Home care questions, answered

It is everyday help at home from a trained caregiver: bathing, dressing, toileting, meals, medication reminders, light housekeeping, errands, companionship and someone keeping an eye on things. It does not include nursing, therapy or injections. In Pennsylvania, home care agencies are licensed by the Department of Health under the state's home care licensing rules. See all the services we provide and what a home care agency is.

Senior home care, also called elderly care or elder care at home, is non-medical help that lets an older adult keep living in their own house. A caregiver comes for a few hours, overnight or around the clock and helps with the things that have become hard: showers, meals, laundry, getting to appointments, or simply having company. Families use it for an aging parent who is slowing down, recovering, or living with dementia. Start with the services we provide.

Just call a care coordinator at (717) 695-2704. We ask what is happening at home, who makes decisions and how soon help is needed. Next comes an in-home consultation, then a written care plan, then a caregiver match and introduction. You can also request a consultation online. If you are not sure help is needed yet, read the signs an aging parent needs help at home.

It depends on where your parent lives and the schedule needed. In the Harrisburg area we can usually schedule an in-home consultation within one to two business days; in outer counties it can take a little longer. Care begins once the care plan is agreed and a caregiver is matched. If a hospital discharge is coming, call as soon as a date is discussed. See help coming home from the hospital.

Often, yes. Plenty of families start small, with a few visits a week for showers, meals or errands, and add time later. What we can staff depends on where your parent lives and when you need help: longer or recurring visits are easier to fill than a short one-off, especially in rural townships. Tell us the schedule you have in mind at (717) 695-2704 and we will be honest about what we can do. See companion care.

There is rarely one moment. More often it is a pile of small things: the fridge has expired food, bills are unopened, your dad has stopped showering as often, your mom had a fall she did not mention, or you are the one doing everything and running on empty. If you are wondering, it is worth a conversation. Our guide to the signs an aging parent needs help at home walks through what to look for.

A care coordinator visits the home, usually with the family present, to understand routines, health needs, the layout of the house and what the family wants to keep doing themselves. We look at the bathroom, bedroom and stairs, talk through schedules and payment, and agree on the tasks the caregiver will do. That becomes the written care plan. Our guide to the first week of home care explains what follows.

Resistance is common and usually about independence, privacy or money rather than the caregiver. Starting small often works: a few hours of help with errands, meals or housekeeping framed as help for the family. Involve your parent in choosing the schedule and meeting the caregiver. Read what to do when a parent refuses help and how to talk to a parent about home care.

Yes. It's Your Home Care is licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health as a home care agency, with its office at 600 North 2nd Street in Harrisburg. You can confirm any agency's license yourself on the Department of Health's search tool; our guide shows you how to verify a Pennsylvania home care license in a few minutes.

Ask whether caregivers are employees or independent contractors, how they are screened and trained, whether you meet the caregiver first, what happens when a caregiver is sick, how the care plan is updated, and how billing and insurance paperwork work. Confirm the license on the Department of Health website. Our checklist of questions to ask a home care agency lists them with the answers to look for.

Pretty much everything that makes a day at home work: bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, oral and denture care, feeding assistance, meal preparation, medication reminders, light housekeeping and laundry, errands, companionship, and accompaniment to appointments. We also provide respite for family caregivers, dementia support, and overnight, 24-hour and live-in arrangements. Start with personal care for hands-on help or companion care for supervision and company.

As much as your parent needs, within non-medical care. A caregiver can stand by in the shower, help with dressing and the toilet, cook, do laundry, give medication reminders, drive to appointments and keep company, for a few hours a week or around the clock. What a caregiver cannot do is nursing: no injections, wound care or giving medications. Our personal care page lists the hands-on tasks in detail.

Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons families call. A caregiver can set out towels and clothes, help your parent in and out of the tub or shower, stand by on a shower chair, wash hair and help with dressing afterward, while protecting their privacy and letting them do what they still can. Tell us if a female or male caregiver would feel more comfortable. See bathing assistance at home.

Companion care is supervision, conversation, meals, errands, transportation and light housekeeping without hands-on physical help. Personal care adds hands-on help with bathing, dressing, toileting, grooming and moving around. Many clients start with companionship and add personal care later, often with the same caregiver. See companion care vs. personal care for examples of each.

