Home Health Care Services That Help a Parent With Pneumonia
Pneumonia occurs when an infection gets into the air sacs in at least one lung. The infection causes the air sacs to fill with pus and/or fluid that gets coughed up as phlegm. Symptoms include fevers and chills, difficulty breathing, chest congestion, and a hoarse cough.
Older adults are at risk of complications because their immune systems are not as strong. If you suspect your parent has pneumonia, you need to bring your parent to a doctor and seek immediate treatment.
Studies have found that 18.5 percent of patients with pneumonia end up back in the hospital. Prevent this from happening by making sure your mom or dad has the support of home health care nurses. You’ll also need to be a vital part of your parent’s recovery.
The Home Health Services Your Parent Needs
Home Health Care Philadelphia, PA: Seniors and Pneumonia
Once released from the hospital, your dad needs care at home to make sure the recovery goes well. Monitoring the vital signs is one of the important tasks. His blood oxygen saturation levels need to be monitored. Pulse and blood pressure are other readings the nurse will monitor. If complications arise, the nurse will alert your dad’s doctor.
If your dad needs IV antibiotics or fluids to prevent dehydration, a home health care nurse is trained to administer IV medications and fluids. If oxygen is needed, home health nurses can help with that. Ask a home health care agency if additional services like learning how to use a nebulizer are needed. It might be an available service in your dad’s area.
Your dad may need to work with a respiratory therapist to clear the lungs and inhale enough air to keep oxygen levels up. Ask your dad’s doctor if at-home respiratory care is possible. It saves you a trip to the medical office where there may be germs lurking and put him at risk of another infection.
Things You Can Do to Help
Work with your dad’s home health care nurses to make sure a comprehensive care plan is in place and working effectively. While nurses can handle the medical aspects of the care your dad needs, someone needs to keep up with housework, laundry, meals, and transportation.
If you can’t be available when your dad has a medical appointment, make sure someone is scheduled to help. Be around as much as you can for companionship and to run errands like medication refills or to pick up groceries.
When your dad has the support of home health care services and your help with daily tasks, his recovery goes smoothly. Call to schedule services for as long as he needs them.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Health Care in Philadelphia, PA please contact the caring staff at True Direct Home Health Care today.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4136398/
Doc, as he is called by everyone - staff, patients and clients - first experienced home health care and hospice care while as a colleg student at King's College as he cared for his mother every day while she first battled COPD and then lung cancer. It was during this time that he came to understand that caring for a patient was more than just clinical expertise.
"Admittedly, my strongest attribute is my communication skills and the simple fact that I love to help people. Even the smallest thing you can do for someone really can mean so much to them long term. In fact, it could change them forever. That's what providing quality personal home health care should be all about."
In his spare time, he cooks for homeless shelters and children's music and arts events. He also is highly involved in his local youth sports soccer academy as a coach and Board member.
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