We at Visiting Angels of Durham know that families are looking for home care choices and have many questions. We have compiled answers to frequently asked questions about our services and how families might begin so that they can better understand what we have to offer. 

Below are some common questions families have asked about senior care. If you need more information or want to speak with one of our helpful team members, please call 919-321-2159.

What Services Do Visiting Angels’ Caregivers Provide?

Visiting Angels can provide dedicated companion care and personal care services to assist with everyday activities so your loved one can preserve their independence while remaining comfortably and safely at home. Home care services include:

• Companionship
• Fall prevention
• Light housekeeping
• Grooming, dressing, bathing, and toileting assistance
• Meal preparation
• Mobility and transfer assistance
• Medication reminders
• Running errands

What Does "Aging In Place" Mean?

Aging in place refers to a person’s ability to grow old in their current residence safely — whether it is their home, a family member’s home, or an assisted-living facility.

What Are The Benefits of In-Home Personal Care?

In addition to aging in place, a professional caregiver provides many benefits, including:

• Companionship and social interaction reduces the risk of isolation and depression
• Flexibility to receive care when needed most
• Peace of mind that your loved one is receiving compassionate care from a trusted professional
• A customized home care plan that reflects unique needs and requests
• Lower home care costs when compared to assisted living or nursing home care
• One-on-one, personalized care
• Supervision and assistance that reduces the risk of falls, injuries, and other household accidents

How Is In-Home Personal Care Different Than Home Health Care?

Home care is medical care provided in the home by a trained and certified medical professional, such as a nurse, physical therapist, or occupational therapist.

Visiting Angels’ caregivers do not provide medical care and will not assist with administering medication or changing wound dressings. Non-medical home care services will provide your older adult with companionship and assistance with activities of daily living, such as grooming, dressing, toileting, light housekeeping, meal preparation, and errands.

Does Visiting Angels Provide Services in Assisted Living Facilities?

Assisted living facilities are one setting where Visiting Angels might be of assistance. Assisted living facility staff often care for many elderly residents during a shift. When a loved one's requirements vary, their family may engage a professional caregiver to help out more than the facility staff can. This way, the care your loved one receives may be adjusted to meet their changing needs.

Your loved one may be able to stay in their existing home with their current level of care for a more extended period with the added help of a Visiting Angels caregiver. The need to transfer your loved one to a less autonomous area of the institution, where their daily care costs can be more significant, can be alleviated with the assistance of professional caregivers.

Can I Change the Home Care Schedule?

Is it possible to modify the home care schedule? Your family's needs, not the agency's, should be the focus of the plan's implementation. Permanent scheduling changes need one week's notice, although Visiting Angels know that last-minute modifications are occasionally inevitable. In an emergency, the coordinators will try to fulfill your request for a flexible timetable.

How Do I Start Home Care Services With Visiting Angels?

The first step is to contact your local Visiting Angels office to schedule a free home care consultation with a care coordinator, who will meet with you to discuss your needs, answer your questions, and provide additional information about services.

Hire a Visiting Angels’ in-home caregiver. The care coordinator will perform a complimentary home care assessment and develop a care plan that outlines the services for your loved one.

Visiting Angels will identify caregivers with the skills, personality, and availability to assist your loved one. You will then be able to meet the caregiver, and if you and your loved one approve, they will begin working for you.

What If I No Longer Need Services?

A two-week notice is required to cancel a caregiver's services with Visiting Angels. With one week's notice, you may permanently alter your loved one's schedule to reduce the amount of hours or days they get care.

Ask for your free in-home care consultation today. Just call Visiting Angels Durham to get started!