Private Home Care Policies & Procedures

It will be up to your company to create the right set of private home care policies and procedures for your particular type of home care. There are several resources available to home care providers to make sure that the best policies and procedures are implemented and that your company stays up to date.

Facts

• Private home care policies and procedures are necessary for a successful home care business. Fortunately, you do not have to hire a lawyer or pay a researcher and author to write a policy manual for your company. There are many prewritten manuals that you can use to implement the correct policies and procedures for your location. By using a prewritten manual you can read reviews written by professionals in the field to determine whether it is complete or whether you will need to supplement it to meet your needs and the rules and regulations in the industry.

Types

• There are several types of policies and procedures necessary for private home care providers. Because these providers deal with health records HIPAA applies and medical records of all clients must be kept confidential. Often candidates for employment with a home care provider must undergo a background check. Further, candidates for employment must have an annual tuberculosis screening, and may have to obtain certification or a licensing program for health care professionals. Regular charting is also a common practice. Often when servicing frail or declining patients, home care providers will be required to chart the progress or decline of a patient's health.

Accreditation

• It may be helpful to belong to a home care association in order to make sure that your company is aware of the existing policies and procedures that are commonly accepted in your field and make sure that you stay up-to-date. One of the most prominent associations is the Private Duty Home care Association. Currently, there is not a robust set of laws governing home care and as such it is necessary for the field to police itself to ensure that a good reputation exists.

Significance

• Policies and procedures are important to have in place because they legitimize your home care business by showing potential clients that you have rules of conduct in place. They also serve as a teaching tool to employees, provide a liability safeguard for business owners, and, depending on the state, may be required to obtain a business license. Further, private home care policies and procedures guarantee a uniform standard of care for all patients. Aside from being a generally good business practice, having a policy and procedures manual can help safeguards providers from discrimination lawsuits because employees will be required to provide the same services to each client.

Considerations

• Although the home care industry has largely developed its own policies and procedures, it is necessary to stay current and maintain the highest standards in home care. Because your company will have employees who will often need to work independently with ill clients it is essential that both you and they know their capabilities and that a superior is available at all times by phone in case there is a need for supervision or a potentially dangerous situation arises.