12 & 24 Hour Care

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What about COVID-19?

    During COVID-19, more and more clients and families are engaging Cooperative Home Care for these longer, 12 and 24-hour shifts to avoid facilities where the risk of COVID-19 transmission is very high.

    We also have the PPE needed to safely and confidently care for your loved one who has COVID-19, in every type of home care scenario.

  • Why 12 and 24-hour care?

    The first thing we do is qualify you for every type of home care, before you pay out-of-pocket. This makes us your most affordable option and also provides peace of mind that you are not paying more than you have to for home care. Clients that need significant help at home may receive 12-hour shifts, or even two, 12-hour shifts to comprise a 24-hour shift. These are caregiver services that are funded by self-pay, Long Term Care insurance or Worker’s Compensation.

    Sometimes our clients use 12-hour shifts when they are returning home after a hospitalization, and they cancel them as soon as they’ve regained their strength. 12-hour shifts are also helpful when your aging loved one’s primary caregiver is temporarily unavailable. Other times, 12-hour shifts are an ongoing way to help one live their best life in their own home.

  • Does Medicare or my health insurance pay for 12 and/or 24-hour shifts?

    No, Medicare or other health insurances do not pay for 12 or 24-hour caregiver shifts. What Cooperative can do, is to begin by qualifying you for services that are funded by Medicare and/or other health insurance. This enables you to maximize what is available before you pay out-of-pocket.

    Long term care and workers compensation insurances may pay for 12 and 24-hour caregiver shifts. We work with you to access these benefits, too, so that you feel confident that you are not paying out-of-pocket until every other funding source is exhausted.

  • What is a typical 12 or 24-hour schedule?

    A typical 12-hour shift is a full day shift or an overnight shift. For example, you may request a caregiver from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. This caregiver will help you get up, shower, dress, and prepare a nutritious breakfast for you. They can complete chores throughout the day, including laundry, light housekeeping as well as cleaning up after showers, meals, and other activities. An overnight shift example is 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. During this shift, your caregiver will help you complete your bedtime routine and then be awake and within earshot if you need help to get up and use the bathroom through the night.

  • What are common reasons one needs a 12 or 24-hour shift?

    After a hospitalization, you may have concerns about your aging parent’s safety through the night. Are they going to wake up, confused, and potentially fall while getting out of, or into, bed? Or maybe they have temporary assistance needs, such as following hip or knee replacement surgery. You cannot realistically stay overnight and help them, while working and completing your personal and family responsibilities. 12-hour overnight shift caregivers are lifesavers in these situations! You can start and end them as needed.

    12-hour shifts are also helpful when an aging parent’s caregiver is unavailable. If you care for your mother and have a planned vacation, scheduling 12-hour day and/or night shifts provides peace-of-mind while you’re away.

  • Is a 24-hour shift a "live-in" shift? Will my caregiver be sleeping?

    While we offer 24-hour live-in caregivers, it is rare that one would use this service. If you need a caregiver around the clock, we recommend two, 12-hour shifts completed by two different caregivers. If you don’t need help at night, then there isn’t a reason to pay to have a caregiver at that time.

    In the very rare instance a live-in caregiver is the right match for you, we ask that you provide a private sleeping space for them. You must not require regular assistance through the night to qualify for this type of service. While our caregiver would rest overnight, they would be available to you through a monitor so that if you occasionally needed assistance, they could promptly help you.

About This Service

 

Thank you for visiting our 12 & 24-hour care page. This page is going to share information about what 12 & 24-hour hour care is, when it is used, and how it is funded. We’ll begin with a short overview of what led you to research home care options, and 12 & 24-hour care specifically. Other pages on our website you may want to visit are Dementia Care, Disease-Specific Care, and Safety and Supervision. All of these pages have related information but also some different and specialized information, so if you have the time to visit them as well it will enhance your understanding of home care and how it works.

Cooperative Home Care, Inc. offers extended shifts, most commonly in 12 or 24-hour increments, although you may choose any amount of care ranging from a two-hour mini-visit to 24-hours of care per day. A 12 or 24-hour shift is designed for aging loved ones who need more than limited or occasional assistance. When your aging loved one needs help at home, you may feel very overwhelmed and at a loss for what you can do and what your options are. This can happen when your aging loved one experiences a fall or other unplanned, accidental medical event. We also find that this can happen when your loved one has a planned surgery that may require a recovery period after.

