Home health services

Home health services is the popular concept in United States and United Kingdom. These services are used by people of wide range of ages, from infants to elders. The service is cost-effective as well as it enables a patient to become self-sufficient. The service offered through home health varies from as small as wound care to the serious treatments like intravenous medications. The goal of home health service is to offer education as well as to make people self-sufficient in tackling the future health problems.

Knowing the Home Health Services:

The kind of services varies from nation to nation. In the United States, a home care patient may receive care from home health aide/worker only or a combination of licensed professional and home health aide/workers. The number of visits to the patient's home also differs from nation to nation. In United Kingdom, two visits are made by the physician to patient's home. Whereas, in the United States, the visit is scheduled in part by a licensed physician and in part by the type of insurance a patient has. The service is offered in terms of selling the home care products through catalogs and the internet. The services are prescribed mainly in two parts viz. activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). Both the services present six different activities which can be given by the family members or friends. Activities of daily living refer to six activities which include bathing, dressing, transferring, using the toilet room, eating and walking. These activities reflect the patient's capacity for self-care. The assistance can be provided to the patient by family members, friends or individuals employed directly by the patient and not by the agency. Instrumental activities of daily living refer to six daily tasks which include light housework, preparing meals, taking medications, shopping for groceries or clothes, using the telephone and managing money.

Knowing the Facts about the Service:

Though the service offers education and low cost treatment, it is also associated with problems and abuses. The patient undergoing the service must be aware of the "patient's rights" and must have a written copy of their rights. The treatment cost is paid by the type of insurance that a patient has or through public programs. Therefore, giving money or gifts to the workers is considered as illegal. If a worker requests, demands or attempts to manipulate money from the patient, it should be reported to the agency. No patient should be left without the care, and an alternative care should be given to the patient if the caregiver is not available at that moment. Any kind of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse is considered as illegal act. Attempts to gain money, financial abuse, theft or manipulation are also treated as illegal activity. To resolve such issues, the complaints should be outlined in writing, along with a copy of the patient's bills of rights and submitted to the office. Government agencies, local or state health departments can help us to resolve the abuse or frauds. Home health service is meant for the benefit of the patients and any distraction from the path should be resolved by taking serious legal actions.

Other Articles

Anyone wanting to buy a home generator is bombarded with many advertisements...

The basics of design vary from the visual such as color, lighting, form etc to the physical such as surface...

The theme, size of the room, climate and natural light in the room decides...