Is A Nurse Needed For Home Care?

Duties of A Home Care Nurse

A home care nurse takes charge of providing medical assistance to the elderly via programs such as in-home care nursing services. He or she is a registered nurse or someone who earned a license in practical nursing and decides to provide nursing care at home. A home care nurse can provide treatment to patients opting for home care when they suffer from diabetes, colostomy, wounds, tracheotomy, and respiratory disorders. 

Advantages of Having A Home Care Nurse

There are a lot of advantages of hiring home care nurses for your loved ones. Basically, they conduct regular in-home visits to check on the needs of elderly adults who are under home care. Their duties include medication management, building diet care plans, as well as monitoring and assessments. They also take charge of communicating with your loved ones’ medical team to make sure they report any treatment they have provided as the need arises.

Another advantage of having a home care nurse for your sickly loved ones is the fact that they prevent unnecessary hospitalizations. Whenever they conduct regular visits and they detect any signs of illness, they will be able to provide the proper care that your loved ones need.

Difference from A Home Care Helper

As opposed to the duties of a home care nurse, home care helpers provide assistance for the non-medical needs of elderly adults. They are the ones who do simple chores like bathing and dressing up your loved ones, as well as assisting with meal preparations and eating. 

They take charge of personal care and respite care whenever additional help is needed. They can also monitor a person’s diet, take trips to the store for errands, perform housekeeping, and provide companionship to your loved ones. They follow a schedule too and can either be assigned to be there either during mornings or midday or evenings. Some home care helpers are temporary, meaning they can be changed after a few weeks, or they can be long-term, making them capable of providing services beyond a month or so.

Is A Nurse Needed for Home Care?

There are some things to consider when answering this question. Now that you know the difference between a home care nurse and a home care helper, it will be easier to make a choice. To summarize that, your loved ones need a home care nurse when they have prevailing conditions that need to be monitored. You can also hire them when you feel like your loved ones are showing signs of a condition that house care helpers cannot deal with.