asking for a fast appeal can be found on your Notice of Medicare Non-Coverage. Your doctor may have information that will help your case. When you ask for a fast appeal, an independent reviewer will make the decision as to whether your services will continue.

You have the right to be involved in decisions regarding your treatment, the right to a fair process of appealing decisions regarding coverage and payment for services, and the right to privacy and confidentiality.

Avoiding Fraud

Although most home heath care agencies are honest and use proper billing information, fraud is not uncommon. Fraud may include home health visits ordered by your doctor but which were never actually carried out or bills for equipment or services that you never received.

Finding the right caregiver to take care of your loved is not always an easy task. Here are some key interview questions to help you get started. Be sure to take notes during the interview. Always check the references of at least two final applicants. Do not wait too long to make the offer, as good applicants may find another job. If the offer is accepted, the caregiver and the in-home helper should set a date to sign the contract and begin work. Both employer and employee should keep a copy of the contract.

1. Name, address, home phone number, cell phone number, and the best time to call.
2. Do you smoke?
3. Do you have a driver’s license? If yes, do you have reliable transportation and insurance? How far from here do you live?
4. Do you have any CPR or first-aid training? Do you have any formal caregiving training?
5. Do I have your permission to run a background check?
6. What type of position are you looking for? After reviewing our job description, is this the type of position you are looking for?
7. Can you perform the duties required for this position?
8. Are you comfortable with pets?
9. Are you able to work the hours needed?
10. When are you available to start working?
11. Do you have any medical conditions to prevent you from heavy lifting? Would you be able to transfer someone from a wheelchair into a car or onto a bed?
12. If we are delayed, go out of town, or go on vacation would you be able and willing to adjust your schedule?
13. Where was your last job? How long were you there? Why did you leave? May we contact your past employer? Please provide contact name, phone number, and email address.
14. If meal preparation is needed, what kind of food do you cook? Have you had experience cooking for other people
15. How do you feel about caring for an elderly/disabled person? Or a person with memory problems?
16. How do you handle people who are angry, stubborn, or fearful?
17. What type of diagnoses have you cared for?
18. Is there anything in the job description that you are uncomfortable doing?
19. Give an example of a difficult situation you handled with a client. For instance, how did you handle refusing to take a shower?
20. What time commitment are you willing to make to stay on the job?
21. Will you keep daily records? Do you know how to use a computer?
22. Why should I hire you?
23. Are you willing to sign a contract saying you will not accept money or gifts from my parents?
24. How will you keep the family informed?
25. Can you give me two work related and one personal reference?

When you hire a caregiver be sure to provide an employment application, W-4 tax Form, job description, and summary of the care-receiver’s condition. Ask the caregiver to provide written references, completed employment application, completed W-4 Form, and signed copy of job description, copy of driver’s license, car registration, and insurance.

Fortunately, there are reputable agencies out there who focus on helping the elderly in their own home. This in itself takes a great deal of stress off the family member who is caring for them. When you begin searching for the perfect agency, here are some important services to inquire about. Ask if the agency you are considering has:

1. Home Health Aides
2. Certified Nurse Assistants
3. Registered Nurses
4. Licensed Practical Nurses
5. Home Maker / Home Companion Aides
6. Senor Care
7. In Home Nursing Care

Home Care Services ( Personal Care Services )

8. Bath Visits and Dressing
9. Light Housekeeping
10. Meal Preparation
11. Escorts, Errands and Shopping
12. Respite Care
13. Medication Reminders

Specialty Programs

14. Medication Management
15. Post Surgical Care
16. Parkinson’s
17. Oncology

You don’t want to trust just anyone with a family member you love. Before you make any kind of decision, make sure you understand everything that is involved with Senior Home Care. What is listed above is a good place to start. Make a list of all you feel is needed. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to make sure that the agency you hire will be a good match for your particular situation.

Having someone to rely on (besides yourself) will make a very big difference in not only your own quality of life, but for your loved one’s life as well. This way, your loved one will not only have you there for them, but will also have a Home Health Care Professional to help with their every need.