by Melissa D. Ing

Created on: May 29, 2010   Last Updated: January 28, 2012

Home health care becomes necessary when a family member needs temporary or long term assistance with day to day living. While it is typically a Physician or Social Worker who directs and completes an assessment and suggests home care, they do not go out and find the actual care provider. Often it is the Seniors spouse or primary family care giver who decides that home health care would be a benefit to themselves and the senior. Sometimes for mental health purposes home care becomes an absolute necessity.

To understand what home health care is, and when it becomes appropriate, you first need to understand what home health care is not. Home health care is not a substitute for an assisted living complex, or a substitute for a nursing home. Instead; it is seen as the first rung on the ladder for a senior who is probably going to require more and more care as they age. Alternatively; home care can be a temporary measure when a work place or motor vehicle accident has occurred, or even a chronic illness has developed. In this instance care may only be needed for weeks or months, instead of years.

When a Physician or Social Worker does a client care assessment, the senior or adult's mental, physical, emotional and psychological state will all factor into how much home health care will initially be needed. Whether a client needs someone to simply prepare pre-cooked meals, or whether assistance is needed with bathing or administering medication along with how often the assistance is needed, are all factored into the evaluation. A potential home health care client should participate in the evaluation to make sure that any potential service will focus on their needs.

Once the assessment is done, a home health aid agency needs to be located. While a Physician may assist, it is usually the job of a spouse, or family member, or even the senior themselves to find an appropriate agency. The goal in locating a home health care provider should be one that provides optimal service at a reasonable price. While many seniors may receive some coverage under Medicaid, Veteran's Affairs or any Professional Institute they belonged to during their working years, many have to rely on their savings. Senior's have to use the services of a for-profit agency are sadly the ones who get most taken advantage of; as these types of agencies typically try to 'upsell' the client into buying more care than initially needed or wanted.

A home health care worker may simply be an Aide, Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or even an Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA). Many times a combination of either an Aide/Nursing Assistant and Occupational Therapist are used to help a senior make necessary life changes after a stroke, surgery, or while recuperating from a serious trauma. They may assist an senior with new types of medical devices, making new medication plans, or simply provide personal hygiene or house work support several times a week.

The ultimate goal of home health care is twofold; helping seniors remain active and as independent as possible while remaining in their own home; and preventing mental and physical decline so that a senior has to move to an assisted living complex or nursing home. With both the cost, and lack of available and affordable nursing home care; many families and seniors view using home health care as appropriate to keeping someone out of a nursing home for as long as possible!

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