Healthy@Home service launched

Healthy@Home is a dedicated short-term service to help people who have been in hospital long term return home safely.

The service also helps to keep people that could be facing hospital admittance but would be better at home, stay at home.

Taking referrals from healthcare professionals the dedicated Healthy@Home facilitators will work with patients/prospective patients to identify the blocks to them returning or remaining at home.

Healthy@Home provides:

• A flexible 7-day- a-week service available across Cardiff and the Vale
• A dedicated phone line for easy referrals from 8.30am-4.30pm every day
• Voicemail and email inboxes for out of hours referrals

Commissioned by Cardiff and Vale Health Board, the service works with health professionals to meet the needs of the person being discharged or about to be admitted to hospital, agreeing a first visit within three days of discharge.

It provides a light-touch support to build confidence and independence in line with Prudent Healthcare and assessment of the patient’s needs.

Healthy@Home supports people with:

• Ensuring they are eating properly. This might include taking them shopping or setting up deliveries as well as helping with food preparation
• Collecting prescriptions and setting up deliveries to help them manage their medication needs independently
• Breaking down daily living tasks into manageable steps, supporting them to do what they can and accessing help to make tasks easier
• Getting out and about, building confidence and providing emotional support
• Basic home safety checks to help them feel safe at home as well as preventing falls and other health risks
• Connecting with the most effective local sources of support, whether this is statutory or third sector
• Attending appointments and completing paperwork
• Making a success of returning or remaining at home, preventing admittance or re-admittance to hospital