A cancer diagnosis can be one of the hardest things in life to deal with. While your loved one may have had plans to age in place, you may wonder if that’s possible for them as they undergo cancer treatment. How do you find a caregiver who can assist with the typical needs of someone who requires personal assistance as well as more complicated care needs related to cancer?
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As with home care of any sort, you’ll need to decide with your loved one and their care team what level of care they need at home. If you are a long-distance caregiver, you may need to utilize video calling or plan an in-person visit.
Assistance with personal care tasks, also known as activities of daily living, includes dressing, transferring and mobility, toileting, and grooming. For this level of nonmedical care, you could work with an independent caregiver or hire a caregiver from a home care agency. A home care aide may offer homemaker services, too.
Common homemaking tasks include the following:
The national median cost of an in-home caregiver in 2021 was $25 per hour.[01]
Home health care differs from home care in that it’s medical in nature. The caregivers at a home health agency will have specialized training, even if they’re not registered nurses. Additionally, home health care requires a prescription from a doctor.
For skilled care, depending on what your loved one needs, a home health aide or a nurse can offer the following:
Outside of nursing care, your loved one can also receive physical, occupational, speech, and respiratory therapy at home. Additionally, a social worker can help with the emotional needs that your loved one may face as a cancer patient.
The national median cost of a home health aide in 2021 was $27 per hour according to Genworth’s annual Cost of Care Survey.[02]
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If your loved one has a terminal cancer diagnosis, you may be able to work with their care team to find in-home hospice care. This typically includes a blend of personal care assistance and home health care.
Hospice caregivers will work with the patient’s family to make a senior’s final days as comfortable as possible and prepare everyone for their loved one’s final days. Hospice care may also incorporate emotional and spiritual support.
Hospice care can include home care and home health care, so you may work with caregivers and medical professionals during this time. The cost would depend on whether your caregiver comes from a home care agency or home health agency.
Depending on whether you use home care or home health care services, some of the costs may be covered by Medicare or other private health insurance. It’s a good idea to speak with the agency you’ll be working with to find out if they’re Medicare-approved or if they’re within your parent’s insurance network.
If your loved one is eligible for Medicaid, you may be able to apply for a Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) waiver. These waivers can help you avoid moving to a Medicaid-approved facility. Since Medicaid is administered at the state level, specific waivers and availability will vary depending on your state. You can find information about your state’s Medicaid offerings using Medicaid’s state links page.
Read more:What Are The Top 5 Medicaid Myths?
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Several grants are available to help pay for cancer-related costs. Each grant is slightly different, and not all offer money for home care specifically, but they can still be helpful resources to help you save money. In addition to grants, you may want to reach out to your local United Way office to find out about resources in your area.
The following organizations offer grants that may be of help to you:
To find the best fit for your loved one, you’ll have several things to consider — including an individual caregiver’s or agency’s experience caring for someone with cancer. This is one of the most important steps to choosing the right caregiver.
When considering an agency, ask if they specialize in or have experience caring for cancer patients. You may even want to ask how many of their caregivers have this experience, in case your usual caregiver is ill. Some agencies advertise whether they have caregivers trained to handle specific health conditions. For other agencies, you may have to ask for this information, which could take a lot of your time — and you’re likely already working hard to care for your loved one.
Consider working with an oncology case worker or a Senior Living Advisor at A Place for Mom. At no cost to you, a Senior Living Advisor can help you find caregivers who have experience caring for seniors with cancer. They’ll help you find a home care agency that fits your location and budget.
A Place for Mom. (2022). A Place for Mom 2021 Home Care Rates.
Genworth. (2022, June 2). Cost of care survey.
The information contained on this page is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute medical, legal or financial advice or create a professional relationship between A Place for Mom and the reader. Always seek the advice of your health care provider, attorney or financial advisor with respect to any particular matter, and do not act or refrain from acting on the basis of anything you have read on this site. Links to third-party websites are only for the convenience of the reader; A Place for Mom does not endorse the contents of the third-party sites.
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