Pros and Cons of Home Health Care Agencies

Home health care agencies provide a valuable service by offering companions, nurses and medical technicians who can assist elderly, disabled or unwell patients in their own homes. While the advantages of receiving care at home instead of a hospital or nursing home may seem obvious, there are also drawbacks that everyone should be aware of.

Pro: Personal Care

• Home health care agencies offer constant, personal care for the patient. Unlike hospitals, where a single nurse or orderly may be charged with several patients at the same time, a home health care worker can provide 100 percent of his attention to the patient.

  This not only means that the patient will receive more watchful care, but also that home health care can offer companionship in addition to any necessary medical treatment. Some home health care agencies even offer additional services, like shopping assistance, laundry and other household chores.

Con: Cost

• Home health care agencies can be expensive. Costs vary depending on the level of care and the amount of time a health care worker spends with the patient, but in most situations long-term home health care costs more than a hospital stay, nursing home or group living facility. Home health care agencies also may not honor the same health insurance provisions or medical care grants that other facilities do, making them even more costly.

Pro: Environment

• Many patients simply prefer the environment of home to a hospital or nursing home. Besides giving the patient a sense of dignity and partial independence, the home environment makes it easier for relatives and other visitors to spend time with the patient.

  Relatives can also spend time with the health care worker assigned by the agency to ask questions and monitor progress. Family members pay prefer home health care because it gives them a chance to observe the process and allows them to feel more confident in the level of care.

Con: Access to Equipment

• Home health care may provide limited access to major medical equipment and specialists. Patients who suffer an acute attack or accident may still need to be transported to a hospital. Nursing homes and hospitals already contain the machines, drugs and specialists who can attend to such problems more quickly if the patient is already present.