Saudi Gazette The Ministry of Health has initiated a Home Health Care program for eligible residents in Al-Taif region in which patients with chronic conditions can receive superior medical care in the comfort and privacy of their own homes. Until now, 750 patients have enrolled in this program to benefit from treatment and rehabilitation services, which will be delivered right at their doorstep. The Home Health Care program has rewarded the community in two ways. Firstly, it has provided several employment opportunities and has opened plenty of job positions in Al-Taif for graduates in the medical and health sciences fields. Secondly, it has offered a high level of comfort and convenience to patients by imparting improved health care services at home. It is indeed a blessing for those patients who need long-term medical treatment but do not require hospitalization, and saves them time and effort of making daily trips to the hospital. A team of highly qualified health care personnel has been appointed to offer the best and most comprehensive medical services to home bound patients, said Saeed Al-Zahrani, spokesperson of the Ministry of Health in Al-Taif. He added that a wide range of professionals are on board, including several physicians, nurses, social workers, respiratory technicians, psychologists, dieticians, and both occupational and physical therapists. Drivers are available to take female health care providers to the homes of their patients. Each specialist visits patients according to an organized schedule. The Home Health Care program is not only limited to elderly patients, but to people of all ages, such as patients who are physically disabled or those recovering from a bad accident. The services include treatment, therapy, education on preventive measures, disease management, and also rehabilitation services. This program eases the burden on many families who were left helpless; caring for the sick on their own. This initiative enables patients to receive emotional and moral support of their loved ones at home, and also receive professional treatment at the same time. It will guarantee them a perfect combination of recovery: optimum medical care from the medical team coupled with love and encouragement at home. The goal of this program is to help the patients lead a normal, stable life that would otherwise be interrupted by long stays at the hospital. The program has been successful in decreasing the number of recurrent hospitalizations and trips to the emergency rooms. The final step of the program is to teach patients to assume responsibility for their own health, such as taking prescribed medications, coping with side effects of medication, performing rehabilitative exercises, drawing blood to be sent to the hospital laboratory for periodic blood tests, and retrieving and understanding the results over the phone. The patient's family is also trained in various ways to better assist the patient at home. Health care should strive to increase the family's awareness about the patient's condition, boost their confidence in their own ability to deal with the family member's illness, and assure them that they are not alone. All patients suffering from a chronic condition throughout the Kingdom, would love to see this incentive of the Ministry of Health in Al-Taif, to be implemented in their city. __
