Improving The Aging Process In The Home Setting

Sure, some of us remember the days when Doctors made house-calls, however those days, by-and-large, are gone. Fast forward to 2009-2010; more and more people, both young and old, are opting to stay at home for both acute and chronic illness and subsequent recovery and rehabilitation over Assisted Livings / Skilled Nursing centers.

There is certainly nothing wrong with institutionalized healthcare delivery (often, it is the most appropriate setting). However, the option of remaining at home while receiving healthcare services has been proven by several studies around the globe to have a very positive impact on the overall dignity, well-being and recovery of those that are ill or infirm.

When one thinks about it on a basic level, it’s clear why choosing to receive healthcare services in the home makes sense.

Here are just a few reasons:

✴It is delivered at home. This seems obvious, but really, a person’s home generates positive feelings. When we are not feeling well, most of us want to be at home. When we are feeling well, home is where most of us choose to relax, be with friends and family and in general, enjoy life.

✴Home care serves to keep the elderly independent. With personalized care planning and RN Supervised Case Management, it is now possible to maintain or improve the overall physical functioning of those receiving home care services. We strive to achieve our overall goal of keeping our clients highly mobile, highly interactive and productive citizens.

✴Home care promotes healing. There is abundant evidence that patients heal more quickly at home. Even more important is the overall decrease in infections that often plague those confined to acute care or longterm care beds such as MRSA, VRE, C-Difficile, or other opportunistic infections.

✴Home care allows a maximum amount of freedom for the individual. Being in the client’s home, the care team is truly focused around the client. Care is delivered in their home, on their schedule and in the manner they choose. The client and their family participate in their health care. Through this process, the client and their family become very proactive in the care they receive which results in much better outcomes. Additionally, close supervision is available to minimize fall risks or injury should they suffer from poor safety awareness. This is a distinct advantage over institutional care.

✴Home care reduces stress. Unlike most forms of health care which can increase anxiety and stress, home care frequently has the opposite effect. In fact, it is rare that I walk into a client’s home and there are signs of anxiety. More often than not, each client is calm, relaxed and more open to suggestions regarding their plan of care.

✴Home care is an efficient form of health care. By bringing health services home, the client does not generate board and room expenses. In addition, services that were once thought only to be provided in large healthcare centers, such as ultrasound exams, x-rays, EKG monitoring, lab work, etc., are all readily available in the home setting.

✴Home care is given by special people. Our caregivers are a special breed of healthcare workers. They are experienced, highly trained and dedicated to their clients, take ownership of their assignments, and are willing to remain with our clients for extended periods of time. Our team is dedicated to Home Care because they CHOOSE to… some would say it’s a “calling.”

✴Home care is, in many cases, less expensive than other forms of care. In general, home care costs only onetenth as much as hospitalization and only one-fourth as much as nursing home placement to deal with comparable health problems.

✴Home care extends life. A study by the U.S. General Accounting Office has established that people receiving home care tend to live longer and have a better quality of life.

Home care helps not only add years to life, but “life to years.”

Part of succeeding in home care is proper Care Manager supervision (in NJ it will be an RN). In doing so, your Care Manager can assist you with obtaining all necessary medical and ancillary healthcare services in the home setting, thus reducing the need for unnecessary hospital visits or excessive trips to physicians, laboratories, or other centers. Your Care Manager will, however, keep in close contact with your Physician and collaboratively will maintain and augment your treatment plan to maintain your optimum level of health. In this manner, you are still under the direct care of your Physician with an expert overseeing your response to prescribed treatments and medications.

When I decided that Home Care was the area that I was “called to,” choosing a Home Care Agency became a simple choice. As Clinical Director of 1st Choice Home Care, I saw immediately that their team has that “special touch.” Each client becomes part of the family, and is never “just a number.” The office staff know each client, their family members, their Physicians, their neighbors and friends. It is because of this that I have witnessed great success stories where I never before thought possible.

I can go on for pages about the great success stories of many clients of 1st Choice Home Care; and further proof of this success is contained in hundreds of letters and cards simply stating “thank you.” The thanks are for the personalized attention, the complete positive turnaround of certain clients, raising a client’s level of functioning from totally dependent to independent. As I explain to clients and families upon intake, if over time our services are no longer needed, it means we did our job! The result of close Care Management has shown that over time, clients can and often do improve from being dependent, to nearly independent. Of course we will always be there should things change again, but it is always a pleasure to watch our clients grow stronger and healthier, and that is the goal of 1st Choice Home Care.