Mary Washington Home Health nursing staff consists of experienced and compassionate Registered Nurses and Certified Nursing Assistants. Our nurses are committed to working with your doctor to develop individual care plans for each patient and their family.

During regular in-home visits, home health nurses monitor and educate patients in the following:

• Following a prescribed treatment plan
• Tracking and monitoring their symptoms
• Taking medications as needed and looking out for side effects
• Maintaining a heart healthy diet and controlling their weight
• Watching the amount of fluid they consume
• Making healthy lifestyle changes

Comprehensive in-home medical care for many diseases and conditions including:

• Cancer care
• Surgical recovery
• Heart failure and cardiac care
• Diabetes management
• Pneumonia and respiratory conditions
• COPD management
• Joint replacements
• Muscular and joint
• Cardiovascular surgeries and procedure
• Stroke recovery
• Seizures and neurological conditions
• Kidney and gastrointestinal

Skilled nursing treatments include the following:

• Wound care
• Post-surgical care
• Ostomy care
• IV Therapy
• Enteral nutrition
• Medication management
• Pain and symptom management

We teach patients to take care of themselves with a goal of living independently whenever applicable. Our home health team teaches patients and their caregivers to use tools to monitor daily activities and record weight and symptoms. By caring for themselves, patients take control of improving their quality of life.

Following a major illness or injury, some patients may need help relearning how to perform daily activities or improve their speech. Mary Washington Home Health has a team of highly-trained specialists who provide rehabilitation services in a patient’s place of residence. Our therapists teach patients how to live safely in their home, encouraging patients to demonstrate and confirm they can perform important tasks independently before leaving the home appointment.

Physical Therapy

Rehabilitation and physical therapy are designed to help people with injuries or medical conditions regain normal body functions. Therapy and rehabilitation can help patients gain control over mental reasoning difficulties, movement, chewing, language, bowel problems, speech, and more. Therapists coordinate care with other healthcare disciplines, including your doctor as well as communication with family or caregiver.

The physical therapist's goal is to teach patients how to best live safely in their home. We put together a plan of care which helps patients regain or strengthen use of muscles and joints. They work with patients who have any problem that limits their ability to perform daily mobility tasks, such as getting in and out of bed, on and off a chair/seat, and moving around.

Physical therapy includes:

• Address weakness through special exercises
• Improve range of motion/flexibility
• Promote cardio-pulmonary fitness
• Develop coordination and balance
• Enhance body and spatial awareness
• Identify specialty equipment needs (walker, tub/shower bench, etc.) and training people in their use
• Educate on home safety/fall prevention
• Exercise Sessions
• Transfer training from place to place (in and out bed, in and out shower or tub)
• Gait and safe walking training
• Review fall precautions and weight bearing status
• Family and caregiver training
• Home Safety Review (equipment, walkways, bedroom and bathroom accessibility)
• Coordination of medical equipment needs

Mary Washington Home Health Occupational Therapists assist patients with physical, social, or emotional disabilities in how to perform daily functions such as eating, bathing, dressing, and more, including:

• Teach and review activities of daily living (dressing, meal preparation, bathing)
• Provide strategies for maintaining cognitive skills
• Provide methods and resources so patient can function more effectively within their community
• Teach and review use of adaptive equipment
• Provide edema (swelling) management, as needed
• Teach fall precautions

Mary Washington Home Health Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) work with patients to provide:

• Rehabilitation services to help patients reach their maximum communication potential.
• Dysphagia assessment and rehabilitation to improve functional level of independence with swallowing.
• Education and training to reduce risks of aspiration, pneumonia and choking.
• Cognitive-communication/thinking skills assessment and rehabilitation for increased safety and independence at home and in the community.

Our Speech-Language Pathologists treat patients with a variety of medical diagnoses including:

• CVA
• Head and Neck Cancer
• Acquired Brain Injury
• Debility
• Dementia
• Neurological conditions (such as Parkinson Disease, ALS, Myasthenia Gravis, Multiple Sclerosis and Huntington’s Disease)

Speech therapy treatment typically addresses the following speech diagnoses:

• Aphasia
• Apraxia of Speech
• Dysarthria
• Dysphagia
• Cognitive-Linguistic skills (Attention/Concentration, Memory, Problem Solving/Reasoning, Executive Function, Visual Scanning)
• Vocal function disorders

Our Speech-Language Pathologists are certified providers of Ampcare ESP (Effective Swallow Protocol) e-stim to treat dysphagia.

Certified Nursing Assistants perform basic health-related services such as:

• Checking the patient’s pulse, temperature, and respiration rate
• Assisting the patient with activities of daily living (ADLs) such as bathing, dressing, mobility, etc...
• Changing simple dressings
• Caring for skin
• Helping with braces and artificial limbs

CNAs are directly supervised by a nurse or other medical professional and may work with therapists or other medical staff. Aides keep track of what services the patient has received, as well as what sort of progress the patient has made. They also report any change in the condition of the patient to the case manager or supervisor.

Mary Washington Home Health Social workers provide resources and information to ensure that the patient is safe and well-cared for in their home environment. By providing educational tools and connections to resources within the community, home health social workers are able to provide social, medical, and psychological assistance.

Social workers are responsible for:

• Assessing the patient’s needs and connecting them to available resources.
• Evaluating the patient for any psychological, social and/or medical needs.
• Assisting with finding appropriate living arrangements such as a skilled nursing facility or assisted living facility as needed.
• Communication with patient care team - including physicians, nurses, therapists and administration about patient needs.
• Assisting with completing advanced directives, living wills and medical power of attorneys.