Home Health Care Overview

What is home health care?

Before modern medicine, caring for someone medically in the home was quite common, and hospitalization was rare. Today, with a growing trend toward reduced hospital stays, home health care is gaining popularity. While caregivers of the past were generally family members or friends, home health care today is based more on a professional health care team working toward a common goal.

Today home health care may be considered for patients who are:

recovering from an illness
undergoing treatment
disabled
chronically ill
terminally ill

Home health care is not an option for everyone. Generally, the patient receiving care or treatment at home must be well enough to be cared for in the home setting.

Types of home health care services:

Many types of medical and social home health care services are available and may include:

physician home health care
nursing home health care
physical, occupational, and/or speech therapy
medical social services
home health care aides

A patient may receive one of these services or a combination of several services.

Who provides home health care services?

Various agencies and other companies provide home health care, including:

home health care agencies
homemaker and home health care aide agencies
independent home health care providers

Online Resources
The content provided here is for informational purposes only, and was not designed to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease, or replace the professional medical advice you receive from your physician. Please consult your physician with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.

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