Frequently Asked Questions
We’re bringing answers home.
Home Healthcare FAQ
What is Home Healthcare?
Home healthcare is quite like it sounds. It is medical attention provided by skilled professionals that takes place in the comfort and convenience of your own home. The care comes to you rather than you having to travel to a hospital or clinic.
Home healthcare is coordinated by a licensed, qualified organization and may involve the services of nurses, therapists, clinicians and sometimes even social workers providing non-medical support. It is a service ordered by a physician for patients who may be recovering from a surgery, illness or injury or for those facing chronic illness.
What’s the difference between home healthcare, hospice care and private home care?
Home Healthcare is quite like it sounds. It is medical attention provided by skilled professionals that takes place in the comfort and convenience of your own home. The care comes to you rather than you having to travel to a hospital or clinic. Home healthcare is coordinated by a licensed, qualified organization and may involve the services of nurses, therapists, clinicians and sometimes even social workers providing non-medical support. It is a service ordered by a physician for patients who may be recovering from a surgery, illness or injury or for those facing chronic illness.
Hospice care is a philosophy of high-quality, compassionate care for anyone of any age who has a life-limiting illness and does not want any more curative treatment. It provides dignity, choice and comfort so what remains of life can be lived to its fullest. Hospice care also provides a great deal of support for family members in the form of physical, emotional and spiritual assistance.
Private Home Care provides care that concentrates on activities of daily living that including live in senior care, personal care, household/chore services, and transportation. These are all things that allow us to remain independent and in our homes.
Who is eligible for home healthcare?
To qualify for home health services, you must be in need of periodic medical treatment but experiencing difficulty leaving your home and to do so, need to rely on another person or an assistance device such as a cane, a walker or a wheelchair. The care must be ordered by your physician and that physician must be licensed in the state of Georgia. The care also must be deemed reasonable and necessary to the treatment of the patient’s illness or injury.
What services are covered under the Medicare benefit?
If you have Medicare benefits, you’ll be covered for home health services such as nursing care, physical therapy and speech-language pathology services. If qualified, you may also receive occupational therapy, the help of a medical social worker, assistance from a home health aide and/or medical supplies.
How many visits will I get at home?
Every patient and situation is different, and it will depend on the treatment ordered by your physician. Visiting Nurse continually communicates and coordinates the home visits with your doctor’s office. That way, if your situation should change, we will work in tandem with the doctor to decide if we should increase or decrease your visits.
What can I expect on the first Visiting Nurse Home Healthcare visit?
Visiting Nurse will assess the needs of the patient during the first visit ensuring the transition from the hospital to your home quite seamless. During the initial visit, a nurse or therapist will coordinate a hands-on plan of care for the patient including their physicians, family, and caregivers. By working together, Visiting Nurse’s team is able to provide the most exceptional care possible.
What does “homebound” mean?
Homebound indicates that it is challenging to leave the home and/or you unable to leave your home safely without medical equipment such as crutches, canes, walkers or wheelchairs. Your physician can determine if you are homebound if they believe that your illness or current health status could get worse if you do leave your home. However, it is not completely forbidden to leave the home. Those that are homebound leave for short periods of time for special non-medical activities like trips to attend church, graduations or to the barber/beauty shop.
Can I request Visiting Nurse if my doctor orders home health care for me?
Of course you can. Patients have the freedom to choose their health care provider under Federal law.
Who do I contact about admission to the program?
Call us, Visiting Nurse Health System, Georgia’s largest nonprofit home healthcare provider. We will then contact your physician to see if home health services are recommended and we will begin your plan. Call (404) 215-6000. We are ready to bring healthcare home to you.
How much does home healthcare cost?
Medicare, Medicaid and most insurance and managed care organizations cover the cost of home health services. Some insurance and manage care plans may require a deductible or co-pay. To have Visiting Nurse help you figure out your depth of coverage, call (404) 215-6000.
Are your employees supervised on a regular basis?
It is important to have a collaborative environment so our teams, clients, their families and physicians are on the same page. We update our employees weekly on their clients’ cases. Our Private Home Care team is also supervised by nurses on-site where they monitor the condition of the patient. These observations allow our team to report any changes to condition, care needs to the client’s family and/or primary physician.
How does Visiting Nurse | Hospice Atlanta ensure all employees are trustworthy and competent?
We understand the uncertainty of having someone new in your home but it is our goal to ensure that all of our clients are comfortable with all Visiting Nurse | Hospice Atlanta employees they come in contact with. Our employees proudly uphold our organizational values—respect, integrity, excellence, stewardship and care in all we do. At Visiting Nurse | Hospice Atlanta, we take pride in having compassionate and qualified employees. All employees are required to have advanced proficiency in critical thinking, time management, technical skills as well as reading, writing and speaking English. We also examine the following for all team members during the hiring process:
- Education
- Current licenses and/or certifications
- Criminal background checks
- Ability to read, write and speak English
- Written references
Does Visiting Nurse provide back-up coverage?