No. Our caregivers give medication reminders and assist with self-administration, such as opening a container or reading a label, but they do not administer medications or give injections. If your parent needs medications given to them, a home health nurse or a family member handles that part. See Medication Reminders for exactly what caregivers do.

No. It's Your Home Care is a non-medical agency. Skilled tasks such as wound care, injections, catheter care and therapy come from a licensed home health agency or hospice that the physician orders. Our caregivers work alongside those teams, covering the hours between their visits. Read home care vs. home health care to see how the two fit together.

No, though the names are confusingly close. Home health care is medical: a doctor orders short visits from a nurse or therapist, and Medicare usually pays when your parent is homebound. Home care is non-medical help with daily life, scheduled in longer shifts and paid privately or through insurance, VA or state programs. If you searched for a home health aide to help with bathing and meals, home care is usually what you need. See home care vs. home health care.

Yes. Transportation and accompaniment to appointments, shopping and social activities are part of companion care, and a caregiver can sit in on the visit and help your parent remember what the doctor said. We talk through how driving will work when we build the care plan. See companion care for what a typical visit includes.

Yes, as part of the care plan. Caregivers plan and cook meals that follow the diet the doctor or dietitian recommended, help with eating when needed, wash dishes, do laundry, change linens, and keep the kitchen, bathroom and living areas tidy. They do not do heavy cleaning or yard work. See meal preparation and feeding assistance and light housekeeping and laundry.

Yes. Respite care can be a few hours a week so a spouse can rest, shop or see their own doctor, a regular day off, or several days while the family travels. The caregiver follows the routine the family has built. Pennsylvania's Caregiver Support Program, a Department of Aging program run through your county Area Agency on Aging, may reimburse part of what eligible families spend on respite. See respite for family caregivers.

Yes, depending on caregiver availability in your area. An overnight caregiver can be awake all night or, when nights are usually quiet, sleeping with help available. Overnight care often covers bathroom trips, repositioning, reassurance after waking and help getting up in the morning. Tell us how many times a night help is usually needed. See overnight care.

Yes, when caregivers are available in her area. Round-the-clock home care can be set up as 24-hour care, with two or three caregivers working awake shifts, or as live-in care, with one caregiver staying in the home and sleeping at night. Families often move to it after a hospital stay, as dementia changes nights, or when a spouse can no longer do it alone. See 24-hour home care and live-in care.

24-hour care uses two or three caregivers in awake shifts of 8 or 12 hours, so someone awake is there through the night. Live-in care uses one caregiver at a time who stays in the home with a private room and a sleep period, usually with two caregivers rotating. Live-in fits people who mostly sleep through the night. Compare them in 24-hour care vs. live-in care or read about live-in home care.

Yes. Hourly, overnight, weekend and 24-hour coverage are all available depending on caregiver availability in your area. Weekend shifts are often how families cover the days when adult children are at work during the week and visiting on Saturdays, or the reverse. Tell us the schedule you want and we will be honest about what we can staff. See 24-hour and round-the-clock care.

Yes. Care plans are meant to change: more hours after a fall or hospital stay, fewer once recovery is complete, or added nights as dementia progresses. Tell your care coordinator, and we update the written care plan and the caregiver schedule. If insurance or a program is paying, they may need to approve the change first. See what to expect in the first weeks of care.

Yes. Many families arrange help for a recovery period after a hip or knee replacement, heart surgery or a hospital stay, then reduce or end it when they are ready. Short-term plans often focus on bathing, meals, getting to follow-up appointments and the first nights home. See help at home after surgery.

Our office is open Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. Active clients can reach our on-call support line after hours when something changes, such as a caregiver running late or a schedule that needs to shift. If you are new to us, leave a message after hours and we will call you back as soon as we can during office hours. For emergencies, call 911. You can also send us a message any time.

Before anyone walks into your parent's home, they complete a Pennsylvania criminal background check (with an FBI fingerprint check where state rules require it), ChildLine child abuse clearance, TB screening and competency training or testing. Caregivers are W-2 employees of It's Your Home Care. Our guide to what a Pennsylvania home care license requires explains each step.

