Home health aides often provide assistance to people with daily tasks so that they can be as independent as possible while staying in their own homes. Typical tasks include bathing, dressing, and helping the patient use the potty, toilet, or toilet. HHAs can also participate in the purchase and preparation of food and in helping the patient to eat during meals. Depending on the state in which they live, HHAs can also participate in health care activities, such as monitoring vital signs (for example, monitoring blood pressure, pulse, respiratory rate, and temperature) and helping patients take prescribed medications under supervision by sending them reminders.
However, personal care aides cannot perform the health care activities mentioned above. The role of a home health assistant (HHA) is to help a person live independently in their home by helping them to carry out activities of daily living, among other responsibilities. Not only are you helping a person to stay in the environment in which they feel most comfortable, but home health care is, in fact, more cost-effective, because the care is tailored to the person's needs. The actual tasks that a home health assistant performs in a home may vary depending on the treatment the patient needs.
A career as a home health assistant provides you with an opportunity to do important and meaningful work that makes the world a better place. The last part of a normal day for a home health aide includes the documentation that follows the session with the client. If you've ever been injured or sick at home, you know how difficult it is to keep up with daily household chores. While Medicare usually pays the full cost of most covered home health care services, it doesn't cover day care that operates 24 hours a day.
Helping a person walk, move to a wheelchair or shower and complete household tasks, such as cleaning and cooking, can be physically exhausting. A healthcare worker should always wash their hands before and after performing a task that involves contact with the patient and whenever the hands appear dirty. During a shift, the home health assistant will usually need to keep a medical record of everything that was done by the patient during the shift, so that their condition, progress, and any problems can be recorded and reviewed for later use. Some of this documentation will include time spent on patient tasks and any travel time or mileage.
They also help with cleaning tasks, such as washing bedding, washing dishes and preparing meals. Home health care services help people of all ages who are recovering from an illness, operation, or injury to stay home and avoid being hospitalized or placed unnecessarily in a skilled nursing facility. It's important that the healthcare team respects these individual differences and works to meet the needs of each patient. It's important to remember that not everyone is eligible for Medicare or Medicaid, and home care services may not be fully covered. Unlicensed personnel, such as home health aides and personal care aides, are vital members of the home health care team.
