When patients have to be readmitted to the hospital, often it’s because of complications that happen at home – while a patient is recovering. Professional in-home caregivers provide care that can help you avoid readmission. Proper care after hospital discharge can help keep you on the road to recovery.
Medication Reminders
While companion and CNA caregivers cannot give medications, they can remind clients to take them. If a patient comes home and doesn’t finish taking their medications, their chances of ending up back to the hospital increase
Diet
A physician might place a patient—a heart patient or a diabetic patient for example—on a strict diet. For a variety of reasons, discharged patients often don’t follow their diets. That can delay recovery and contribute to readmission. Caregivers can prepare and serve nutritious meals according to doctor’s orders. Sometimes, care after surgery or injury includes home health care. Home health providers make short visits to perform their services (like physical therapy) and then leave. Typically, they will only come out two – three times a week for a limited time. During home health care and after, homecare caregivers can help monitor a patient to make sure they are continuing their exercises. CNA caregivers can assist with exercise (in a limited way) if they have been given a care plan by a licensed therapist.By providing care after surgery or injury, caregivers can help patients lower hospital readmissions and speed recovery.
After surgery or an injury, daily living activities like going to the bathroom can can become very difficult, if not impossible, to do alone. In addition, many injuries happen after home health care services (like physical therapy) have ended because a patient is more likely to feel the need to do things that could put them at risk. Caregivers can be on-site as long as you’d would like, helping prevent risks until you are once again secure in your environment.