How to Plan for Recovery and Care After Surgery At Home 

Recovering Post Surgery: Surgery Home Care  In The Comfort Of Your Home

Home care after surgery can make all the difference in your healing progress. It is important to have supports in place to help you heal and recover quickly and fully. Having someone take care of you and be there for surgery aftercare is important and can make a world of difference. This can be important consideration if your loved one or relatives have full-time work and are unable to care for you after your surgery.

The transition from hospital to home might also be stressful as your home care after surgery medical needs might be significant and require help from a professional caregiver. If you are providing home care to the loved one after their surgery stay, you might feel overwhelmed as well. Here are a couple of helpful things to consider when preparing yourself or a loved one for care after surgery at home.

Your Home May Need To Be Modified

You may need to begin with your living space as you need to make changes to fit in with their needs. If the surgery done involves temporary or permanent impairment to walk, you may need to do the following:

Check with your doctor if you need certain equipment

Depending on the surgery done, you might need to plan ahead for the things that you or your elderly relative may need. Check if they need a commode to ease up walking to and from the toilet. You may also ask if they will be needing oxygen tanks and other supplies for surgery after care like bandages, cleansing solution, and gauze. Always check for the size of the bandages and gauze as there are specific sizes depending on the surgery. Don’t forget to check if the concentration of the solution matches the doctor’s order and the expiration date. This can all be bought over the counter so always check so you don’t miss out on anything.

Bedroom changes and modifications to make it easier to heal after surgery

If your room is upstairs, you might need to move to a lower floor, unless you have an elevator at home. It might be hard to go up and down the stairs following the surgery of the lower body from the stomach down as it will put a strain on the body. It’s also good to check the bed mobility to determine if you will need a hospital bed or not. Some hospital beds can be easily adjusted to go up and down and tilt. It is good to check the air mattress to prevent bedsores too in case you or a loved one needs to stay in bed until they recover. 

Prep your meals and get enough food in advance to help free up time for home care after surgery

It is always a good idea to prepare food beforehand. Make sure to prepare the food according to the doctor’s recommended diet. Depending on the surgery site and other health issues, you might need to watch out for diet changes. Check what they can and can’t eat and make a list of changes. It is always a good idea to buy groceries beforehand so that you can fully relax and rest after surgery.

Have someone with you at home

It is always a good idea to have support during the recovery process, and if you have someone available at home to make sure everything is okay and that the surgery after care routine is done properly. There might be also unexpected complications that might arise during this stage so it is best for someone to stay with you or your elderly relative to do their care which might include the following: 

• Giving medications on time
• Making sure that discharge orders are followed
• Cooking food and cleaning lightly
• Assisting to and from the toilet
• Brief/underwear change in case they can’t use the toilet
• Errands like shopping for groceries and for medications
• Monitoring condition and communicating it to other family members and health care providers

These are some of the things that can help with speedy surgery after care and healing. The most important note about all of these is to make sure another person stays with you or a loved one at home. If none of your family members will be able to do so, Smile Home Care has professional caregivers that can help and assist you in dealing with home care after surgery. 

Home Care After Surgery Starts With a Free Care Consultation with Smile Home Care

With Smile Home Care, we offer a free consultation to assess the needs of your loved one and provide you with the best recommendation for affordable home care after surgery to suit your budget and your loved one’s needs. Home care can improve the quality of life and support senior independence at home. We understand the importance of deciding how much care you need, so we offer the ultimate flexibility so that you can set up respite care for an hour, a few hours or even a few days.

Smile Home Care provides senior and adult care at home in Ottawa for seniors and families looking for a help with personal care, nursing care or care after surgery or hospital stay. Give us a call today at 613.603.8998 or book a free assessment for your complimentary consultation with one of our care leaders! We look forward to providing you with care to smile about.

 We believe that it takes a special person to be a caregiver, and we value and appreciate our Smile Caregivers in providing exceptional and compassionate care. You can also learn more about our care services by clicking here. Follow us on Facebook to learn more about our events and promotional offers by clicking here Smile Home Care.