As adults age, many seek balance between independence and health needs. Some locals are finding that balance in home health care.
Martha Hamilton, 75, and her husband Paul Hamilton, 78, still live at home and get around just fine and event winter in Florida each year. This spring, right after returning home from Florida, Martha started to feel ill. “I thought I had food poisoning. I went to urgent care and they said if I didn’t feel better in a couple days to go see my doctor.” The next day Martha was taken by squad to the emergency room where they discovered she had a perforated bowel.
Martha spent 6 weeks in the hospital and then 3 weeks at Winchester Terrace Nursing Home in Mansfield. “They were all so great with me and then I went home, but I still needed care,” Martha explained. “So Visiting Nurse Association came to the house every day.”
Though Paul’s mother was a nurse, it was more than he could handle to take care of Martha. “Nursing is not his tool,” she said, laughing. “Until you need them, you don’t even know they’re available.” Only recently, Martha was released from needing home health care and is back to her busy life.
Home Health Care isn’t just for nursing, either. There are services that provide other in-home care that Richland County residents might need.
When Arnetta Hayes nearly burnt her kitchen down, she realized taking care of herself had gone beyond difficult and was now dangerous. “My son kept bugging me about getting some help, but I just didn’t think I needed it.” After the fire, she called her son, Charlie, who drove down from Michigan for a week to figure out what they could do.
“I was scared to death,” said Arnetta, who is in her 80’s and has been living alone for the past thirteen years after her husband passed away. “I thought Charlie (son) would want to put me in a nursing home, but that’s not what we talked about.” Instead, Charlie applied for Passport Care for his mother through the State of Ohio. A case manager was assigned to Arnetta and determined that she qualified for the Passport Program which would pay for her in-home care.
Now, Arnetta has a home health care provider come into her home to fix meals and clean her house, since her eyesight is her biggest obstacle right now. “They (Home Health) said they would keep me home as long as possible and I can leave feet first if I want,” she joked.
Today there are many home health care programs to choose from. The Visiting Nurses Association (VNA), which is a non-profit, United Way organization, services area residents in their home health care needs. “The federal and state governments are leaning more toward home health care than institutional care. Plus, older adults rather stay home,” said Stephanie Taddeo, the LISW-S senior manager for development and mental health for VNA. “It also costs a lot less,” she explained, when it comes to the option between home health care and skilled nursing care.
Today’s home health care services can range from having meals delivered all the way up to assistance with baths. “Our nurses will teach them about the disease process; our social workers link them with resources, and our physical and occupational therapists visit them at their home.”
Taddeo also notes that there’s been a cultural shift in the way health care is provided. Older adults used to do what their physicians told them, but the Baby Boomers want to make the decisions themselves which has led to home health care being more attractive.
Signature Health Services, celebrating their tenth year in Mansfield, is another local business offering much the same services as VNA in the Mansfield area. They also work with Medicare and Medicaid patients as well as private-pay.
“We set the person up with our clinical relations director to find out what their needs are,” said Jennifer Kline, office manager and scheduler for Signature Health. The session will help determine whether family’s need skilled services or therapy or just assistance in their home.
Independent living and assisted living communities are still a viable choice, but only a small number of people qualify since Medicare does not cover either of these. The average cost for independent or assisted living in Richland County is currently $4,000 per month, and that’s with minimal care. As their needs grow, so does the cost.
But for those whose incomes can’t pay for these types of specialty care, Medicare and Medicaid have made it easier for people to stay home longer into their senior years.
An excellent resource on home health care and other senior services is the Area Agency on Aging. More information is available on the agency’s website.
