"Home care is the right choice for a patient who needs extra help after they leave the hospital," said Maureen Fallon, administrator of home care at Nyack Hospital. "Patients can recover in the comfort and privacy of their own home, and are less likely to develop infections at home."
Once a patient is discharged, Fallon's team works to provide an individualized care plan. "Our team visits the patient at home and evaluates what needs to be done to keep the patient safe," she said. "For instance, they may need adaptive equipment in the bathroom so they are not at risk of falling, or a cane to get up and down the stairs."
At home, patients can become confused about their medicines, particularly if prescriptions were changed in the hospital. "A home care nurse works closely with the patient’s doctor to review all medications," said Fallon. "The nurse makes sure the patient knows when and how to take their medication and what the side effects are. We become the eyes and ears of the physician in the patient’s home."
The end goal of home care is to create a supportive, nurturing environment with a tremendous amount of teamwork among the staff and physicians, Fallon explained. "We always have a nurse on-call 24 hours a day who can evaluate the patient’s needs over the phone and visit the patient’s home if needed," she said.
Nyack Hospital’s Home Health Care agency is licensed by New York State and has received a four-star Home Health Compare Quality of Patient Care Star Rating from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. They are the only home care agency providing services in Rockland County that has maintained four stars.
For more information, contact the Intake Office at 845-638- 8717.