Although it can be a worrying time for all involved, during a stay in hospital, your loved one is safe under expert medical care. However, what happens after they are assessed as being fit to go home?
Ensuring that the right care is in place at home not only provides a safe and secure environment for your loved one to recover properly but also frees up hospital beds for those who need them. With this in mind, suitable care should be considered following a hospital discharge. But where does this care come from, and is it offered for free?
In this guide, we will explain the ins and outs of care after being discharged from hospital, what it is, who is eligible for free care, and the different services available following a stay in hospital.
For more information about hospital discharge care, take a look at our after hospital care for the elderly guide.
What is Hospital Discharge Care?
Being admitted to hospital can be a deeply disorientating and unsettling experience. However, equally stressful is the prospect of being discharged and sent home to continue the recovery process alone and without support.
Following a hospital discharge, individuals may feel less secure in their ability to care for themselves independently in their own homes. Lack of confidence in moving around, self-administering treatment or medications, and carrying out everyday tasks may be causing your loved one to worry about returning home.
Hospital discharge care offers reassurance to you and your loved one, following their stay in hospital, ensuring that suitable care and support are in place in the comfort of their own home. Hospital discharge carers can support with:
- Managing medications
- Wound aftercare
- Pain management
- Mobility
- Personal care (bathing, dressing, and toileting)
- Transport to outpatient appointments
- Picking up prescriptions
- Meal preparation
- Light housekeeping
Can you get 6 weeks free care after hospital discharge?
Yes, it is possible to receive up to six weeks of free intermediate care after a hospital discharge in the UK. Healthcare professionals at the hospital will assess your loved one’s condition to evaluate whether they could benefit from funded NHS rehabilitation for the elderly temporary care to help them get settled in at home.
If care has not been arranged for your loved one after a hospital discharge, you may want to get in touch with social services to organise short-term care. Temporary care offered through the NHS typically covers one to two weeks, though it can be as long as six.
In addition to a period of free short-term care, eligible individuals can also benefit from:
- Specialist equipment
- Home adaptations
- Mobility aids
- NHS Continuing Healthcare
Should your loved one still need help and support after this short-term care has ended, you may wish to seek out other care services offering hospital discharge care.
Who is eligible?
Free hospital discharge care is available to individuals who healthcare professionals have deemed to be well enough to return home yet not able to look after themselves properly. Eligibility criteria for free NHS-funded short-term care are not means-tested, so income and savings are not taken into account.
If you have an identified healthcare need and you are receiving live-in care in your own home, you may be eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare funding, which is arranged and funded by your local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).
Alternatively, following the six weeks of free temporary care, other types of hospital discharge care are available and can be conveniently arranged through a care provider. Although these are self-funded, the care can be personalised to suit your loved one’s needs and further contribute to their recovery.
Types of hospital discharge care?
Every incident of hospitalisation is different, as are the needs of each individual, which is why there are various types of care to suit your loved one’s hospital discharge care plan.
- Postoperative care – Following surgery, an individual may be deemed well enough to be discharged but still requires a period of recovery at home. Postoperative care involves aiding recovery through pain management, wound care, monitoring complications and side effects, attending follow up appointments, and more.
- Reablement care—This form of post-hospital care is goal-oriented. The goal may be to get an individual back on their feet and regain mobility following confinement to a hospital bed. Once the goal is achieved, the reablement care can be finished.
- 24-hour or overnight care—This service provides around-the-clock or night-time care, which is useful should your loved one experience restlessness or wakefulness at night. This may only be for a period of time following recovery or a stay at hospital or as a long-term arrangement to suit your loved one’s health needs.
- Complex care—For more complicated health conditions, following a period in hospital, a complex carer can offer specialist care in line with your loved one’s specific health needs.
- Visiting care—On the other hand, an individual may leave the hospital and only require some support throughout the day or week. For more mobile and independent individuals, visiting care allows a carer to check in and support them with any tasks they find challenging.
How Trinity Homecare can help
Navigating a hospitalisation period can be incredibly stressful for everyone involved. However, having the right hospital discharge care plan in place upon an individual’s release from the hospital can alleviate this stress.
With an experienced live-in carer supporting your loved one in the comfort of their own home, you can find much-needed peace of mind. This level of care not only offers relief but also provides reassurance, knowing that your loved one is receiving personalised and attentive support.
Trinity Homecare is a fully managed care agency with an ‘Outstanding’ CQC rating, placing Trinity amongst the top 4% of all nationwide care companies in England. With this in mind, you can rest assured that your loved one will receive the highest standard of care and specialist support.
If you have any questions about arranging care, simply get in touch with our helpful and knowledgeable care team.
Arranging nationwide live-in care with Trinity is straightforward. Simply follow these five steps:
- Call our care team
- Undergo a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your care needs and arrange a care assessment
- After the assessment, a plan of care is created
- A well suited carer is found and placed
- Care can be adapted at any time
