Most people have a plan to prepare for surgery, but post-operative care at home is just as critical when recovering from any procedure. 

Post-op care starts in the hospital, where your doctors can oversee medication management and keep any complications at bay. While this varies with the kind of procedure that needs to be done, many patients are typically allowed to go home in a few days in the recovery room – if not on the same day of surgery.

Recovery at home is a little tricker, but it’s definitely possible with enough planning, research, and informed decision-making. In this guide, we discuss what you’ll need to consider when preparing for at-home care after surgery.

Before You Go Home: Considerations And Planning

The first step to a successful home care plan is gathering all the pertinent information. You need to cover the following bases:

  • Recovery process
  • Logistical & healthcare preparations
  • Communication with other family members
Ask Your Doctor About The Recovery Process

Following your doctor’s instructions is essential to post-surgery recovery, so you should ask questions to clarify anything you don’t understand. Ensure that you know all about your medications, care needs, and which activities you should hold off on. We recommend entrusting a written care routine to a family member, loved one, or caregiver to ensure everything runs smoothly. 

Make All Necessary Arrangements

Post-surgery recovery can be complicated, and you’ll likely need nursing care to help you when you’re in pain or sedated. Choose home care services that can provide everything you’ll need on your road to getting better, whether it’s someone to administer medication or even just someone to keep you company. We recommend looking for experienced nursing care professionals if you have a particularly complex care plan.

Inform Your Family Members And Loved Ones

Whether you live alone or with a loved one, you’ll need to inform the people in your life of your upcoming operation. In cases where a licensed nurse isn’t necessary, clients can greatly benefit from the support and care of a friend or loved one. After all, recovering from any procedure and returning to your regular routine can be daunting without a bit of help!

Post-Operative Care At Home

Whether you’ve had a hip replacement, appendectomy, or even less invasive procedures, you’re going to spend time in the hospital recovery room. Doctors usually spearhead initial post-surgery care, which generally involves wound dressing, medications, and ensuring that you’re in a stable condition before sending you home. 

However, that doesn’t mean your care stops – there are plenty of things you need to do at home to support your recuperation.

Get Lots Of Rest

One of the most important things you need to do after surgery is rest. Some clients may be tempted to return to their regular schedule after an operation, but their bodies need time to heal and rebuild after the procedure. We recommend getting more sleep for a relatively quick recovery. 

If you’ve hired care services, then your caregivers will take care of the physically demanding tasks for you. You can also enlist the help of someone close to you.

Don’t Try To Do Everything Yourself

Independence is good and necessary, but it’ll be a while before you can do things on your own. In some instances, a patient may not even be able to walk for a few days – and that’s part of the process. 

Surgery requires people to lie low and give themselves more time to sleep and relax. Take a load off and let your family members or caregivers take over certain tasks and worries for a little while. Your body will thank you for it.

Trust Your Caregivers

Your caregiver is there to help and support you while you recover at home, and trusting a professional service can speed things along considerably. A capable caregiver will ensure your health is intact while tending to your medications. Caregivers can also assist with general maintenance needs and like wound cleaning and dressing as well as daily activities (e.g. bathing, eating, etc.) – you just need to focus on getting better.

Try To Move Around

Once the initial stretch of post-surgery recovery concludes, you may want to start moving around a little bit at a time. Doing this can help maintain muscle strength, which is a large part of a regular care strategy. 

Certain procedures may even require connecting with a physical therapist to help you rebuild your muscles after surgery. We recommend asking your doctor if these services are necessary!

The Best Home Health Care Support In San Francisco

A massive part of post-surgery care is finding the right caregivers to help you while you’re recovering, and San Francisco folks have easy access to one of the best. 

The caregivers at ameriCARE are highly-trained and sensitive individuals committed to providing individualized care based on your needs. Our services are easily accessible and flexible, and we believe in working with the whole family for the best care experience that we can provide. 

Do you want to work with folks that are committed to caring? Check out our post-operative home care page to find out more about our services!