Medical professionals who are very skilled at treating an injury, performing surgery, etc. are not necessarily prepared to also have a great understanding of the care options available after your aging loved one is medically stable. This is simply not their specialty area. You may find that you receive partial information, or that what you expected or were told to expect is not the reality once your aging loved one has been discharged home. This can be very scary! Our Intake Nurse and our Case Managers are knowledgeable in home care funding and options, and can help you understand your choices. Cooperative Home Care, Inc. accepts every type of home care funding, which is a significant advantage because we can qualify your loved one for every type of home care funding before you pay out-of-pocket. We can also be your sole home care provider that meets all of your aging loved one’s home care needs, even if they change. This is preferable to receiving Medicare home health care from one company, and Private home care services from another company. Coordinating care between two companies is an unnecessary complication that you can avoid by choosing a company like Cooperative Home Care, Inc. that provides every type of home care service.

12 and 24-hour shifts are an option through Private home care services. “Private Services” are usually funded through long-term care insurance or paid out-of-pocket. Many people misunderstand that Medicare will pay for extended care including 12 and 24-hour shifts, but that is not true. Medicare pays for short-term care from a licensed clinician like a nurse or therapist. You must qualify for this service (list qualifiers). Medicare home health care is designed to help you achieve the level of functioning you had before a planned or unplanned illness and/or hospitalization. Some common times you may qualify for and receive Medicare home health care is after a planned surgery like a hip replacement. You may also qualify for Medicare home health care if you have a diagnosis that has caused a decline in your ability to function daily, that has the potential to improve through short-term visits. Now, you can envision the difference between Medicare home health care and Private Services, and begin to understand when each service is applicable.

Medicare-funded services are short term to regain function. On the other hand, 12 and 24-hour shifts, paid for by long-term care insurance or self-pay, provide consistent, planned assistance with general tasks one performs throughout their day. This may begin with rising and dressing, to meal prep, taking medication, moving safely throughout your home and even going out and about in the community for general errands, doctor visits and other appointments.

In some scenarios, an aging loved one may return home after a hospitalization and receive Medicare home health care as well as Private 12 or 24-hour shifts for assistance and supervision. As they become stronger and more independent, they may reduce and then discontinue their Private home care services. In other instances, they may regain some of their functioning but still need ongoing help at home, and may continue receiving Private Services up to 24 hours per day.

24-hour care rarely consists of one caregiver who is working a 24-hour shift. This may also be called, a live-in shift, although your caregiver does not actually live with you. There are qualifiers for this shift including that your aging loved one’s needs must not interfere with their ability to sleep safely and soundly, rarely needing overnight assistance. This is the reason we say one rarely receives this type of care: their needs do not stop simply because it is nighttime. In many cases, your aging loved one’s needs increase overnight for a variety and/or combination of reasons. They may become more confused and disoriented during the evening, for example. If you are certain your aging loved one could be safe using 24-hour shifts, we may suggest that we begin with two, 12-hour shifts. Our documentation and observations by our caregivers will help us work together to agree on the schedule that safely and optimally meets your aging loved one’s needs. If and as they improve, you can change and reduce their home care hours.

What People Are Saying About 12 & 24 Hour Care

Cooperative Home Care in Missouri has set the BAR high and we will NOT settle for anything less. We believe company direction, respect, support, and care starts at the TOP. Thank you, MITCH for making your company exemplary.-Debbie J.
- Debbie J.
Thank you, thank you, thank you...You and your team of CNAs have been a saving grace. I say "have been" since they all have been texting me to see how I am doing...I really have no words right now to describe how awesome you are. You and Nicol called me Thursday and said help would arrive that night and it did. You all should be running this country and, to echo Beyoncé, the whole world (you already are).-Stephanie J.
- Stephanie J.
Thank you so much for what you have done for us. I would recommend you to my friends, thank you again.-Marge C.
- Marge C.

How Do I Pay?

At Cooperative Home Care, we work very hard to find access to any type of funding source before you pay out-of-pocket. We accept Any Funding. This means government funding (Medicare, MO Medicaid and VA), insurance (health, long-term care and worker’s compensation), reduced fee programs and self-pay. When you call our Intake Nurse, we are more prepared than other home care companies to help your aging parent with their home care needs.

Learn More

Get in Touch