Some surgical incisions are in ideal locations for speedy, fuss-free healing. Unfortunately, others are in more troublesome areas where you stretch, bend, and flex all day long. In these trickier areas, pulling stitches is a higher risk.
Your mom had a cyst that her doctor wanted to have removed and sent to pathology. As the cyst was on her lower back, it's hard for her to see it. She's enlisted your help with bandage changes, but you don't have the experience to know how to help her. Also, you might not have the stomach for wound care.
Her doctor suggested you talk to a home health care nurse about her post-surgery recovery. Instead of driving an hour to the hospital for bandage changes and stitch removal, she could have a trained nursing professional come to her home. Here are the ways home health care services help out.
IV Lines and Injections
Nurses can insert or remove IV lines. The risk of infection is low, but there's always that risk. Instead of having to drive your mom to the hospital for treatment, nurses can give injections or insert IVs for an antibiotic drip to help treat or prevent an infection.
Surgical incisions are also uncomfortable. Even a minor incision is going to ache for several days. Once the anesthesia wears off, your mom may need some relief. If her doctor recommended IV pain medications or prescriptions that require careful monitoring, nurses can do that.
Wound Care
Keep the incision warm and dry is essential. For the first few days, your mom may have a pressure bandage in place to help protect the incision and stitches until the swelling goes down. After that, she can shower and have her bandage change. However, she still needs someone who can check the incision for signs of infection, clean it, and add a new bandage.
Each day, she may need the bandage to be changed again. If she didn't have dissolvable stitches, it could take a couple of weeks before the stitches come out. At that point, you go back to the surgeon's office for stitches to be removed. With a home health care nurse, she could have the stitches removed in the comfort of her home.
Communication With the Surgeon
If something is wrong, the nurse can call and communicate with the surgeon for your mom. It may keep your mom from having to travel back to the surgeon's office. Nurses can administer IV antibiotics or give injections to help treat a minor infection before it worsens.
Home health care services are ideal for post-surgical care. Nurses come to your mom's home and help her with bandage changes and wound care. They know if the incision is healing correctly or if there's a problem. They're also trained at removing stitches when it's time. Call a home health care specialist to make arrangements.
If you or an aging loved one are considering home health care in Sandy, UT, contact the caring staff at Interim Healthcare. Call today 801-401-3515.
Author: Michael and Marlena Hawkins, Owners, Interim HealthCare, Salt Lake City, UT
Interim HealthCare of Salt Lake City has been in business since February 2014, providing in-home personal care and support services that help our elderly and/or disabled neighbors live enriched, safe and independent lives. Our goal is to provide customized care and support services that make it possible for our clients to remain in the comfort of their own homes rather than relocate to an assisted living facility. Interim HealthCare is family owned by Michael and Marlana Hawkins, and is a Veteran Owned Small Business.
