Home care

Home care, also called personal care or companion care, covers non-medical help with daily life: bathing, dressing, meal preparation, medication reminders, light housekeeping and companionship. It does not require a doctor’s order, and it is billed either privately or through Medicaid’s consumer-directed or agency-directed programs.

Home health

Home health is clinical care such as nursing visits, wound care, medication management, and physical, occupational or speech therapy. It is ordered by a physician and delivered under a plan of care, often after a hospital stay or surgery.

Side by side

• Who provides it. Home care is provided by aides and companions. Home health is provided by nurses and licensed therapists.
• Doctor’s order. Home health requires one. Home care requires none.
• What it addresses. Home care supports daily living. Home health treats a medical condition or supports recovery.
• Typical length. Home care is often ongoing. Home health is often short term, tied to a recovery period.

Many families need both

Someone recovering from a hospital stay might need home health nursing visits for wound care and home care support for meals and bathing on the days a nurse is not scheduled. Millennium provides both, coordinated through the same care plan.

Not sure which one fits?

Call (703) 941-8412 and describe what is going on. We will tell you which service fits and what it costs.