FAQ’s

Home health care provides services to people recovering from an illness, surgery, or rehabilitation who may need ongoing assistance and monitoring in their home. Home care can range from a one-hour/intermittent visit to 24-hour coverage per day.

A team of healthcare professionals, including registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, home health aides, physical, occupational and speech therapists, medical social workers and personal care workers. Generally, a nurse will make the first visit to assess the client. The nurse will contact the patient’s physician with a report. A care plan will be developed by the nurse along with the client and family according to the physician’s orders.

All of our employees must submit to a Criminal background check that includes annual inquiry in the national Sex offender database. Additionally, our screening process includes but not limited to verification of licensure/certification, review of employment history and references with a personal interview.

It is always best to call your physician first. Medicare and Medicaid usually cover intermittent home care services when home care is ordered by a physician. The patient must be considered homebound and require a skilled service. Private insurance coverage varies depending on the policy and benefits. Some private insurance may require a co-payment. Home care patients that require more than intermittent services usually are not covered by insurance policies and are paid for privately.

An individual is not required to have been hospitalized or discharged from a skilled nursing facility before they can receive home health care. Most patients are referred directly from their doctor’s office.

Yes, a nurse, physical or occupational therapist can be sent to a patient’s home to evaluate for home safety and recommend assistive devices for a patient. Generally, the therapist, along with the physician, will develop a home exercise program to fit the patient’s needs.

The nurse, under the direction of the physician, will assess and instruct clients/families on wound care, disease process, self injections, medication side effects, enteral nutrition (G Tube), IV therapy and other treatments or procedures needed at the patient’s home.

A CNA works under the direction of a Nurse. A CNA is certified by the state of Virginia after completing a training program and passing a state certification test. A CNA is trained to take vital signs and then communicate findings with the patient’s Nurse. Part of a CNA’s duties are to assist patients with meal preparation for special diets, all personal care activities such as bathing and grooming, non-sterile dressing changes, and exercise. A Home Services Worker also called Homemakers, Personal Care Workers and Caregivers assist patients with bathing, grooming, toileting, companionship, meal preparation, grocery shopping, errand services, medication reminders, exercise and light housekeeping. Our staff can assist patients and families in deciding what services best meet their needs.

The MSW’s role is to assist the patient and their families with problems that may occur during their illness or disability. They can help with issues regarding advance directives and financial concerns that patients and families may have. The MSW can assist patient and families by contacting local community resources that may be of assistance.

Yes. By using our proprietary screening and selection systems, we take the guesswork out of the process and handle all the legwork of matching the right caregiver(s) with each client. However, we will never send a caregiver whom you are not satisfied with and we will accommodate any request for a change that you may have.

Our goal is to establish a long-term match between client and caregiver, and to keep the same caregiver with a client as long as the client is satisfied. This is based upon our experience that developing a strong rapport and trust with your caregiver is a vital component to a successful home care experience. In short, we want to avoid the “revolving door” of caregivers.

Of course, you have the choice of which days and hours you receive care. So, if you choose to receive many hours of service in a given day, or service during different times of the day throughout the week, it may be necessary to schedule more than one caregiver in a given week. Regardless, we want to have the same caregiver(s) coming each week, as long as you are happy with them. All such decisions will be made with the consent of the client.

No. You will never be locked into a long-term contract, and Assurance Health Care, Inc. will never require you to continue with services if you choose not to continue.

We are very flexible with our service and understand the care situation can quickly change. We can adjust schedules with short notice, and we do not have any “contract period” to which you are committed. At the client and family’s discretion, care can typically be established within a few days.