Balancing one’s personal and professional life while taking care of elderly parents or ailing family members can be a major challenge. Due to changes in the family structure — from the multi-generational family under one roof, to the nuclear family — many of us face daunting challenges in caring for our elderly parents – while still managing one’s personal and professional life. This challenge increases if young people live in one part of the world, and their parents in another. Distance can make it difficult to assess a parent’s needs which depend on factors such as aging or chronic health conditions, and getting them the care, safety and security they deserve.

Obviously, there’s nothing better than your loved ones being looked after in the comfort of their own home, surrounded by family and friends…one of the many reasons that have catalysed and encouraged the growth of home healthcare in India. What better solution to help your aging parents, and other elderly family members, live out their golden years at home, when you can’t be there to take care of their everyday needs?

Whether recovering from surgery, living with a chronic condition that may require on-going care, or for assistance with the activities of daily living, home healthcare can fill in for you. Generally, the services provided by established and reputed home healthcare providers should include:

• Skilled, caring and compassionate clinical care
• Trained registered and associate nurses
• Visiting doctors and medical consultants
• Medical care takers
• Physical and occupational therapists
• Trained attendants…and more.

The majority of home healthcare professionals should meet the highest quality healthcare standards while ensuring clinical excellence and safety. Stringent hiring standards generally include credential verification and background checks of all applicants. In addition to in-depth interviews, written tests, and hands-on skills assessments, healthcare services also evaluate core values of compassion, excellence and reliability.  Caregivers are also required to demonstrate their competency annually, with hands-on skills assessments and performance evaluations.

People who opt for utilizing home healthcare services, have the right to demand, and get:

• The best quality, hospital standard clinical care
• Have qualified and experienced team members to evaluate the customer’s medical needs and offer the resources needed to provide the necessary care
• Staff credentials and qualifications should all be verified, including:

• Education
• Work history
• References

• All team members should have undergone:

• In-depth interviews
• Rigorous written tests
• Hands-on skills assessments

On-going supervision and assessments of the patient is part and parcel of healthcare packages from reputed establishments. Clinical managers make regular home visits to ensure clients are receiving the highest quality care while also providing ongoing mentoring and support to the patient’s family as well as every one of the healthcare team’s members.

Patients and their care team should have access to a 24-hour clinical support team member from their local office, should any questions or concerns come up. A patient and family centered approach is an integral part of the service provided. There should be regular communication between clients, family caregivers, physicians, and other concerned people.