Private Duty Care and 4 More Smart Decisions You Can Make For Your Health This Year
If you’re dealing with health-related challenges, a new year is an opportunity to look for new ways to overcome them.
Of course, you can’t just wave a wand and change your circumstances. But you can take steps to feel more empowered in your healthcare journey, no matter what phase of life you’re in. If you have family caregivers, you may be thinking about ways to help them in the new year, too.
These five suggestions, including private duty home care services, have been shown to improve you and your family’s circumstances and outlook while you deal with your condition or illness.
Get Help to Understand Your Benefits
Resolve to learn what you are entitled to with your healthcare benefits so you can better advocate for your care. When you understand what’s available to you, you can request and take advantage of services that are meant to help you.
If you have Medicare or Medicaid, their websites provide a great deal of information about the benefits you’re entitled to. To learn more, you can participate in a live chat with a Medicare specialist immediately, or speak with them on the phone. If you have private insurance, call your carrier and ask for their customer support team.
You can also get additional help and counseling on your benefits from the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, an organization that is dedicated to ensuring that you understand what is available to you, so you can get the best care possible.
If You Haven’t Already, Choose a Primary Care Physician
A study from the Academy of American Physicians and the National Association of Community Healthcare Centers discovered that one-third of Americans don’t have a primary care doctor. Much like understanding your benefits, having a primary care doctor is a smart way to make an investment in your health in 2025.
If you fall ill, or you’re dealing with current healthcare challenges, a primary care doctor can provide care. Many practices give you access to your doctor or a nurse via an online patient portal, if you have a question or concern.
If you need to go to the hospital, the healthcare professionals there may be able to access your primary care doctor’s medical records to get a better understanding of your condition.
Choose a Healthcare Partner For Comprehensive Support
The new year may be the right time to look into healthcare opportunities that you may not have considered before. If you have chronic illnesses, specialized programs can help guide you through your healthcare journey. Sometimes known as comprehensive disease management (CDM), this program is a powerful form of healthcare advocacy that helps you take advantage of services available to you as your illness progresses.
A CDM provider will assign you to a nurse, who develops an individualized plan of care and goals for your treatment. The nurse also helps organize and coordinate your care, so that you can avoid the overwhelming feelings that come with navigating the healthcare system alone.
A CDM team will also provide access to important community resources, such as Meals on Wheels, and help you fill out Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) and Advanced Directive paperwork.
You deserve the highest quality of life possible, and having a resource like CDM on your side allows you to focus more on living your life and less on healthcare. In fact, CDM may help you avoid emergency room visits and hospitalizations, saving you money on healthcare costs. Patients who choose this service are more prepared to manage their illness every step of the way.
Make Your Home a Haven Where You Can Age In Place
If you are moving into a later stage of life, the new year offers an opportunity to consider what you’ll do when you require more help and assistance at home. You may be worried that you’ll eventually have to leave your home to get the care you need.
As you consider aging at home, you and your family have two important topics to consider:
- Ensuring your home is a safe, comfortable place where you can age with dignity.
- Deciding who will help provide care for you when needed.
Planning ahead can help make your twilight years as comfortable as possible. Consider these ideas when planning to grow older in your home:
- Address repairs and renovations to make your home easier to navigate and better protected against potential safety hazards. For more ideas, read this home safety checklist from the National Institute on Aging or this resource from the National Council on Aging.
- Begin conversations with family members and friends about who will lend a hand and provide care along with support for daily tasks.
Consider Private Duty Caregiving To Help You Grow Older At Home
A great deal of work goes into planning to comfortably age in place. However, you don’t have to rely solely on family members to care for you. In 2025, you can look into professional caregiving services, which can help you stay at home for as long as possible.
With private duty care, you can receive assistance from a caregiver for a specific block of time, starting at two hours and up to round-the-clock care. A private duty caregiver can help you take care of your daily routine and even provide social interaction, so you can stay where you’re most comfortable: home.
Private duty caregivers can help you with many important tasks, including:
- Meal planning and cooking.
- Housekeeping.
- Grooming and personal hygiene.
- Pet care.
- Transportation.
- Respite care to relieve family caregivers.
- Companionship.
- And much more.
Support Makes the Difference
As you consider how you can navigate and improve your healthcare in the year ahead, look for thorough, compassionate guidance from family, friends, and organizations that are dedicated to ensuring you receive the best care possible.
Whether you’re looking for private duty caregiving or any other form of support, discovering that there are many people in the healthcare community who are dedicated to helping you feel well is a powerful feeling.
There are people who have your back. You just have to make the resolution to seek their help.
