If you’re looking for help for an aging parent or loved one, you’ll probably hear two terms that sound alike but mean different things: home care and home healthcare. Knowing the difference will help you get the help you need—and it can save you time, money, and stress.
What is Home Care?
If you’re thinking of home care as help with everyday life, then you’re correct. It includes assistance with personal care and Activities of Daily Livings (or ADLs). Personal care includes bathing, grooming, getting dressed, and toileting. ADLs are tasks like cooking, light cleaning, and laundry. Home care is provided by home health aides, also called caregivers. Caregivers provide companionship and generally keep an eye on things to make sure the client is safe and comfortable. Home care doesn’t require a doctor’s order. Caregivers are not licensed like nurses or physical therapists, but they complete special training to provide the support their clients need. Some also take additional courses to care for people with dementia or mental illness.
What is Home Healthcare?
Home healthcare is medical care given at home to help someone recover from surgery or manage a long-term chronic illness. Nurses or other licensed healthcare professionals check vital signs, track symptoms, give injections, manage IV or tube feedings, change bandages, provide physical therapy, and perform other tasks that require advanced skills. Home healthcare is ordered by a doctor when it is medically necessary for the client’s recovery or treatment for chronic illness.
Why knowing the difference matters for your family:
- You’ll call the right people. If you need help with meals and bathing, you’re looking for home care. If you need a nurse to change bandages, give medications, or monitor blood pressure, that’s home healthcare.
- You’ll understand the cost. Medicare and private health insurance plans often pay for home healthcare because it is medically necessary. Home care usually isn’t covered that way. Families typically pay for it directly, or the cost is covered by Medicaid, VA Benefits, or long-term care insurance.
- You can start sooner. As long as you’re self-paying, you don’t need a doctor’s order to get home care. For example, if your mother is having trouble keeping up with cooking or cleaning, you can bring in help right away instead of waiting until something goes wrong. However, if you are looking for Medicaid or VA Benefits to cover the cost, you’ll need to demonstrate the medical need by getting your doctor to complete the required forms.
- You’ll feel less overwhelmed. Many families start looking for help after a fall or a hospital stay, when everything feels urgent. Knowing the difference between home care and home healthcare ahead of time makes it easier to ask the right questions and find the right support faster.
If you have questions about home care and want to learn how JEVS Care at Home can help you or your loved one, contact us today: jevsathome.org/contact
As a mission-driven organization, we’re committed to providing the support people need to live safely and independently at home and in the community.
