organizing nursing care

What To Look For In A Nurse Case Management Team

When coordinating in-home nursing care, finding a qualified and effective case management team is crucial. After all, the top priority of any home care treatment is making sure everything is taken care of and that your loved one is in the best hands possible.

The only way to ensure everything is done effectively is to make sure you have a case management team that is organized, experienced, informed, and ultimately knows how to get the job done in the best way possible. While seeking nurse case management, look for a team with the following four characteristics:

  1. In-Home Nursing Care Experts: Try to find a team that focuses specifically on in-home nursing care. It’s usually best to hire a group of people who have a niche market they serve, as they must be dedicated experts in that specific field in order to succeed.
  2. Excellent Communication: When organizing care for your loved one, there is little room for error, as you want your loved one to receive the best care possible. Miscommunications are one of the most common causes of mistakes, so be sure to hire a team with exceptional communication skills. Moreover, teams with good communication skills will be able to effectively educate you and your family on your loved one’s condition.
  3. Superior Organizational Skills: In-home nursing care is complicated and requires a team to be organized and keep track of every detail. A lack of organizational skills could lead to the wrong medication administered or other disastrous outcomes.
  4. Well-Connected in the Medical Community: Part of receiving the best in-home nursing care is having access to the best doctors when necessary. While seeking a nurse case management team, you want to find professionals who are well-connected and can refer your loved one to the best doctors available.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you are in need of in-home nursing care or a nurse case management team, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include in-home nursing care and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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older woman doing yoga at home

Yoga For Seniors – Staying In Shape At Home

Yoga has become a popular activity and form of exercise for people across the world, as it relaxes your mind and keeps you in shape at the same time. And while most yoga classes and videos are geared toward young and middle-aged adults, seniors can and should enjoy yoga as well. After all, easing the mind and body should be for everyone, regardless of age.

In this article, we will discuss the benefits of yoga for seniors and how you can take yoga classes with a private instructor at home.

Benefits of Yoga for Seniors:

Older adults should practice yoga for a number of reasons, as yoga can enhance the lives of senior citizens in numerous ways. The following are just a few of the benefits of yoga for seniors:

  • Stronger Body: Yoga allows you to strengthen your body so you are healthier physically. Yoga forces you to build bone strength, muscle strength, and flexibility, all of which are crucial for the health of senior citizens.
  • Improved Balance: One of the biggest benefits of yoga is improved balance. If you find yourself struggling with balance as you age, yoga may be a good fit for you.
  • Improved Breathing: Yoga helps you gain control of your breathing and breathe in a healthier way, which can sometimes be a problem for seniors.
  • Reduced Stress: As yoga is a good source of physical exercise, it helps reduce overall stress and keep you in a healthier mental state. It can even help you sleep better at night.

Take Private Yoga Classes From Home:

The best option for many senior citizens is to partake in yoga from the comfort of your home. After all, traveling can be stressful as one ages and may not be worth a 30 or 60 minute yoga session. Because of this, we recommend looking into at-home yoga with a private instructor. While this may be more expensive, it provides the most comfortable and customized experience that can help improve the health of older adults.

At-home care providers can help arrange private yoga instructors who can lead seniors in yoga from the comfort of the senior citizen’s home. We recommend going through an at-home care provider because these providers can usually help set up other related services if need be. See below for how you can set up at-home yoga sessions.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you are interested in private yoga at home, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home private yoga instructors, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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using acupuncture for back pain

Acupuncture For Back Pain

Getting rid of back pain can be difficult and frustrating, as it can be hard to find the right remedy. And while acupuncture may not be a cure for the problem, it has been known to help ease back pain in many individuals.

So, the question is simple…

Can Acupuncture Help Your Back Pain?

The answer, however, is a bit more complicated. According to the Mayo Clinic, many people report that acupuncture helps them feel better, but there is not much scientific evidence that can prove its effectiveness.

That being said, acupuncture can relax your mind and body, which helps lower stress. This lower level of stress can in many cases lead to general pain relief. So, if acupuncture makes you feel in a calmer and more relaxed state in general, it may help you feel some pain relief.

Should You Get Acupuncture?

If you are experiencing back pain and are looking for low-risk ways to try to improve your condition, we recommend trying acupuncture. As mentioned above, the practice can have numerous positive effects on your body, which can help you better manage your pain. Also, acupuncture has nearly no risks or negative side effects, so it can’t hurt to try.

Please note, though, that if you have severe back pain, you should not expect acupuncture to heal your condition. You should seek the advice of your doctor.

