Home health nurses assist the elderly.
Home health nurses serve people who are disabled, chronically ill or who have a terminal illness. The person to whom the care is given might be a child recuperating from a hospital stay or an elderly person nearing the end of life. Home health care services began in the early 1800s, and they involve administering medicine, providing therapeutic treatment or simply assisting with daily tasks.
Early Years
Organized home health nursing started in the South in 1813 with the Ladies Benevolent Society of Charleston, South Carolina. Founded by Mrs. Sarah Russell, her two daughters and a sister, its purpose was to provide food, health care and training to the sick and the poor. The first time trained nurses were sent to people's homes was in 1877 by the New York City Mission. Visiting nurse associations eventually formed throughout the United States, and by 1890 there were about 21.
Lillian Wald
Lillian Wald, born in 1867, is known as the founder of the visiting nurses profession. She was inspired to study nursing as a result of the illness of her sister. Wald's postgraduate studies led to her involvement in the home nursing of poor immigrants in New York City, where she lived. In the fall of 1893, with the help of another nurse, she set up an office. By 1913 she had a staff of 92. One of Wald's many achievements was to convince insurance companies--Metropolitan Life being the first--to provide free visiting nurses to their customers.
The Depression and Beyond
The Depression years--beginning with the stock market crash of 1929--saw a decline in home health nursing due to a scarcity of funds. Many agencies did not survive. By the 1940s, hospitals were overcrowded with chronically ill patients. This brought about a resurgence in the industry as the chronically ill were brought back to their homes to be cared for. Agencies depended mainly on charity and public funding until Medicare came into being in the 1960s.
Visiting Nurses Associations
Visiting nurses are united by a nationwide network.
Visiting Nurses Associations of America (VNAA) was founded in 1983 in Colorado. In 2007 it moved to Washington, D.C. VNAA is a community-based, nonprofit organization with a mission to serve the elderly, disabled and other vulnerable members of the U.S. population. It seeks to promote and advance Visiting Nurse Associations (VNAs) and hospice providers and has a public policy team advocating for legislative action. The U.S. has a network of VNAs, for which VNAA is the official national association.
Medicare
Medicare is a government-funded health insurance program for people over 65. It also covers individuals under 65 with certain disabilities, as well as people any age with end-stage renal disease--permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant. Between 1967 and 1980, home health agencies participating in Medicare nearly doubled. This happened in part because of the decreased lengths of stay in hospitals, resulting in acutely ill individuals being sent home. Also, with Medicare came complex and detailed regulations pertaining to home care services and reimbursement practices.
Tags: care services, health care, health nurses, health nursing, home health
