Dauphin County · Pennsylvania
Home Care in Hershey, PA
Hershey is about 15 miles east of our Harrisburg office along US 322. We provide licensed, non-medical in-home care and senior care across Derry Township, from the older streets off Chocolate Avenue to Palmdale and the Hummelstown line, and we see many families in the weeks after a stay at Hershey Medical Center.
Why Hershey families call us
Hershey families usually call us because of the medical center, a move, or both. Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center sits on University Drive in Derry Township, so a parent who lives in Hershey is often discharged after surgery, a cardiac stay or a round of cancer treatment with follow-up visits on that same campus several times a month. Hershey also draws retirees who moved here to be near grandchildren or near the hospital itself, and adult children who work at the medical center, the Hershey Company or the Milton Hershey School and cannot leave in the middle of a shift. The request we hear most is specific: someone in the house on weekday mornings, someone to go along to appointments, and someone who calls the family with a straight report.
Where older adults live in Hershey and Derry Township
Hershey is not a borough. It is an unincorporated community inside Derry Township, and the township provides its municipal services, so the police and road crews you deal with locally are Derry Township's, while aging programs come through Dauphin County. The housing is mixed. Near the center, the streets that grew up around the chocolate factory off Chocolate Avenue (US 422) hold older brick and frame houses, many with steep interior stairs, a basement laundry and the only full bathroom on the second floor. Toward Palmdale and the Hummelstown line you find ranch homes and split-levels, along with townhouse developments and senior communities where a parent may live on their own but still need hands-on help with bathing or meals.
The layout of the house shapes the plan. In an older house near downtown, the first task after a hip or knee surgery is often a first-floor bedroom and a bedside commode, so the stairs become one trip a day instead of six. In a one-story home the focus moves to shower safety, meals and getting out to appointments. We walk through the house with you at the consultation so these decisions are made before the first shift.
Coming home from Hershey Medical Center
Most of the Hershey families we meet first need help on the day of discharge. The case manager confirms home health visits, the discharge papers list new medications, and someone has to be home to make the plan work. Our caregiver can meet your parent at the house, help them settle, prepare a meal, give Medication Reminders based on the discharge instructions, and stay through the night if needed. Later in the week that becomes bathing help, a walk down the hall, and company at follow-up visits on the medical center campus. Some people go first to Penn State Health Rehabilitation Hospital on Old West Chocolate Avenue in Hummelstown and come home weeks later; see coming home after a rehab stay.
Nurses and therapists come from the home health agency the physician orders; we work alongside them and do not provide skilled care. It's Your Home Care is independent and not affiliated with Penn State Health. More detail is on our page about coming home from Hershey Medical Center.
How care starts in Hershey
- Call (717) 695-2704. A care coordinator asks what a normal day looks like and where it is going wrong. If a discharge date is set, tell us.
- In-home consultation. Hershey is part of the Harrisburg area we cover most, so this is usually within one to two business days.
- Written care plan listing the tasks, the schedule and your parent's preferences.
- Caregiver match. We serve Hershey from our Harrisburg office and, when possible, match a caregiver who lives nearby in eastern Dauphin or western Lebanon County, so the drive along US 322 or US 422 is short and the same person can keep coming. When schedules allow, we introduce the caregiver before the first shift.
- Regular check-ins, plus on-call support for active clients.
Paying for home care in Hershey
Most Hershey families combine private pay with one or more benefits; Medicare is not one of them for ongoing non-medical care. Medicare pays for skilled home health visits a doctor orders, not for regular help with bathing, meals or supervision.
- OPTIONS. Residents 60 and older with unmet daily-living needs can apply through the Dauphin County Area Agency on Aging, (717) 780-6130. There is no income limit, though some people contribute on a sliding scale tied to income. See how the OPTIONS program works.
- Long-term care insurance. We provide the care plan, daily notes and itemized invoices carriers ask for. See how LTC insurance claims work.
- VA benefits. Aid and Attendance or Housebound benefits can help eligible veterans and surviving spouses; the nearest VA medical center is in Lebanon.
- Medicaid waiver programs. We are an enrolled provider for Community HealthChoices, the OBRA waiver and the Act 150 Program, and your parent can choose any willing and qualified provider.
The full picture is in how to pay for home care in Pennsylvania. When you are ready, request an in-home consultation.
Neighborhoods and nearby towns we cover
- Derry Township
- Palmdale
- Hummelstown
- Campbelltown
- Palmyra
- South Hanover Township
- Union Deposit
- East Hanover Township
- Middletown
- Elizabethtown
- Lower Paxton Township
- Harrisburg
Situations we help Hershey families with
Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Penn State Health (also Holy Spirit Medical Center, Hampden Medical Center, Lancaster Medical Center)
Coming home from rehab
Short-term rehab or a skilled nursing stay is ending. Plan the move home, the first week, and the help in between therapy visits.
After surgery
A hip, a knee, a heart, a back. The surgeon says recovery at home is fine as long as someone is there. You want to say yes to that. Here is how to make it true.
During cancer treatment
Chemo on Tuesday, wiped out by Thursday, and every vacation day spent on appointments. A caregiver carries the meals, laundry and hard days at home so the family can focus on her.
Long-distance family
You call every day. You visit when you can. But the weekly drive is not enough anymore, and every unanswered phone call sends your stomach through the floor. You need someone local you can trust.
Dementia and memory loss
The repeated questions. The stove left on. The night you found the front door open. You want to keep them home, and you are starting to wonder how much longer you can.
Questions Hershey families ask us
Do you provide senior care and in-home caregivers in Hershey, PA?
Can a caregiver be at the house when my parent is discharged from Hershey Medical Center?
Can a caregiver take my parent to follow-up appointments at the medical center?
Hershey is not a borough. Which agencies handle senior services there?
Does Medicare pay for home care in Hershey after a hospital stay?
Sources
- Hershey, PA profile (ACS 2020–2024) — Census Reporter
- Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center — Penn State Health
- Apply for the OPTIONS Program — Pennsylvania Department of Aging
This article is general information for Pennsylvania families and is not medical, legal, financial, or insurance advice. It's Your Home Care is a non-medical home care agency licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health; we do not provide skilled nursing or medical services. Program rules and eligibility change; confirm details with the agency or program named, your physician, or a qualified advisor before making decisions.
Talk to a care coordinator who knows Hershey
Tell us what is happening at home. We will explain your options, including what private pay, long-term care insurance, VA benefits, and Pennsylvania waiver programs may cover, and schedule an in-home care consultation when you are ready.