Can I get nurses for home care?

If you or a family member are living alone at home, are suffering with an illness and require further support, you may have questions about getting additional support.

You will have to consider several things when you or a loved one begins to age or are given a prognosis. Seeing a loved one begin to change due to old age or go through an illness can be extremely difficult to cope with. This is why it will be essential to have the right support system in place to help you.

What is nursing care at home?

Nursing care in the home environment goes beyond that provided by most domiciliary and residential carers. It involves clinical care that can allow people who require complex care needs to be safely supported. Having nurses for care at home can be vital for those who still wish to live independently at home but have more complex conditions or advanced illnesses. These can be any prognosis from progressive neurological conditions such as different types of dementia to brain or spinal cord injuries.

Nurses for home understand all risk factors such as falls. Thus, they are trained to take proper interventions for preventing and minimising any injuries to you. Qualified home care nurses are usually qualified to be able to deal with:

• Management of catheters (please note we are unable to change catheters)
• Tracheostomies
• Stomas
• PEG or tube feeding

If you have no complex medical conditions and simply need support to live independently, a home carer instead of a nurse may be solution you need. A home carer will be able to help with everything from simple chores to personal care.

Why have nursing care at home?

Nurses for home are able to monitor your health and use their expertise to judge when more urgent or intensive medical attention is required. It also builds a healthy connection as the care is customised by your choice and needs. Additionally, the nurse’s attention is only directed to one person. The direct connection not only helps in improving your health but also ensures higher quality outcomes.

Often, the elderly are happier with being nursed in their own home as they feel safer and more comfortable in familiar surroundings as compared to a medical facility. At home nursing care is a great way to help them do this while still having reassurance around the clock. As depression and loneliness is common amongst the vulnerable and elderly, the nurse will also be trained to give emotional support and companionship.

Another benefit of nursing home care is being able to keep your pets close, if you have any. Majority of the time, care home will not allow pets and it can be difficult to come to terms with leaving them. While this may seem unimportant to some, pets provide companionship and can have a positive impact on one’s wellbeing. Other reasons as to why nursing home care is a good idea are:

• There are no routine changes, which can be extremely stressful and upsetting
• Helps keep the family together as your loved one can be closer to you

A home care nurse will be trained to perform the vast majority of responsibilities including:

• Medication administration
• Changing of catheter bags
• Help with PEG feeding
• Social, well-being tasks such as help with keeping an appointment and any emotional support required

Planning for nursing care at home

Any at home nursing care will be tailored to your medical condition and needs. It will inadvertently also provide emotional support to your family.

You may already be receiving NHS funded care but feel like you require more support. Private nurses for home can compliment this for the best care possible. In these instances, although there will be a clear separation between the two, both the NHS funded care and private nurse will enhance the care that you are receiving.

You can directly employ your private nurse or go through an agency. If directly employing, you will need to ensure that you are aware of several things such as their DBS check, National Insurance, taxes and pension. When looking for nursing home care through an agency, there are several questions you may want to ask:

• Have the nurses cared for someone with similar needs to yours?
• What hours are the nurses able to provide in one shift?
• What training has the nurse completed?
• What happens if my regular nurse is sick or on holiday?
• Can I get a rotation of nurses to ensure that continuous care is provided?

There may be more questions that you or your loved ones would like to ask. Thus, it is essential that you consider what is important to you.

When this is in place, a nursing care plan will need to be set out. This is a document drawn up that outlines the strategy for providing appropriate care. It is an important tool as it records preferences, abilities, equipment needed, medical requirement and much more. It is constantly being reviewed to reflect any changes  as time goes on.

Why choose us?

At Cavendish Homecare, we understand that it can be a stressful and sensitive time when choosing to bring a stranger into your home. Our team of Homecare Managers, Registered Nurses and Carers have a wealth of care experience and are experts at providing practical and emotional support and care for the patient and their families.

If you would like to discuss your private nursing care needs and potential costs, please do not hesitate to contact, call 020 3008 5210 or email us at info@cavendishhomecare.com