|
Home Based Care (HBC) is the provision of basic nursing care needs by formal or informal caregivers to people in their own homes. This service is available to people who have mental, physical, emotional and social needs. Among people who qualify for this care are those who have had strokes, who are living with HIV/Aids, who are physically or mentally challenged, frail older persons, or those who are terminally ill. The care given is meant to restore and maintain the individual's maximum level of comfort, function and health, including care towards a dignified death.
WHO PROVIDES HOME BASED CARE? HBC services in the Western Cape are provided by non-profit organisations (NPOs) which are tendered for and subsidised by the provincial government. Patients who need ongoing care at home upon discharge from hospital are referred to a health facility at primary health care level in the area in which they live. The nursing sister at the clinic or primary health care centre refers the patient to the NPO partner responsible for HBC services in the area. The NPO co-coordinator (nursing sister) will assess the needs of the individual in their home and develop a care plan for them. The sister then assigns a caregiver to the individual. The caregiver will render the service according to the instruction on the care plan and the sister will visit the individual to make sure that the plan is being carried through. HBC is not a 24-hour service and does not replace the family as the primary caregiver. It is only meant to be a complementary and supportive service to prevent "burn-out" for caregivers who are forced to care for sick relatives.
TRAINING FOR CAREGIVERS Caregivers from the various organisations have to complete a home-based care course facilitated by the Department of Health. Continuous, in-service training is provided by the Department to ensure competence. Careworkers are expected to help patients and their family members to live and cope independently. Volunteers are also recruited to complement the services given by careworkers. They make themselves available as companions, fetch medication, and do shopping errands etc. |
