Chapter five discusses social work in the home. "The
term home care is used here as an umbrella concept to include both home health
services that provide skilled services, such as nursing, physical therapy, and
speech therapy, and the so-called unskilled services, such as homemaker, chore,
and personal care services, that provide assistance with activities of daily
living (ADLs)" (Fort Cowles, 2003, p. 187). Home care cannot be viewed as
only medical service. It includes many different services including: nursing,
rehabilitative therapies, social work, personal care, and homemaking. Home
health care involves aiding the individual in achieving and sustaining the
highest level of health, activity, and independence. Social work service in the
home through Medicare is only provided if the physician orders it on the basis
of a need directly related to the medical condition. Medicare only covers a
small part of the cost. Home health care has been the fastest growing segment
of the health services industry in the United States. Social workers play a
major role as case managers in home health care. Social workers gather
information and resources to help the client in need. Home health care consists
primarily of elderly unmarried women.
I really liked your blog. I do believe that home health care is growing at a fast pace and I also believe that social workers play a major role in making sure that the client feels as comfortable as possible when being moved from the hospital to their home but still being taken care of by a stranger. It amazes me that Medicare only pays for some of the cost. being in a home health care setting is very expensive and it would be nice if Medicare would pay for the whole thing. That would help the family and the client in more ways than one. Good post!
ReplyDelete