Get Acupuncture At Home:

It is becoming more common to receive acupuncture at home, as opposed to going to the doctor. At-home acupuncture comes with the benefit of not having to travel to the doctor, which is important considering the fact that people receiving acupuncture treatment are generally doing so because they are experiencing pain. And traveling while experiencing pain can be miserable.

At-home care providers can set up acupuncture treatment from the comfort of your home. See below for how you can schedule this.

Get The Home Care You Need With Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one would like at-home acupuncture treatment, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home acupuncture, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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woman receiving acupuncture at home

Does Acupuncture Work For Anxiety?

Like the response to most medical questions, the answer to whether acupuncture can help reduce anxiety is it depends. It depends on each individual’s case of anxiety and the severity of symptoms. In general, though, acupuncture is known to help reduce anxiety-related symptoms.

This article will discuss what acupuncture is, what anxiety is, and how acupuncture can be effective in combating anxiety.

What is Acupuncture?

While acupuncture comes from various Chinese traditions, in the West, acupuncture is a form of treatment aimed at reducing pain. Specifically, for acupuncture in the West, doctors place needles into strategic points of the body to stimulate nerves, connective tissues, and muscles, according to the Mayo Clinic. Many doctors believe this stimulation helps boost natural painkillers in the body.

Acupuncture has many benefits and can be used to reduce pain caused by a variety of problems or diseases. We talk about the benefits of acupuncture in a separate article on our site.

What is Anxiety?

According to Anxiety.org, anxiety refers to “the mind and body’s reaction to stressful, dangerous, or unfamiliar situations.”

Everyone experiences anxiety at some point, and most people experience it fairly frequently. After all, we live in a world where stressful, dangerous, and/or unfamiliar situations present themselves frequently.

Anxiety can become a more serious problem if you regularly experience these situations and cannot handle them. If your anxiety is causing harmful symptoms, you may want to seek help. Some of the most common symptoms caused by anxiety, according to the Mayo Clinic, include the following:

  • Feeling nervous, restless, tense, or experiencing a common feeling of impending danger
  • Increased heart rate or rapid breathing
  • Sweating
  • Feeling weak or fatigued
  • Trouble concentrating or sleeping
  • Constantly feeling worried

Does Acupuncture Work For Anxiety?

If you feel any of the symptoms listed above, you may want to seek professional help. Many people seek therapy or other means to try to gain control of their anxiety, and one of those means in acupuncture.

Acupuncture can help mitigate the symptoms of anxiety because it relaxes the body and helps reduce general pain that can be associated with high levels of anxiety. Anxiety causes people to feel tense, while acupuncture causes people to relax, so receiving acupuncture in many cases can help with anxiety.

It is important to note, though, that acupuncture cannot cure anxiety and may not work for everyone. Rather, acupuncture may be able to help relieve some of the symptoms associated with anxiety. Moreover, because acupuncture has few risks or side effects, trying it generally cannot hurt.

Get Acupuncture At Home:

It is becoming more common to receive acupuncture at home, as opposed to going to the doctor. At-home acupuncture comes with the benefit of not having to travel to the doctor, which is important considering the fact that people receiving acupuncture treatment are generally doing so because they are experiencing pain. And traveling while experiencing pain can be miserable.

At-home care providers can set up acupuncture treatment from the comfort of your home. See below for how you can schedule this.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of at-home acupuncture, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home acupuncture, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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woman receiving acupuncture at home

What Are The Benefits Of Acupuncture?

Acupuncture is a common practice to help patients reduce pain. While the practice does not cure diseases or solve problems on its own, it still has some key benefits. This article briefly discusses what acupuncture is and its benefits.

What is Acupuncture?

Acupuncture is a practice that comes from traditional Chinese medicine and is most commonly used to reduce pain. While it has more mystical and spiritual roots in Chinese culture, many doctors in the Western World use it in a scientific way to treat patients.

Specifically, for acupuncture in the West, doctors place needles into strategic points of the body to stimulate nerves, connective tissues, and muscles, according to the Mayo Clinic. Many doctors believe this stimulation helps boost natural painkillers in your body.

Benefits of Acupuncture:

As noted earlier, the main benefit of acupuncture is the reduction of pain. Acupuncture can be used to treat pain caused by the following, among other things:

  • Dental issues
  • Cancer-related problems
  • Migraines and other headaches
  • Neck and back issues
  • Menstrual cramps
  • Seasonal allergies

Another benefit of acupuncture is that the procedure is all natural, meaning doctors do not inject any substances or medicine into your body. This means that you will not experience any side-effects you may experience with various medications.

Get Acupuncture At Home:

It is becoming more common to receive acupuncture at home, as opposed to going to the doctor. At-home acupuncture comes with the benefit of not having to travel to the doctor, which is important considering the fact that people receiving acupuncture treatment are generally doing so because they are experiencing pain. And traveling while experiencing pain can be miserable.