Yes. Caregivers at It's Your Home Care are bonded and insured, with liability coverage and workers' compensation. Every caregiver is a W-2 employee of our licensed agency, not an independent contractor, so the agency, not your family, is the employer. That difference matters if a caregiver is hurt in the home; see private caregiver vs. licensed agency.

Employees. It's Your Home Care is licensed as a home care agency, not a registry, so every caregiver is our W-2 employee. We handle payroll, taxes, workers' compensation, supervision and scheduling. A registry refers independent contractors, and the family may become the employer with the tax and insurance duties that follow. See hiring privately vs. using an agency.

We match on care needs, personality, language, schedule and where the caregiver lives, using what we learned at the in-home consultation. A client who loves to talk baseball and a client who prefers quiet need different people. When schedules allow, you meet the caregiver before the first shift. See what to expect in the first week of home care.

Yes. Tell your care coordinator what is not working, whether it is personality, pace, language or a specific task, and we will look for a better match. Pennsylvania's home care rules give you and your parent the right to take part in planning the care and to have reasonable preferences heard. See your rights when you receive home care in Pennsylvania.

We arrange a substitute when your regular caregiver is out, share the care plan with them, and let you know who is coming. Familiar faces matter, so we try to keep substitutes to as few people as possible. In rural areas, winter weather can affect travel, so we talk through a plan with the family ahead of time. Ask any agency how it handles this; it is on our list of questions to ask.

Yes, please tell us on the first call. We take language and gender preferences into account when matching, especially for bathing and toileting, and we try to honor them whenever we can. Availability varies by county and schedule, so we will tell you honestly what we can do. See how matching and introductions work.

Call the county Area Agency on Aging or Pennsylvania's statewide elder abuse hotline, 1-800-490-8505, which takes reports 24 hours a day under the Older Adults Protective Services Act. Reports can be anonymous. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. Each county's agency and phone number is in our guide to Area Agencies on Aging.

Most families use a mix of private funds, long-term care insurance, VA pension benefits, the county OPTIONS program, and Medicaid through Community HealthChoices or the OBRA waiver, plus Act 150 for some adults 18 to 59. Medicare does not pay for ongoing non-medical home care. Our guide to how to pay for home care in Pennsylvania covers who qualifies for each and how to start.

Most policies do once benefits are triggered: usually a licensed health care practitioner certifies the person needs help with two of six activities of daily living or has a severe cognitive impairment, and any elimination period has passed. Carriers generally require a licensed agency. We provide the care plan, daily caregiver notes and itemized invoices carriers ask for. See how long-term care insurance pays for home care.

An elimination period is the waiting period in a long-term care insurance policy, often 90 days, between when the person qualifies for benefits and when the policy starts paying. Some policies count calendar days; others count only days on which paid care is received, which affects how families schedule care early on. Read the policy or call the carrier. See the home care glossary for related insurance terms.

It can. Veterans and surviving spouses who receive a VA pension may qualify for Aid and Attendance or Housebound benefits, which are added to the monthly pension and can be used toward home care. Veterans enrolled in VA health care may also receive homemaker and home health aide services through their VA care team, starting with a VA social worker. See VA benefits for home care and home care for veterans.

It can be, in part. IRS rules let some home care count as a medical expense, mainly care for someone who is chronically ill and receiving it under a plan of care from a licensed health care practitioner. Only medical expenses above 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income are deductible, and only if you itemize. Time spent on household chores is not counted. See is home care tax deductible and ask a tax professional.

Yes, and many families do. A common pattern is OPTIONS or Community HealthChoices covering a set number of weekly hours, with the family paying privately for evenings, weekends or extra days. We keep track of which hours each payer covers so the bills are clear. See combining ways to pay for home care.

Sometimes, through Community HealthChoices, Pennsylvania's Medicaid program for long-term care. If your parent qualifies, they can direct their own care and hire you as their worker, or an agency in their plan may employ you. A spouse cannot be the paid caregiver. The Caregiver Support Program is different: it reimburses unpaid family caregivers for some expenses and is not a wage. See how Community HealthChoices home care works.

