24 Hour Home Care: What It Means To Have Around-The-Clock Assistance At Home

If a loved one needs help at all hours of the day or night, sporadic visits might no longer be enough. With 24-hour home care, a person can continue to live at home with the support they need around the clock. Read on to learn more about this type of care arrangement and how it could benefit your family.

What Is Continuous Care?

With 24-hour home care, caregivers are available to assist a loved one at all times from within the home. This is often done with multiple caregivers working different shifts throughout the day and night. While this might sound similar to live-in home care, there is a difference. In live-in home care, the caregiver lives in the home but still has to have designated break and sleep times, whereas in 24-hour care, coverage is split up among several people. For more details from You’re First Home Care, click here.

Of course, the specific details will depend on each person’s individual circumstances, including their medical condition, physical abilities, living situation, and lifestyle. Some examples of what a caregiver might do include:

• Assisting with bathing, dressing, grooming, and using the toilet
• Preparing meals and drinks
• Helping with transfers and ambulation
• Reminding about medications
• Performing light housekeeping tasks
• Providing companionship and engaging in activities
• Providing overnight monitoring
• Helping to get to doctor’s appointments and run errands

In general, in-home caregivers provide non-medical assistance. If the care plan involves nursing care (e.g., wound care, IV administration, physical exams, etc.), then a licensed nurse may be needed to help out with these duties.

When Is Continuous Care Recommended?

Sometimes, it can be difficult to tell when regular home care isn’t enough. For example, frequent falls, nighttime confusion, forgetfulness about medications, and growing difficulties with daily hygiene might all be signs that more comprehensive care is needed. You may also want to explore 24-hour home care if your loved one:

• Is unable to be left alone for long stretches of time
• Wakes up regularly during the night and needs assistance
• Is experiencing moderate to severe memory loss or confusion
• Requires extensive assistance transferring in and out of bed/chairs
• Is recovering from an illness or surgery at home
• Is dealing with a terminal illness and needs comfort and supervision

Finally, if the family caregiver has been struggling to balance all of the responsibilities of caregiving along with other obligations like a full-time job, it might be beneficial to hire a team of professionals. This would give the family member the chance to sleep at night uninterrupted.

Advantages Of Staying At Home

Living in a familiar environment can be reassuring and help maintain a person’s sense of self. A loved one can maintain their regular schedule, eat the foods they prefer, sleep in their own bed, and stay close to friends and pets in the household.

With one-on-one care, caregivers can provide customized assistance by adapting to the person’s schedule and preferences rather than forcing them to adhere to a facility’s rules and policies. This also allows caregivers to observe their patient more closely, which can make it easier to detect changes in their condition or behavior sooner.

Family members can remain involved in their loved one’s care without having to be the only person responsible for everything. This means they can spend more quality time enjoying each other’s company, rather than focusing on constant caretaking.

How To Plan Ahead For 24-Hour Home Care

It’s a good idea to determine what services are needed before beginning to look for a provider. Discuss issues such as daytime assistance, nighttime safety, mobility concerns, cognitive challenges, and any medical needs. It’s also important to assess the safety of the home itself by ensuring that it’s well-lit, uncluttered, and equipped with appropriate bathroom fixtures and sleeping accommodations.

Be sure to ask how caregivers are vetted, educated, scheduled, and monitored. Inquire about how absences will be handled and how the caregivers communicate updates and concerns to family members.

It’s also helpful to know what factors influence the cost of the service (you can see this for yourself at oecd.org/en) (e.g., type of assistance, staffing model, and number of hours). By knowing the entire scope of the care plan, families can better evaluate providers and ensure they aren’t paying for something they don’t need.

Since different caregivers may be working in the home at different times, you might want to go over the home’s privacy, daily schedule, and other personal limits. A written document that lists preferred forms of address, the presence of guests or pets, how to participate in religious ceremonies, and emergency contact information will help all caregivers provide the same kind of care.

Moving Forward On A Positive Note

Deciding to go with 24-hour home care is a big choice, but it doesn’t have to be taken in a moment of emergency. By thinking ahead and identifying potential hazards, communicating with family members and loved ones, and creating a detailed care plan, families can feel more prepared. This can help ease the transition to the next phase of life and ensure that everyone’s safety and well-being are maintained.