What to Expect as a Home Care Patient
To help you understand what to expect when healthcare is provided in your home, the following information describes a typical visit scenario.

We will normally contact you before you are discharged from a hospital or other facility to arrange a time for the first visit. You should be seen within 48 hours of your discharge unless special arrangements have been made in advance. You should plan on about one to two hours of time for the initial visit to take place. The hospital discharge planner or case manager should give you the name and phone number of our agency that will be providing your care. Call them if you have questions or concerns prior to their contact with you.

Introduction And Overview of services
The nurse or therapist making the first visit to your home should carry identification and offer you written information with our phone number and a description of how to contact us. The staff person should explain what specific services or treatments your physician has ordered.

Consent/Advanced Directives
You will be asked to review and sign a form giving us your consent to provide treatment in your home. This consent form often includes your permission to release medical information to insurance companies or other professionals involved in your care. Advanced directives inform health professional of your wishes for care and specific treatment in emergency or life threatening situations. They include living wills and durable power of attorney that give authority to family members or others who are authorized to act in your behalf in case of an emergency. Healthcare providers are required by law to ask about these items and to provide you with written information about living wills and durable power of attorney. If you have either document, we will need a copy for our records.

This information will be presented to you both verbally and in writing. These rights include your right to confidentiality, to have your property treated with respect, to be involved in your plan of care and any changes in your plan and your right to express any complaints or concerns about the care you receive. You will also be given a hotline phone number listing the government agency that regulates home care providers in case you have serious issues to report.

Health History and Physical Assessment
A nurse or therapist will take a health history and conduct an assessment of your physical status. As part of the examination they will take your pulse, temperature, weight and blood pressure. They will also get initial information about your ability to manage at home with activities of daily living such as walking, bathing, using the bathroom and performing household tasks and chores. This information will help the home care staff formulate a plan of care designed to help you manage your needs at home. The staff will also want to know who is available to help you with your care.

Environmental Safety Assessment
The nurse or therapist will want to observe the safety conditions of your home and living area. They will note the safety and set-up of your bathroom, sleeping area, kitchen, sitting area and stairs. Suggestions may be made for rearranging furniture, rugs or other items to make your care safer or easier for you or your caregivers. If special equipment is needed for the bathroom or other areas, the home care staff can help you obtain this equipment if your physician orders it.

Medication Review
The nurse will review your medications with you and will likely ask to see the individual medications that were prescribed for you and also to see where and how you store them. The nurse will make sure that your medications are labeled properly and that you are properly taking the correct drug at the correct time and in the correct dose or amount.

Perform Treatments or Other Services as Ordered
The nurse or therapist will perform any required treatments or procedures ordered by your doctor as part of your treatment plan.

Additional information will be given to you about plans for future visits and the pattern of visits that you should expect to receive based on the initial assessment. The nurse or therapist may contact your physician to tell them how you are doing or to discuss any additional services or equipment that you may need.

For more information, call CMC-Home Care at 704-512-2300.