Enjoying the Comforts of Home

If you notice that your health is beginning to decline but you're determined to stay living at home, you'll likely want to hire in-home care. Having a home health aide visit you daily or even live with you can allow you to remain under your own roof. However, there may come a time that you need to visit the hospital for an extended stay. This doesn't mean that it's time to part ways with your home health aide. Provided that you've hired someone from a home health agency that can stay on upon you being admitted to the hospital, here are some ways that the aide can help you.

Getting Your Belongings

Once you're in the hospital and are feeling up to it, you may wish to have several of your personal items with you. Things such as your slippers, PJs, reading material, and more will all help to make your hospital visit feel more comfortable. If you don't have family members who live in the area, you may struggle with a method of getting these things — but this is where your home health aide comes in. Given that he or she already has a key to your home and knows where your possessions are, the aide can easily collect these items and take them to you in the hospital.

Serving As An Advocate

When you're in the hospital by yourself, it's valuable to have someone serving as an advocate for you. Whether you're in pain but are reluctant to make a stir or you're simply confused about what information the doctors and nurses are telling you, a home health aide's medical background makes him or her an ideal patient advocate. Your aide likely already has a clear idea of your overall health, which means that he or she can provide helpful details to your hospital care team, too.

Controlling Access To You

In some cases, you may be eager to have hospital visitors. In other cases, you'll be reluctant to see people. Your home health aide can work to control access to you. He or she can let your circle of contacts know how you're doing and whether you're ready to see visitors. If visitors are present, the health aide can ensure that the visits are kept short so that you're able to get your rest to promote healing. You may have trouble sending people away, even if you know that you need to rest, so your aide will be highly valuable in this regard.

Talk to caregivers from businesses like ActiveCare Home Care if you want more info.