No, not for ongoing non-medical home care. Medicare pays for part-time or intermittent skilled nursing and therapy at home when a doctor orders it, the person is homebound, and a Medicare-certified home health agency provides it. Medicare does not pay for 24-hour care at home, or for help with bathing and dressing when that is the only care needed. Some Medicare Advantage plans offer a limited in-home benefit, so it is worth checking. See does Medicare pay for in-home caregivers.

Yes, for people who qualify. Community HealthChoices, Pennsylvania's Medicaid managed care program for adults 21 and older who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid or need a nursing-facility level of care, pays for personal assistance services at home. The OBRA waiver serves some adults 18 to 59 with developmental physical disabilities. The program sets the hours after an assessment. See home care through Medicaid waivers.

Call Pennsylvania's Independent Enrollment Broker at 1-877-550-4227. The broker helps with the application and schedules an assessment of your parent's daily needs; the County Assistance Office looks at income and assets. Once approved, you choose one of three managed care organizations and a service coordinator, who authorizes weekly hours. Our guide walks through Community HealthChoices from the first call to the first caregiver visit.

Yes. We are an enrolled provider for Community HealthChoices through all three managed care organizations, UPMC Community HealthChoices, PA Health & Wellness and AmeriHealth Caritas, and for the OBRA waiver and Act 150. Eligibility and hours are decided by the program, not by us. See Medicaid waiver home care and in-home support for adults with disabilities.

Yes. If your parent is in Community HealthChoices, they have the right to choose any willing and qualified agency in their plan's network. You can ask your service coordinator for It's Your Home Care by name, or for any other qualified agency. No agency, including ours, may offer gifts or payments to influence that choice. See your choices under Community HealthChoices.

OPTIONS is the Pennsylvania Department of Aging's in-home services program for residents 60 and older, run by each county's Area Agency on Aging. It can pay for personal care, adult day services, home-delivered meals and care management. There is no income limit to qualify, but a sliding-scale co-payment may apply, and hours depend on county funding. See the OPTIONS program explained.

It is a Pennsylvania Department of Aging program, run through each county's Area Agency on Aging, for family members caring for someone at home without pay. It offers care management, caregiver education and partial reimbursement for things like respite care, supplies and small home changes, based on household income. It is not Medicaid and it does not pay a wage. Your county Area Agency on Aging can tell you if you qualify. See the Caregiver Support Program.

Act 150 is a state-funded attendant care program for Pennsylvanians 18 to 59 with a physical disability who can direct their own care, need help with daily activities, and are not financially eligible for Medicaid. It pays for personal assistance services and related supports. Apply through the Independent Enrollment Broker at 1-877-550-4227. See the Act 150 program.

LIFE is Pennsylvania's name for PACE: a Medicare and Medicaid program for people 55 and older who need a nursing-facility level of care and live in a LIFE provider's service area. The LIFE organization becomes the person's whole care team, with a day center, its own doctors and the in-home help it arranges. Home care through Community HealthChoices or private pay keeps your own doctors. Compare them in LIFE vs. home care.

Every Pennsylvania county is served by an Area Agency on Aging that runs OPTIONS, the Caregiver Support Program, protective services and the ombudsman program. In our area that includes the Dauphin County Area Agency on Aging at (717) 780-6130 and the Lancaster County Office of Aging at (717) 299-7979. Every county's agency is listed in our guide to Area Agencies on Aging in the counties we serve.

Yes. Caregivers help people living with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias keep a steady daily routine: meals, bathing, dressing, gentle redirection, supervision so they are not alone, and activities they still enjoy. A consistent caregiver matters, so we try to keep the same people on the schedule. Late-day confusion and night waking often shape the plan. See dementia care at home.

Usually when the person cannot be left alone safely: wandering or trying to leave at night, repeated falls, not recognizing danger, or a spouse-caregiver who is exhausted. Many families step up gradually, from daytime help to overnight care to round-the-clock coverage. We are candid when home may no longer be the right setting. Read when dementia needs 24-hour care.

Make sure your parent has been checked by a doctor, even if they seem fine, and ask what activity limits apply. Then look at the house: lighting, rugs, the bathroom and the stairs. A caregiver can help with bathing, walking and getting up from chairs and bed, and be there for the hours family cannot. See what to do after a parent falls and the room-by-room home safety checklist.

