Tag: Healthcare at Home

How patients can live safely in the comfort of their homes

It’s no secret that patients require round the clock care an attention. Their well-being and healing depends on how well they are cared for. A patient with staff who are alert, attentive and fully present stands a much higher chance of recovery than a patient with highly distracted staff who are in a hurry. The most common medical mistakes are made when attendants and attending professionals are too thinly spread. The best alternative to this to receive healthcare at home.

Reputed home health care services means is a system of care provided by qualified and skilled practitioners to patients in their homes under the direction of a physician. The ultimate goal of home health care services is to help individuals to improve in their health and function and live with greater independence. This method has long been proven to promote the patient’s optimal level of overall well-being.

By remaining under healthcare at home, patients are the sole priority and receive undivided attention even through the night. This means that they are constantly monitored and cared for, which in turn leads to a higher level of safety and security for the patient. Having a skilled and knowledgeable practitioner who is aware of the patient’s condition, charts and progress to keep a watchful eye on the patient can even be life saving in certain situations.

Moreover, home health care means staying safe from viruses, infections, fungal infections and other transferable diseases that are most prevalent in hospitals. A patient’s immune system is often compromised which makes them susceptible to any bacteria in the air. Medical personnel are also distributed between multiple patients which may make them carriers of the bacteria. Further sickness to a patient with compromised immunity can be catastrophic and at times even fatal. This is prevented when a patient receives medical care at home.

Finally, home healthcare facilitates exceedingly safe administration of treatment and medication. The practitioner or nurse is responsible for maintaining a hygienic and well sanitised environment. This helps ensure a sterile surrounding is maintained for the administration of medicine or care and ensures an additional level of safety for the patient.

After all, it’s our duty to keep our loved ones safe!

Homecare : Heal Faster at Home

Battling through sickness and disease can be really disconcerting. It can be really tough on the patient and well as the loved ones that surround them. Watching the person you love so dearly suffer and ache can take an emotional and physical toll on the family and friends. We all want to see the suffering come to an end and watch the beautiful transformation as the patient recovers fully. One of the best ways to speed up the recovery is receiving healthcare at home.

Home Healthcare is actually proven to speed up healing and recovery of patients for so many reasons. In fact, patients are said to thrive in their home settings versus in an institution or hospital setting.. Several case studies and research have indicated that patients may in actuality bring the recovery forward by 6 weeks or more.

Healthcare at home may include receiving caretakers, nanny services or even a highly qualified physiotherapist at home. Whichever service it may be, the benefit of receiving personalized care in the comfort of one’s home has innumerable benefits. Let’s take a look at how this may happen:

Think about an elderly patient that has recently undergone major spinal surgery. The surgery was a success, the patient is stable, but now the long road to recovery begins. The recovery time given is 6 months or longer, but the patient is stable enough to be sent home. However, the patient is now unable to walk, sit, change or do anything independently. He needs support 24/7. Now there are two options: remaining in long term hospital care with qualified professionals available to him around the clock. Or, receiving healthcare at home.

By remaining in hospital, his meals are all provided, physiotherapists are checking in daily and there nurses checking in hourly. You know he’s in safe hands. The drawback: you can’t be with him all the time. This can be resolved one way – by bringing him home; he is stable after all!.

By bringing him home, you get to be around, your family is there to surround him and he’s in his own bed. You can hire a caretaker to care for him and prep his meals and have a physiotherapist at home too. This way, he gets fully dedicated attention. Rather than having different people checking on him hourly, he has one person dedicated for him at all times.  Rather than waiting for a physiotherapist to come see you on his rounds or when he’s free, you have a dedicated professional coming at a time that is convenient to you. The patient is not spending his time waiting for doctors to be available to him.

By doing this, the patient in recovery is able to set his own routine, eat wholesome food that enhances his recovery, be with loved ones And even find ways to be entertained. All these factors contribute to the speedy recovery. That’s why healthcare at home is the go to solution for those that need speedy healing..So what’ll you choose?

Essential factors why you need a palliative care

What is palliative care and why is it so important? The World Health Organization (WHO) states that Palliative care improves the quality of life of patients and that of their families who are facing challenges associated with life-threatening illness, whether physical, psychological, social or spiritual. This means that a patient who is fighting for their life, sometimes even for prolonged periods of time, can receives healthcare at home to improve their quality of life.

WHO estimates that each year, an estimated 40 million people are in need of palliative , but only 14% receive it. It is noted that among those that do receive palliative care, the patient as well as the family of the patient experience a better quality life. Palliative care can include a range of services from nursing care to physiotherapy, physicians and volunteers -essentially anyone who is dedicated to ensuring the comfort and care of patients fighting life threatening illnesses. The primary and most frequent person however, are nurses as they are able to identify and act on the patient’s needs with medical understanding. Some of the illness that may require palliative care include:

  • Cancer
  • Dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease
  • Advanced lung, heart, kidney or liver disease
  • Stroke and other neurological diseases, including motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • HIV/AIDs

And other degenerative or deteriorating conditions

These illness can be extremely difficult on the patient as well as their family. So why is it so important to have palliative care?

  1. Quality of life – In it’s definition, palliative care is designed to ensure that a patient is ensured the best quality of life in their situation. This may mean managing pain or other medical symptoms, making them comfortable or simply allowing them to experience joy in spite of their condition. While they still must face their illness, the support of palliative care in controlling pain and other symptoms can make each day a more positive experience that allows the patient to make the most of the time they have with their families.
  2. Improved mental health – It is no secret that receiving healthcare at home has great benefits over institutionalised care. However, being at home, surrounded by loved ones and familiar surroundings allows the patient to have an improved state of mind. This means that in spite of their suffering, they are able to experience joy and peace in the midst of their battle for life.
  3. Elongated lifespan – By opting to have nursing care round the clock, the nurse may be attentive to unusual medical symptoms and raise the alarm if needed as well as take quick and appropriate action. This may prevent a patient from early loss of life due to treatable conditions. The improved mental state of mind also contributes to longer lifespan as the mind plays a vital role in the body’s overall well being. A happy, determined patient is more likely to thrive than a patient who may have given up.
  4. A higher chance of recovery – Not all life threatening illnesses are terminal. Some may be treatable with time and the right course of action. With the exception of terminal patients, those with a chance of recovery have greater odds of fighting the illness when trained professionals are made available to them 24/7. While this is no guarantee and completely dependent on the patient’s medical case, there are cases that show that palliative care can lead to a full recovery.
  5. A positive experience – On the opposite end of the spectrum, some patients may in fact be terminal and may have a limited amount of time. In such cases, receiving nursing care or palliative care ensures that not only are the pain and symptoms controlled, but also that the patient has the most positive experience overall in their last few days. By staying by their side, ensuring appropriate care, offering companionship and allowing them to be with family, the patient is able to have a more positive and loving experience in their final days.

Palliative care is essential for patients with life threatening illnesses. In fact, it’s one of the best things they can receive if the care is delivered by a trained professional. That’s why we are so passionate about these services!