Yes, of course. For all pre-scheduled visits, we will provide backup coverage when necessary. Visiting Nurse is available 24/7 and will never leave a client unattended.
Are Visiting Nurse staff members insured and bonded?
Safety and integrity are important to us. All Visiting Nurse employees are fully insured in compliance with the Georgia state laws and fully bonded against theft.
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We`re proud to have had our Chief Innovation Officer, Jacqueline Ralph-Blair, represent Visiting Nurse Health System at Home Care 100, one of the nation`s premier gatherings of home-based care leaders.
Alongside Jason Growe, Jacqueline spoke on People Power: Unleashing Your Innovation Heroes, sharing how organizations can drive innovation and growth by investing in their people, fostering engagement, and aligning culture with purpose.
At Visiting Nurse, we know our greatest strength is our team. Empowering employees to lead, innovate, and deliver exceptional care is at the heart of our mission and our future.
Thank you, Jacqueline, for representing our organization and helping advance the conversation on the future of home-based care.
#HomeCare100 #VisitingNurseHealthSystem #HealthcareInnovation #HomeHealth #Leadership #EmployeeEngagement #FutureOfCare #homebasedcare #strategy #innovation #leadership
@Home Care 100
Join us for our VIRTUAL clinical hiring event on June 24th 10AM - 3PM to learn more about the available roles with Visiting Nurse Health System! Please go to our Indeed event page or copy this event page link into your browser. https://www.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=641a3fe79077d14c. For questions about the event or the roles, please reach out to css@vnhs.org.
Hospice Atlanta cares. We are here when you need us.
#hospiceatlanta #wecare
Communication is more than words...it`s connection, dignity, and quality of life. This Speech-Language Pathology Month, we celebrate our dedicated speech pathologists who bring expert care directly into the homes of our patients.
Thank you for helping individuals regain their communication abilities, confidence, and independence every day. 💙
#SpeechLanguagePathologyMonth #SpeechPathologist #HomeHealthCare #CareAtHome #PatientCare #Rehabilitation #Homehealth #VisitingNurseHealthSystem
Congratulations to Tyonia, our Employee of the Month! 🎉
Her compassion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to client-centered care make a meaningful difference every day. Thank You!
#EmployeeOfTheMonth #MissionDriven #VisitingNurseHealthSystem
Congratulations to Tyonia, our Employee of the Month! 🎉
Her compassion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to client-centered care make a meaningful difference every day. Thank You!
#EmployeeOfTheMonth #MissionDriven #VisitingNurseHealthSystem
Join us for our VIRTUAL clinical hiring event on June 24th 10AM - 3PM to learn more about the available roles with Visiting Nurse Health System! Please click here to RSVP/ apply to this posting to be considered for any of the roles listed below https://www.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=641a3fe79077d14c. For questions about the event or the roles, please reach out to css@vnhs.org.
As we pause this Memorial Day weekend to honor and remember the brave who gave their lives in service to our country, we also extend our heartfelt gratitude to their families and loved ones who carry their legacy forward today.
Wishing everyone a safe and peaceful Memorial Day, with time to reflect, remember, and spend time with those we love.
#MemorialDay #HonorAndRemember #HospiceAtlanta #VisitingNurseHealthSystem #hospiceatlanta #CommunityCare
Happy Mother’s Day!
Today, we celebrate and honor the incredible mothers, grandmothers, caregivers, and mother figures who fill our lives with strength, compassion, and love. Thank you for the care, comfort, and kindness you share each and every day.
Wishing all of our patients, families, employees, healthcare partners, and community a beautiful and meaningful Mother’s Day.
#MothersDay #caregiver #visitingnursehealthsystem #hospicealtanta
This Mother’s Day, at Hospice Atlanta we honor all mothers we hold in our hearts, those who are with us, and those we hold close in memory.
We recognize that this day can bring both joy and reflection, and we hold space for every story and every heart.
#hospiceatlanta #visitingnursehealthsystem #mothersday #grief
Nurses deserves a little fun too! 💙
In honor of Nurses Day, Week, and Month, our Home Health Nurses celebrated last night with the "From Scrubs to Strikes: Nurses Night at the Lanes" themed Cinco de Mayo bowling night!
A great time was had by all with some good fun, lots of laughs, and some friendly competition on the lanes!
Great chance to step away from the road, connect as a team, and celebrate the incredible care our nurses deliver every day in homes across our community.
Grateful for this amazing Home Health team of nurses! Please know what you do matters, and it shows every single day.
#NursesMonth #HomeHealth #TeamCelebration #VisitingNurseHealthSystem #FromScrubsToStrikes