A local caregiver becomes your eyes and ears between visits. We agree on a written schedule, the caregiver keeps notes on meals, mood and anything that changed, and your care coordinator keeps you informed by phone or email. It works the same whether you are an hour away or in another state. See help when you live far away.

Yes. One caregiver can often support a couple, for example helping one parent with bathing and mobility while making meals and keeping company for both. When both need hands-on help at the same time, the plan may need more hours or two caregivers at key times. We work this out at the in-home consultation. See care for both parents.

Yes. Hospice provides the nurse, aide visits, social worker and chaplain; it does not usually provide someone in the home all day. Our caregivers fill those hours with bathing, meals, repositioning, companionship and rest for the family, and follow the hospice team's comfort plan. See home care alongside hospice.

Yes. We support adults with physical disabilities, often through Community HealthChoices, the OBRA waiver or Act 150, as well as private pay. Help can include personal care, meals, housekeeping and getting to work or appointments, on a schedule the person directs. See in-home support for adults with physical disabilities.

When the community allows outside agencies, yes. Families use one-to-one caregivers in a resident's apartment for extra help with bathing, meals or companionship. We confirm the community's policy before scheduling. To weigh the options, see home care vs. assisted living vs. nursing home.

If your parent lives in central or eastern Pennsylvania, quite possibly. We provide in-home elderly care across 16 counties: Adams, Berks, Carbon, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, Perry, Schuylkill and York. That covers cities like Harrisburg, Lancaster, York, Reading and Allentown and plenty of small towns in between. Call (717) 695-2704 with the address and we will tell you plainly whether we can help. Start with home care in Pennsylvania.

We serve 16 counties: Adams, Berks, Carbon, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Northampton, Perry, Schuylkill and York. Each county page lists the local Area Agency on Aging, hospitals and towns.

Yes. Schedules there depend on caregiver availability, so longer or recurring shifts are easier to staff than one-hour visits, and consultations may take a little longer to schedule than in Harrisburg. Tell us the schedule you want and we will be honest about what we can cover. See Fulton County, Huntingdon County, Juniata County and Perry County.

Yes. We serve Lehigh and Northampton counties, including Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Emmaus, Whitehall and Nazareth, and Carbon County to the north, including Lehighton, Jim Thorpe and Palmerton. Start with home care in Lehigh County or home care in Northampton County.

Our only office is at 600 North 2nd Street, 5th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17101, a few blocks from the Capitol. Care coordinators travel to clients' homes for consultations across all 16 counties, and caregivers live throughout the areas we serve. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. See home care in Harrisburg or contact us.

Call us anyway at (717) 695-2704; we will tell you plainly whether we can help. If we cannot, look up licensed agencies near your parent on the Pennsylvania Department of Health's home care locator, or call the local Area Agency on Aging or PA Link at 1-800-753-8827. Our guide shows how to check any agency's license.

We work to make that happen, and early notice makes the biggest difference. Call as soon as a discharge date is discussed, not the morning of discharge, so we can hold the consultation and try to line up a caregiver for the first day and nights home. The caregiver can help your parent settle in, pick up prescriptions, prepare meals and follow the discharge instructions. See coming home from the hospital.

No. It's Your Home Care is an independent, privately owned home care agency licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. We are not affiliated with UPMC, Penn State Health, WellSpan, Lancaster General Health, Tower Health, St. Luke's, Lehigh Valley Health Network or any other system, and families leaving any of their hospitals are welcome to call us. See, for example, coming home from UPMC Harrisburg.

Yes, and after a hospital stay many families use both. The home health agency the doctor orders sends a nurse or therapist for short visits; our caregiver covers the hours between with meals, bathing, medication reminders and supervision, and passes on what the family notices. We work alongside them rather than replace them. See how home care and home health work together.

Yes. Leaving a rehab center or skilled nursing facility often means going home stronger but still unsteady. A caregiver can help with bathing, dressing, walking, meals and the exercises the therapist assigned as reminders, while home health therapy continues. Ask the facility's social worker for the discharge date early. See coming home from rehab.

Yes. Hospital discharge planners, rehab social workers, physicians' offices, care managers and service coordinators can call (717) 695-2704 with the family's permission. We talk with the family directly, schedule the consultation and share the care plan with the people the family chooses. See how hospital discharges work with us.