Frequently Asked Questions
What is personal home care?
Personal home care is also known as in-home care or personal care assistance. Personal home care involves non-medical services that are typically paid by private pay funds (not paid by insurance). These services include help around the house, transportation, bathing and some light meal preparation.
Personal home care is provided by trained, insured, professional caregivers who can help you or your loved one with daily activities like bathing, light housekeeping, transportation, some light meal preparation, or simply companionship.
How is personal home care different from home health?
Home health is often recommended following a surgery or after a hospitalization for an injury or illness. Home health requires skilled services that would come from a physician’s order. This includes things like registered nurses, physical therapy and occupational therapy.
Home health services are usually covered by Medicare or health insurance and are designed to help manage medications and conditions; prevent falls; and coordinate care with doctors or therapists, and family.
Currently, AmeriTouch offers Personal Home Care. We look forward to adding home health services soon.
What services do you provide?
Our aides can assist with activities of daily living. Activities of daily living include:
- transferring/ambulation
- bathing
- grooming
- dressing
- eating
- toileting
There are additional tasks we can assist with including, light meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication reminders, companionship, and accompanying you on errands or to a doctor’s appointment.
If you are caring for a loved one and need time to run errands, rest and recharge, or take a trip – we can provide temporary, comprehensive care in the comfort of home. This is referred to as respite care.
I am not sure what type of assistance I need. Can you advise me?
Yes. Our Administrator is a licensed nurse who meets with you and your family prior to beginning care. She will assess your specific needs, your residence, and what you expect from your aide to help you determine the type of help, the amount of help, and the right person to best assist you.
Do you require a contract or long-term commitment?
No contract is required. If circumstances change and you want to discontinue services, we respectfully request one day’s notice. We do have a simple service agreement that we ask you to sign which states why you are hiring us and what you agree to pay.
How quickly can services be provided?
Please call us to discuss your situation. In the case of an emergency, we can often send an aide to you within hours. Otherwise, we can schedule a free consultation and assessment to determine the care that is best for you and assign an aide that will be a good fit.
Call our toll-free number 1-833-456-0925 to learn more about how we can help. We are here to answer your questions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
How much do you charge?
Our rates are very competitive, simple, and easy to understand. What you pay varies based on your needs-assessment. Call or go to our website today to schedule your free consultation and assessment.
Will my insurance cover these services?
Typically, personal home care is paid for by private funds. Private funds include long-term care insurance you have purchased, or your own personal funds. In some cases, workers’ compensation insurance covers these services. We accept all these forms of payment.
Medicare and other health insurance traditionally do not cover help with daily activities such as non-prescribed personal care, meal preparation, medication reminders, housekeeping, or other activities described under personal home care assistance.
Can I participate in choosing the caregiver?
We want you to feel in control of your care. Your freedom of choice is our top priority, and we feel it is important you find the aide who best fits your personality and preferences.
In fact, we invite you to meet the aide you have chosen, and if you would like, ask the aide for references of people with whom he/she has worked.
Will the same caregiver come each visit?
The relationship you have with your caregiver is important to you and to us. We do our best to pair you with aides who are the “best fit” for you. The same aide or aides will work with you regularly. This helps you develop a working relationship and comfort level with them.
What happens if my caregiver gets sick?
We take all the necessary precautions to ensure our aides are screened and tested for the coronavirus. Additionally, our aides communicate with us when they may have been exposed to an illness that might be harmful or contagious.
If this happens, we will let you know immediately, and take all the steps required to ensure your safety and that of your loved ones. Be assured that a substitute aide who can provide the same quality of care will be sent to you to cover the shift.
Ho do you screen the caregivers?
We conduct in-person interviews, taking all the safety precautions necessary, with all aides before hiring them. We also check references and do criminal background checks on all aides. All our aides are either Certified Nursing Assistants or Home Health Aides. This means they are certified by the State of Texas and have received the skills and training required to perform the tasks you need help with. Each of our aides also has up-to-date health screenings and CPR certification.
Who pays my caregiver?
We pay the aides directly. You do not exchange any money with our aides. We handle managing their schedules and their pay.
Can my caregiver take me to doctors’ appointments?
Transportation, especially to medical appointments and procedures, is a popular home care service. It can be arranged in a few hours, but the more notice given is always better. Transportation can be set up on a regular planned schedule, or on an as needed basis.
Do you provide services at an assisted living?
Yes, we do! We follow the same process as a private home visit, by arranging a meeting with the family and conducting a free assessment to develop a plan of care.
Besides assisted living facilities, we can also provide these services in independent living facilities, nursing homes, and even hospitals. We will coordinate our care with the staff of the facility where you live to ensure you receive the best care.