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Memorial Regional Health: After illness or injury, home health care essential — To prevent complications after a hospital stay, MRH works to ensure patients taken care of at home

Lauren Glendenning and Lynn Nichols/Brought to you by Memorial Regional Health
Home Health services provide a strong continuation of care from hospital discharge or nursing home discharge to recovery in the home.
Shutterstock image
MRH Home Health Services Memorial Regional Health helps patients bridge the gaps across health care settings with its collaborative Home Health Services program. For more information about these services, call 970-824-6882.

Editor’s note: The following article is sponsored content from Memorial Regional Health.

Following a stay in the hospital for illness or injury, transitioning to the home can be a task that requires some extra help from trained professionals.

Oftentimes, the transition from hospital to home is too much for a family member or friend to help. This is when home health services come into play.

The weeks following hospitalization can be particularly challenging, with an average of about 1 in 5 patients in the U.S. experiencing adverse drug events and other complications, according to a study in the journal The Neurohospitalist in 2015.

“Unfortunately, readmission to the hospital after discharge is common — nearly 20 percent of hospitalized older Medicare patients will be readmitted within 30 days,” the study reports.

That’s why home health services are increasingly important — both for hospitals and patients — for preventing readmission. At Memorial Regional Health, Home Health services include a team of professionals who develop specialized care programs based on patients’ individual needs.

Transitioning from hospital to home

Home Health services provide a strong continuation of care from hospital discharge or nursing home discharge to recovery in the home.

Members of the Home Health team come to the home to help you manage medications, learn how to move around safely in your home, adapt daily living skills to accommodate physical needs, complete treatment plan items such as strength building, provide infusions when necessary and more. The goal of home health is to help patients regain independence by helping them get back to moving around and walking safely, so they can be out and about in the community.

An individual might receive home health services for a few weeks or a number of months, depending on their situation. The average amount of time a person needs home health services is 60 days. Depending on your injury or illness, you might be seen once per week or multiple times per week by varying team members.

Medicaid and Medicare cover home health services, as do some private insurance companies.

Home Health team

The Home Health team at MRH works collaboratively to ensure patients are progressing in all areas. Members meet regularly as a team to discuss the best treatment approach and continually keep your primary care provider informed on your progress and medical needs. The team consists of RNs, CNAs, physical therapists, occupational therapists, a speech therapist and a licensed clinical social worker.

In the U.S., there are various reasons for re-hospitalization, and almost all are related to the type of care a patient receives after leaving the hospital setting. These reasons are largely influenced by factors outside the hospital setting, including poor social support, poverty, and access to outpatient care, according to the Neurohospitalist report.

At MRH, the team of Home Health Services professionals work to create care that prevents these outside factors from interfering with patient recovery.


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