What Are Examples of Skilled Nursing Care?
Part of the reason to consider home health care services for your elderly family member is that she might need skilled nursing care to fully heal. There are all sorts of reasons your senior may need this type of specialized help. But she’s probably a lot more interested in coming home and doing all her recuperating in familiar surroundings. Having nursing providers come to her makes that goal much more achievable.
Caring for Wounds and Incisions
An elderly family member with an injury or recent surgery may have a wound that needs to be kept clean. Skilled nursing care providers can manage wound care for your senior, ensure the wound is healing properly. Likewise, ensure any signs of infection or other problems are brought to her medical provider’s attention immediately.
Managing Medical Equipment
If she regularly uses any medical equipment, your senior may need help. Tasks like replacing catheters are ones that your senior benefits from assistance handling. They’re likely also tasks that you feel uncomfortable managing for your elderly family member, just in case something went wrong. Other types of medical equipment, like walkers, are ones she may need help learning to use properly.
Intravenous Therapies
Another reason your elderly family member might need skilled nursing care assistance is to take care of her intravenous therapies. These could be medications your senior takes only via IV, but doesn’t want to head into the hospital or her doctor’s office to receive. Other intravenous therapies, like vitamin infusions, can help your elderly family member heal and build immunity.
Medication Management and Injections
Your senior may be taking a lot more medication now than she has in the past. Some may even be temporary medications to manage specific health conditions related to helping her recover as quickly as possible. Timing those medications properly and taking them exactly as prescribed is important. Having someone there who understands exactly what needs to be done can make all the difference in your elderly family member’s fast recovery.
Monitoring Vital Signs and Symptoms
Monitoring your elderly family members symptoms and vital signs is also important. This is particularly vital if your senior has health issues like diabetes or hypertension that are not under good control already. When blood sugar is too high, for instance, your senior can suffer serious complications. Knowing what her numbers are and when they’re back in the ideal range ensures your elderly family member is taking the best possible care of her health both now and in the future.
When your elderly family member needs care to heal and recover, it’s important that she gets the right care. Being able to stay in her home as she bounces back from illness and injury can help her recover so much more quickly than in other settings.
If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring Skilled Nursing in Northfield, IL, call the caring staff at LifeCare Home Health & In-Home Services. Call (888) 606-4199 LifeCare serves all of the Chicago Metro Area.
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