In recent months, the value of care in the home has become more and more apparent to many families. As COVID-19 has swept through nursing homes and other facilities, older adults have been especially hard hit by the virus. Because of the high rates of infection in care facilities, many families have looked for alternatives for care for a senior loved one, and home care has provided the answers and safety needed during these unprecedented times.

To discuss more about the value of home care, Emma Dickison, CFE, CSA, president and CEO of Home Helpers Home Care, joins me on this episode of Help Choose Home. With more than two decades of experience in home care both professionally and personally as a family caregiver, Emma brings an important perspective to her role at Home Helpers and in her recently appointed role as president of the board for the Home Care Association of America.

In this episode we discuss:

• How the pandemic has fueled an increase in hospitals discharging patients directly home versus to a care facility
• The role of technology in helping make home care more effective
• The future of home care in America
• The growth of home care and an increased need for caregivers

Here are some highlights from our conversation:

• [1:45] Emma discusses the history and growth of Home Helpers.
• [2:30] Learn about the different services available to consumers in home care – from companionship to private duty skilled care.
• [3:45] Emma explains the enhanced COVID-19 protocols put into place to keep clients and caregivers safe.
• [5:10] Discover why hospitals are increasingly discharging people directly to home.
• [5:30] Emma shares information about Home Helpers’ Direct Link® Personal Emergency Response System (PERS) service.
• [6:10] Learn how technology is shaping home care, providing more and more people with the opportunity to live independently at home.
• [8:50] Emma explains how care in the home is the lowest risk setting.
• [10:35] Emma discusses the future of home care in America and the changes the industry is pushing congress to enact to make home care accessible to everyone.
• [14:46] Learn how hiring will keep up with the demand for caregivers based upon project growth of the industry.
• [18:40] Emma shares the vital role of home care in helping people live life with as much dignity and independence as possible.
• [19:00] Learn about exciting innovation in the industry and how whole person care will help provide independence.

After listening to today’s episode, I think that like me, you’ll come away with new insight into how home care can make independence possible for senior loved ones and the exciting role of technology in transforming home care.

You can listen to today’s episode here, or on Apple Podcasts, Google,  YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts.

To learn more about home care and the increasingly important role technology plays in helping seniors maintain independence and dignity, listen to my interview with John Robertson, founder and CEO of HomeEXCEPT, which manufactures noninvasive home sensors that provide improved health and safety outcomes for seniors living independently at home. HomeEXCEPT’s ambient sensor technology was the Grand Prize winner of the AARP Innovation Champion Awards competition in 2017.

If this episode has been helpful, be sure to leave a five-star review and share the podcast with your friends to help us in the national effort to educate about home health care options! You can connect with me, Merrily Orsini, on Twitter@MerrilyO.