FOR YOUR HEALTH Home health improves life for patients and family caregivers

BY RIVERSTONE HEALTH

Home healthcare combines the skills of healthcare professionals with the comfort and convenience of staying home.

After a serious illness or injury, home healthcare may be an option for recovery and rehabilitation. Your physician may prescribe home care that starts after you leave the hospital or other inpatient facility.

If you are unfamiliar with home healthcare, you may have questions or concerns about accepting help or having healthcare workers in your home.

Elaine Popp, 85, and her daughter, Kathy Terpstra, got a crash course in home care last year. “Mom didn’t want home care. ‘We’re fine’ was our family motto,” Kathy recalled recently.

But after Elaine had a stroke, she needed to move into her daughter’s home. Kathy, who had a broken arm at that time, suddenly became her mother’s caregiver. Kathy knew they needed a lot of help. Elaine’s primary care physician prescribed home health and Kathy chose RiverStone Health Home Care.

The Home Care team, which Kathy compares to a rescue by the “cavalry”, soon visited their home south of Billings. A nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist and speech therapist scheduled regular visits – weekly or more often as needed – to help Elaine work on her goals. A medical social worker also was available, if needed.

The nurse lined out Elaine’s prescriptions a week at a time, showing Kathy how and when to give the medicine. The nurse taught Kathy how to bathe her mom and helped her understand her mom’s complex financial issues.

Physical therapy eased Elaine’s back pain and got her moving around again with the aid of a walker. Occupational therapy showed Kathy how to make their home safer by eliminating fall hazards.

Elaine’s longest-running home health service is speech therapy for aphasia, a disorder most often resulting from a stroke that damaged a language center in the brain. By working weekly with her speech therapist, Elaine regained her ability to express herself clearly. She can carry on conversation, revealing her thoughtfulness, kindness and sense of humor. She still has some memory problems, but is determined to keep making progress.

“I love her; she has done so much for me,” Elaine said of her speech therapist.

Each home health patient has an individualized care plan developed by the professionals who come to the home to deliver that care.

Home health services may be requested by physicians, the patient, family member or a hospital discharge planner. These services may be covered by Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs or private insurance.

When RiverStone Health Home Care came into her life, Elaine couldn’t get out of bed and was unable to talk. “She was up, eating, bathing, talking within two weeks after Home Care came in,” Kathy recalled.

Seven months after starting home healthcare, Elaine