Today, in-home senior care services are gaining in popularity because they allow seniors to reside in their own homes while receiving the care they need. Many seniors are against moving into nursing homes or assisted livings because it's hard to admit when you need help, but in-home senior care is a great meet-in-the-middle option for the seniors you love.
What Is In-Home Senior Care?
In-home senior care is a service that allows nurses, therapists, or caregivers to come into your home to provide a wide variety of services. Any service your loved ones may need can be provided by an agency-provided or independently-hired caregiver/nurse.
In-home Senior Care Service Options
There are many services that can be provided in your home. However, these services do not have to focus on personal care. This includes household services like:
- Cleaning
- Laundry
- Meal prep
- Grocery shopping
- Transportation
That said, personal care services are a popular reason to start in-home senior care services.
Personal care services can include:
- Wound care
- Bathing assistance
- Medication management
- Toileting assistance
- Physical therapy
- Occupational therapy
- Speech therapy
- Companionship
In-home services do not have to be a single service. If your loved ones are having trouble keeping their home in a clean, livable state they would be able to inquire about cleaning/laundry services as well as any personal care services they may need. This may require more than one nurse or caregiver coming into the home. Make sure your loved ones are aware and comfortable with this before beginning the services.
How Do You Begin In-Home Senior Care Services?
To begin, you or your insurance company will need to reach out to a home health care agency. Once you find the agency that feels like a good fit, you may need orders and documents from your doctor — depending on the services you are wanting — to be eligible for your insurance to pay for services. Most insurance does cover most services if a doctor has signed off on services. After the doctor has approved, the insurance company will also need to approve a set number of hours or visits they will pay for. Anything over this amount will typically be your responsibility to pay for.
If you do not have insurance, you can still receive services. While you will have to pay for services out of pocket, they are always available. In this case, you will not need to wait for approval from the insurance company, making the process simpler. However, you may be required to provide a security deposit before services begin. Once they begin, you are in charge of the number of hours of service you would like to receive as you are paying out of pocket. To learn more, contact a facility that offers in-home care services.
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