With the increase in popularity of nursing services given at a person’s home, there are a number of different things that nurses can do outside of a formal hospital setting. Depending on the needs of the client and their families, any number of these services may be given to a person in a residence.
Some of these home health care services can include:
- Wound care
- Vital signs
- High-tech nursing
- Post surgical Rehabilitation
- In-home blood draws and injections
- Infusion services
- Catheter insertion and maintenance
- Medication setup, administration and education
- Diabetes management/ teaching
- In Home Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy
- Medical Social Workers
Keep in mind that nurses can perform a variety of tasks based on the setting and the needs of anyone under their care. For example, a nurse who provides home health care will likely perform different services each day versus those who help deliver babies or work with professional athletes. Nursing really is a varied profession.
Most nurses still do work in a traditional hospital setting, but this is beginning to change as it becomes easier and more convenient to make alternative arrangements for care at a person’s home. Technology also helps nurses quickly share information and utilize all kinds of equipment more conveniently than in times past.This means that the hospital is no longer a necessary fixture to perform various kinds of healthcare work. Management level personnel such as a person’s primary care physician or an administrative nurse can also be reached easily by phone or other means of communication even when they are not physically present in a home or other private care setting. These changes have allowed nurses to perform their job in new ways with access to the same kind of resources and support that they would have in a hospital.
The social aspect of nursing
A significant portion of the nurse’s job also involves interacting with the patient and their family. Most people who become nurses genuinely enjoy helping people and talking to them as a part of their daily duties. This means that a nurse also provides comfort by socializing and getting to know a person.
Actually administering medical care is one part of a broader range of service oriented skills that a nurse must possess in order to maintain a working relationship with the patient and anyone else who lives with them. Some nurses appreciate the fact that they help provide this kind of social support, as well as the medical treatment that they provide. It allows their services to become more personalized and they can sometimes develop very good relationships in this manner. They may possibly treat the same patient for several years or even decades depending on their needs. There are plenty of stories of nurses successfully providing care to an individual for very long periods of uninterrupted time. This is especially true for people who have chronic conditions related to their cardiovascular or respiratory systems that may require a lifetime of care.
Required training and skills for nurses
Because of the variety of services that a home healthcare agency can provide, the agency will provide a nurse with a specific skill set that matches the needs of each individual client. Certain services may require additional training or education, and a nurse that can perform these tasks will be assigned to the right patient. Nursing is also a field that is growing at a fast rate and many institutions around the country are offering various kinds of nursing degree programs to meet the demand for these services. This is at least in part due to the nation’s aging baby boomer population and the demand for healthcare professionals to treat them.
However, all nurses who perform home healthcare services must have a certain amount of education and experience to be licensed and in good standing in the state. First at Home only employs nurses that have all of the relevant training and certifications, and it is best to hire nurses through a reputable agency that performs Level II background checks and requires home care experience before allowing a nurse to come into contact with a patient. This ensures that any nurse you come into contact with has never abused or stolen medications or engaged in any other kinds of illegal activities.
Learn more about the benefits of in home healthcare
To find out more about if private duty or in home healthcare services are right for you or one of your family members, contact First at Home. They can provide more information about the services that their skilled nurses provide. First at Home also provides free care consultations to discuss their services and what kinds of treatment may be needed. This discussion is a necessary first step to get started with bringing a nurse into your home.