Things You Should Know About Home Health Care

Fourteen weeks as a patient receiving home health care services taught me some very important and expensive lessons. Patients who are placed with home health care agencies usually are unfamiliar with the process. We could have saved thousands of dollars and avoided many stress-filled hours if we had received just a few important tips.

Home health care is usually prescribed for patients who need on-going treatment for a serious condition. A home health care recommendation is often unexpected by patients and family members. The system can move quickly and suddenly family members and friends find themselves serving as primary medical caregivers to a very ill patient.

Home health care services have two primary benefits. The first is that patients are more comfortable in their own homes and tend to rest better than in a noisy hospital. The second is that home health care services are significantly less expensive that a hospital stay.

These benefits make home health care preferable to a hospital stay. Unfortunately patients and their families are not informed about what to expect from a home health care agency. Each case is different but these tips should put you on the right track for dealing with your home health care situation.

The first thing to realize about home health care is that your physician is responsible for recommending it but does not usually have control over which home health care company serves you. Most insurance companies have working contracts with home health care agencies and will require that you utilize the services of their appointed agency or forgo your insurance benefits. There are downfalls with this system. Your insurance company may assign you a home health care agency that is unfamiliar to your doctor. They may assign an agency with a less than stellar reputation. If your physician recommends that you consider home health care contact friends who have dealt with a home health care agency and ask for their recommendation. You might not have a choice but you may be able to persuade your carrier to assign you a specific agency upon request. The patient's life depends upon the quality of the home health care agency.

Most HMO and PPO insurance plans require that home health care requests be approved prior to beginning service. Your doctor's office is responsible for contacting your insurance company about this. If you experience a delay in getting the service started call your doctor's office to follow up. If the delay is due to the insurance company than contact them yourself. My home health care services were delayed several days because the assigned case manager was gone on vacation. Had I not called personally the request would have sat in her voicemail until she returned the following week. You might be a pest but at least you'll get the care you require.

The second most important thing to understand about home health care is that it is not a nursing service. Supplies will be delivered to your home and a nurse will visit to teach a family member how to care for the patient. You will need to find a responsible person who can be at your home whenever the patient needs care. That person will need to be available when the nurse visits for training and anytime the patient needs care or assistance. Patients may need round the clock supervision or just medications administered daily. Some home health care patients are well enough to care for themselves but it is still necessary to plan for a back-up caregiver.

Although the caregiver might have no medical training he will be responsible for nearly every aspect of the patient's care. I was unable to function for most of the fourteen weeks I received home health care services. My family members, including my ten-year-old daughter, all took turns caring for me. My daughter was able to give a emergency room nurse IV instructions based on her experience caring for me. Caregivers should be aware of the responsibility they are undertaking.

Because the training by a nurse is done quickly, make sure the caregiver takes notes. A spiral notebook becomes a valuable tool. After awhile times and dosages begin to muddle together, especially if multiple caregivers are involved. The notebook will function as a hospital chart for home health care patients.

Realize that you have the right to complain if you are unhappy with anything. The manager of your home health care agency should be able to accommodate any special requests or needs you have. This applies to personality conflicts with workers as well as delivery requirements.

The supplies the home health care patient needs should be delivered directly to your home. Most agencies use a courier to deliver on-going supplies and medications. Unless other arrangements are made, an adult will need to be at the home to sign for deliveries. A patient who is unable to get out of bed will not be able to answer the door or sign and your home health care agency may not leave the supplies.

Two other supply topics are important to discuss.

First, depending upon the level of care required, you may be receiving large quantities of supplies that will need to be stored in your home. Some may require refrigeration. Set aside a special location in your refrigerator to keep all of these cold supplies together. Taking a half an hour to sort supplies when they arrive will give the caregiver the peace of mind that comes from knowing where everything is.

For financial reasons it is important that you inventory the supplies. Many home health agencies have a standard package they send to everyone with a specific condition. The problem with this is that the patient may not need all of the supplies, may need smaller quantities or may need more. Home health care supplies are not returnable. Home health care agencies make money from any items they deliver whether you use it or not. They have no incentive to discontinue sending the extra supplies. My packages contained an item that did not work with the type of IV line I was using. Until we complained about all of the extra supplies they continued to ship a large package of them to me each week. On the other hand, my equipment required more batteries than was standard so each week I had to make certain to request extras. One week they were late with a delivery and my pump battery died several hours before my next shipment arrived. Caregivers should be able to determine which supplies are being used and demand that the home health agency deliver appropriately.

Appropriate deliveries are always a concern, especially during the initial days of home health care. Until a usage pattern is determined you may not receive enough supplies or medication to last until the next delivery. Taking a few minutes to determine usage levels and quantities on hand will allow the caregiver to contact the home health agency before the situation becomes critical. Do not assume your home health care agency will deliver additional supplies - call to make certain they will.

Home health care patients should not expect daily visits from a medical professional. Nurse visit schedules are determined by need. If the patient has an IV that must be restarted every other day than the nurse will visit that often. A patient with a PICC line does not need IV starts but will need a weekly dressing change. In that case a nurse visits once a week. The physician provides guidelines but home health care concerns are usually addressed first though a call to the home health agency and then to the doctor if necessary.

The physician plays a key role in the home health care system so do not hesitate to contact the doctor's office at any time. On-going medical care requires the home health care agency to receive medication refill approvals. Your physician should be made aware of any changes. Do not count on the home health care employees to communicate with your doctor, make a weekly call yourself to make certain the office is aware of progress or lack thereof.

Do not, under any circumstances, hesitate to contact your home health agency with concerns. They should have someone available to you at all times. Caregivers are not medical professions and should not be relied upon to make decisions regarding care. Any problems should be dealt with immediately.

Keep copies of every paper you receive from your home health agency. This includes the packing lists for your supplies. Home health care is expensive despite that fact that the basic care is provided by family members or friends. Billing errors do occur and the paperwork may be key to untangling a mess.

Home health care agencies do provide an important piece of our healthcare system today. Without home health care patients would be in hospitals and separated from family members for longer periods of time. Patients find comfort in their own homes. Following these tips will relieve a bit of stress during your home health care experience.