At-home care providers can set up acupuncture treatment from the comfort of your home. See below for how you can schedule this.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of at-home acupuncture, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home acupuncture, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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person receiving blood work

Blood Work And Fasting: What You Need To Know

We’ve all had blood work taken at some point or another, and the doctor sometimes tells us to fast beforehand and sometimes not. So that begs the question: Do you really need to fast before getting your blood drawn?

As is the case for many medical-related questions, the answer is it depends. This article will discuss which blood tests typically require fasting and why fasting is necessary. In the end, though, do what your doctor tells you to do.

Blood Tests That Require Fasting:

According to WebMD, the following are examples of common blood tests that typically require fasting. Please note that this is not a list of every test. And again, you should always follow your doctor’s instructions.

  • Measuring Blood Glucose: This test measures the amount of glucose in your bloodstream and can be used to test for diabetes.
  • Lipid Panel: This test is used to measure your level of cholesterol and other blood fats.
  • Basic Metabolic Panel: This is the blood test we have all received as part of our annual physical. It tests for blood sugar levels, electrolyte balances, and more.
  • Vitamin B12 Test: Measuring the level of B12 vitamins in your blood can help diagnose anemia and other diseases.
  • Iron Test: This tests the level of iron in your blood.
  • Gamma-Glutamyl Transferase (GGT) Test: This test measures the level of the GGT enzyme in your blood, which can be used to help diagnose liver disease, alcohol abuse, and more.

Why Fast Before A Blood Test?

Nutrients from food and beverages impact the level of various enzymes and elements in your blood. Because of this, to receive an accurate reading of the make-up of your bloodstream, you need to be free of these outside influences.

For example, if your doctor would like to measure the level of glucose in your blood to test for diabetes, he or she will need to measure the level of glucose that is naturally in your system. If you eat or drink before your test, the sugars from those foods and beverages will show up on the test and skew the results.

Get Your Blood Drawn From Home:

If you need your blood drawn and do not want to go to the doctor’s office or hospital, you can get your blood drawn from home. Receiving blood-work at home has many advantages, as you do not have to travel to and from the doctor and you do not expose yourself to germs at the doctor’s office or hospital.

At-home care providers can set up blood draws from the comfort of your home. See below for how you can schedule an at-home blood draw.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of an at-home blood draw, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home blood draws, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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receiving a blood draw at home

Get Your Blood Drawn From Home

Getting your blood drawn has been a staple of annual physicals for years. And it has generally been assumed that you have to get this procedure done at the doctor’s office or hospital. However, at-home blood draws have become more popular, as it is just as easy and more efficient to get your blood drawn from the comfort of your home.

This article discusses how an at-home blood draw works, the benefits of receiving a blood draw at home, and how you can schedule one for yourself.

How Does An At-Home Blood Draw Work?

Receiving a blood draw at home is easy. Instead of going to the doctor, a nurse comes to your home and takes a sample of your blood. You then receive the results a couple days later just as if the blood were drawn at the doctor. It’s as simple as that.

Benefits of An At-Home Blood Draw:

Receiving a blood draw at home as opposed to going to the doctor’s office or hospital has numerous benefits, including:

  • Comfort: Many people feel uncomfortable going to the doctor’s office or hospital and prefer staying at home. At-home blood draws guarantee you the comfort of your own home.
  • No Travel Risk: Individuals who may have various handicaps or who are older may have trouble traveling, and even a trip to the doctor’s office can be a struggle. At-home blood draws allow those who do not want to travel the opportunity to receive the same health benefits from home.
  • Avoid Germs: Doctor’s offices and hospitals are full of germs that can have serious effects on older individuals and those with compromised immune systems. It may be best to eliminate this risk by receiving blood work from home.

Get An At-Home Blood Draw With Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of an at-home blood draw, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home blood draws, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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EKG machine

What Is An EKG And Why Do I Need One?

An electrocardiogram, also called an EKG or ECG, is a simple and non-invasive test that helps doctors better understand a patient’s heart health and diagnose heart-related problems if need be. The test records the electrical signals in the heart and displays the results on a screen.

Most EKGs are conducted over a period of a few minutes, but if a doctor would like to monitor your health over the course of a few days or weeks, he or she may give you a mobile EKG to wear throughout the day for an extended period of time.

Why Get An EKG?

