What Do Skilled Nurses Do?
Did you know that you can have skilled nurses come to your dad’s home to help with a number of home health care services? Instead of having to take an afternoon or morning off work and bring him to the doctor’s office or medical clinic, he stays home and has nurses come to him.
Skilled nursing care is a level of care that only a licensed nurse can provide. It can be offered in a nursing home, hospital, or rehabilitation facility, but it’s also available through home health care. What services are available with skilled nursing? Here’s a list of the most popular home health care options.
Catheter Care
Skilled Nursing Northbrook, IL: Skilled Nursing and Seniors
Suppose your dad has a condition like MS or Parkinson’s that makes it difficult for him to empty his bladder. A catheter is used to drain the bladder. A skilled nurse can offer catheter care to your dad in his home.
IV Lines and Injections
Your dad needs medications that are only given through an injection or IV line. This isn’t something that the average person is able to do on their own. Miss the vein, and it could lead to serious issues with medication administration. It can damage nerves or cause severe swelling and inflammation. You need a skilled nurse to set up the IV or inject the medication properly.
Is your dad diabetic? He may need to have a skilled nurse help him check his blood sugar levels. If his sugar levels are off, his nurse can administer insulin injections and consult with his doctor to figure out what happened and prevent it from happening again.
Tube Feedings
Since his stroke, your dad cannot swallow. He’s getting his feedings through a tube. His skilled nurse can administer those tube feedings. The nurse can also check the port for signs of infection, flush it properly, and that the tube is placed correctly and not coming loose.
Vital Sign Monitoring
Checking your dad’s vital signs is another way a skilled nurse helps your dad manage his health. The nurse can take and record his pulse, blood pressure, and oxygen stats. If there seem to be problems, the nurse talks to his doctor to determine if your dad should be transferred to the hospital.
Wound Care
After surgery or while healing from an infection, your dad needs someone trained to recognize if an incision, sore, or wound is healing properly. If it’s not, the nurse knows what to do. If IV medications are recommended by the doctor, the nurse can set up the IV line and administer the antibiotics.
Skilled nursing is important as your dad recovers from surgery, a heart attack, a stroke, and so many other chronic diseases and emergency illnesses. It’s also important to support him in the end stages of diseases like Alzheimer’s and ALS.
Call or go online to discuss your dad’s need for skilled nursing care. You’ll get answers to your questions and learn more about prices and schedules.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Skilled Nursing in Northbrook, IL, contact the caring staff at Companion Services of America today at (847) 943-3786. Our home care service area includes Northbrook, Highland Park, Deerfield, Glenview, Buffalo Grove, Evanston, Des Plaines, Skokie, Lake Forest, Wilmette and the surrounding areas.
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