Top 9 Benefits of Home Health Care

If you have an aging parent, chances are you have spent endless hours worrying about their future. For many families, home health care is a beneficial choice—a safe and affordable solution that supports the family, while allowing your loved ones to stay in the comfort of their own homes.

If you are caring for a loved one, here are nine ways home health care can support you:

1. Home health care professionals can be there when you aren’t able to be. If you are caregiving from a distance, home health care can give you peace of mind. Trained and qualified professionals can assess safety risks and make simple corrections in the home—from placing a rug on a slippery floor, to recommendations for ambulatory assistance.
2. Home care supports activities of daily living (ADLs). In-home services allow adults to receive day-to-day help with the personal care they need, preserving their dignity and maintaining a good quality of life. Assistance with activities of daily living can include bathing, grooming, and medication reminders.
3. Access to skilled nursing care at home. Skilled medical care can be delivered at home by nurses who are certified, licensed and knowledgeable about high-technology medical equipment. Home health care can ensure that your loved one’s complex medical needs are met.
4. Support with diet and nutrition. Are your loved ones getting the nutrition they need to stay healthy? Adults age 65 and older, people with chronic conditions, and those recently discharged from a hospital or nursing facility are likely to be nutritionally at-risk. Aging, bed rest, illness, and injury can all contribute to the loss of lean body mass. Home care may include nutritional counseling and home-cooked meals to protect your loved ones against malnutrition.
5. Medication management.If your loved one is on multiple prescriptions it can be confusing to manage. Home health care professionals can ensure the right medications are being taken at the right times to control health conditions and prevent harmful drug interactions.
6. Home health care professionals provide caring companionship. Research shows that aging adults stay healthier with social interaction. Home health aides can become trusted friends for walks, reading, cards, games, movies, meals, and other social activities. Accompaniment on errands such as grocery shopping, medical appointments, and other activities are also added benefits.
7. Home care helps with light household chores. When aging adults struggle with the daily demands of housework, such as laundry, vacuuming, dishes, and simple chores home care helps to consistently maintain a safe and healthy living environment.
8. Home health care clients have better health outcomes. Research has shown that clinical results are comparable or better with fewer complications when home care is provided to individuals with chronic conditions such as pneumonia, diabetes, or COPD. Plus, being in a familiar environment allows someone to receive the best support in healing both their body and their mind. In fact, research shows home care expedites healing – demonstrating older adults heal more quickly at home versus in a hospital or nursing home setting. There is also significantly less chance of re-hospitalization when recuperation is at home.
9. One-on-one focus and support. Home health care services are truly unique, providing meaningful, one-on-one personal and skilled care that builds strong bonds between professionals and their clients.

For many families, home health care can be just the support they need to help manage caregiving responsibilities, while avoiding caregiver burnout. Could you or someone you love benefit from home health care services?  Contact us to learn more at 763-452-1049 or info@legacyhc.net.