Navigating the world of home care can be difficult- use this handy guide to find out more.
What is Domiciliary Care?
Homecare or Domiciliary care is when a person receives help from a carer within the comfort of their own home. It is provided by local authorities or a private provider.
Who is Homecare for?
There is a wide range of services that can be provided at home, such as personal, dementia, and palliative care, which can be provided through short visits, overnight care and even live-in care.
Anyone can receive care at home, with some providers specialising in adults (18+) and others specialising in care for children. However, the most common service users are the elderly, people with disabilities, and people suffering with chronic conditions, both mental and/or physical.
What Type of Care is Best for Me or My Loved One?
There are lots of different types of care and what’s best is dependent on the needs of each individual service user, and whether care is needed long-term or short-term.
One of the most common forms of support is personal care, which refers to help such as getting washed and dressed, preparing meals, basic domestic tasks and prompting to take medication. Your provider should take into consideration the order in which you want tasks completing and any specific quirks- visits should fit into your routine and encourage independent living.
In comparison, there are temporary forms of homecare such as hospital-to-home, which centres on assisting an individual during the recovery period after a surgery or treatment. This may include tasks such as personal care or transport to appointments, to ensure someone can come back home as soon as possible from hospital.
Benefits of Care
The main benefit is, obviously, that you get to remain in the comfort of your own home for as long as possible, and maintain control over your own life.
In addition to receiving physical support, visits act as a time to socialise and meet new people, which can be really beneficial in maintaining their mental health and connections to the outside world. Some providers offer services like social check-ups or transport to day centres, which can help combat loneliness.
On top of this, homecare can be more cost effective than a care home, depending on the type and frequency of care, and also the costs in your area.
Care at home may also help lessen the burden on our NHS- consistent, specialist care means conditions can be dealt with and managed earlier on, which may reduce the chances of individuals being admitted to hospital or ending up in A&E- you can read more about bringing care closer to home here.
How Does Funding Care Work?
Care is usually funded by the individual receiving care or their family, but your local council may be able to contribute to help cover the cost of care.
Homecare in the UK costs on average between £23 to £34 per hour, with many providers charging more for weekends and bank holidays.
A needs assessment will need to be carried out first to determine the type of care you require. Then, you will be means tested- a financial officer will look at earnings, pensions, benefits, and savings to determine whether you are eligible.
- If your capital is over £23,250, you will have to pay for the home care service in full.
- If you have between £14,250 and £23,250, the council will contribute some of the money required.
- If you have less than £14,250, your capital won’t be included in the test and the council will pay for your care. But they will take your eligible income into account.
In addition, if you begin to pay for care yourself, but are starting to run out of money, the council might be able to help with funding, but the process above still applies.
What to Expect When You Start Receiving Care
Typically, your chosen provider will begin by completing a needs assessment, in which you can discuss your wishes, the frequency and time of visits, and whether any adaptations will be needed to your home, such as installing handrails or a stairlift.
After the assessment, the team will create a care plan, which outlines all your needs, such as frequency and times of visits, what support is required, and any medical information. What is written in these care plans should be followed as closely as possible by all staff that visit.
Most care providers require their support workers to write notes, documenting each visit- they should write about all the tasks that have been completed, the mood and behaviour of the person receiving care and any issues or problems that they may notice. These notes are usually documented online and can be read by the service user, their family and other members of staff via a family portal, such as Care Line Live’s ‘Care Circle’. So, if you can’t regularly visit your family member that receives care, you have access to regular updates on how they’re doing.
What Does Broomfield Care Do?
At Broomfield Care, we provide a bespoke, 1 to 1 service in the Gloucestershire area, to ensure you and your loved ones are treated like individuals, and to the highest of standards. We take a holistic approach to care, and work to maintain the physical, emotional and mental health of all our clients.
We provide a number of services, such as personal care, specialist and dementia care, as well as welfare checks, and transport to appointments and day centres. To find out more about the services we provide, you can click here.
Case Study of a Previous Service User:
Mrs N is in her 80s and has lived alone at her home in Gloucester since her husband passed away, with a very supportive family close by. Some time ago, she had a fall and was admitted to hospital, after which she transferred to a care home. However, Mrs N soon realised living there was not for her and decided to return to her own home and continues to live there with the support of Broomfield Care.
The Broomfield Care team have been looking after Mrs N for nearly two years. In the beginning, her family were worried about whether she would accept and adapt to having carers in her home. The team have provided a friendly and supportive approach with Mrs N, built up good relationships and encourage her to remain as independent as possible in her own environment.
Regular visits are much enjoyed by Mrs N who is always pleased to see staff, friends and family. Mrs N is much happier in herself and feels content again in her own home.
Mrs L, Mrs N’s daughter, comments “The family appreciates the close cooperation of the carers and their proactive approach. I’m sure I speak for my brother and my sister when I say that we feel very supported by the Broomfield team.”