According to the Mayo Clinic, doctors may order EKGs for their patients for a number of reasons, including:

  • Monitoring Heart Health: If you have a history of heart disease or heart attacks, or if the doctor suspects an abnormal heart rhythm, he or she may order an EKG just to be safe.
  • Assessing the Effectiveness of a Pacemaker: If you have a pacemaker, an EKG can help determine whether it is doing its job.
  • Finding the Cause of Various Symptoms: If you are experiencing any of the following symptoms, your doctor may order an EKG to try to diagnose the problem:
    • Chest pain
    • Shortness of breath
    • Dizziness or light-headedness
    • Sense of confusion
    • Weakness or general fatigue
    • Heart palpitations
    • Rapid pulse

Where To Get An EKG:

Because most EKGs are administered at hospitals and doctor’s offices, most people assume that you must receive an EKG at a facility. However, you can receive an EKG from the comfort of your home just as easily and effectively. In fact, getting an EKG at home reduces the stress of having to go to the doctor’s office or hospital, while it also reduces the risk of exposing yourself to germs at these facilities.

At-home care providers can set up EKGs for patients at home. And because the test is non-invasive and only takes a few minutes, receiving it at home makes sense for many people. See below for how you can receive an EKG at home.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one needs an at-home EKG, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home EKGs, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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normal chest x-ray

What Does A Normal Chest X-Ray Look Like?

Chest x-rays are common and can be used to give doctors a better idea of a patient’s condition for a number of diseases or problems associated with the upper body. If your doctor has recommended a chest x-ray, you may be asking the following questions, which we discuss in this article:

  • Why do I need a chest x-ray?
  • What does a normal chest x-ray look like?
  • Where should I get a chest x-ray?

Why Do I Need A Chest X-Ray?

Chest x-rays reveal a number of things for doctors in and around your chest, so they are important for diagnosing and treating a variety of symptoms and diseases. According to the Mayo Clinic, the following are a few examples of what chest x-rays can be used to detect:

  • Cancer associated with the lungs and surrounding areas
  • Heart problems associated with the lungs
  • Pneumonia
  • Changes in the size and shape of the heart
  • Rib or spine fractures

What Does A Normal Chest X-Ray Look Like?

Everyone’s chest x-ray will look slightly different because no two people are exactly alike. Because of this, identifying a “normal” chest x-ray is difficult. That being said, the following is an example of a chest x-ray that would be considered “normal”:

In contrast, the following is an example of a chest x-ray for a patient with pneumonia:

Where Should I Get a Chest X-Ray?

While most people assume that the doctor’s office or hospital is the best place to get an x-ray, you can actually receive a chest x-ray at home and avoid the hassle of going to the doctor and the risk of exposing your already compromised immune system.

At-home care providers can coordinate chest x-rays from the comfort of your own home, and doing so is easy. See below how you can receive an at-home chest x-ray at your convenience.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of an at-home chest x-ray, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information, please visit our homepage and learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home chest x-rays, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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Getting A Chest X-Ray For Pneumonia

Getting A Chest X-Ray For Pneumonia

If you are showing symptoms of pneumonia, your doctor may tell you to get a chest x-ray to see if you in fact have the disease. You may be wondering what this means, how this will help, and/or where you should get an x-ray, so this article aims to answer some of the questions you may have. Specifically, we will discuss what pneumonia is and how a chest x-ray helps diagnose it. We will then discuss the best and most comfortable way to do so. 

What is Pneumonia?

According to the Mayo Clinic, pneumonia is an infection that inflames the air sacs in your lungs. It can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi, and often accompanies other diseases you may have.

The severity of the disease can vary from person to person, but the most severe cases are usually found in people in the “at-risk” category: Those over the age of 65 or with weakened immune systems, as well as young children and infants.

Symptoms of the disease vary depending on its severity, with mild cases feeling similar to having a bad cold or flu. The following are examples of symptoms you may feel with pneumonia:

  • Chest pain when you breathe or cough
  • Wet cough
  • Fatigue
  • Fever and chills
  • Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea
  • Shortness of breath

In addition to the symptoms above, adults over 65 may also experience confusion or changes in mental awareness, along with abnormally low body temperatures.

Why Get A Chest X-Ray For Pneumonia?

Because pneumonia is an infection that inflames your lungs, doctors must be able to see your lungs to accurately diagnose it. And the best way for a doctor to do this is with an x-ray. The x-ray shows all of a patient’s chest, so doctors can easily see the lungs to see if there is an infection.

Where To Get A Chest X-Ray:

While most people assume that the doctor’s office or hospital is the best place to get an x-ray, you can actually receive a chest x-ray at home and avoid the hassle of going to the doctor and the risk of exposing your already compromised immune system.

At-home care providers can coordinate services from the comfort of your own home, and doing so is easy. See below how you can receive an at-home chest x-ray at your convenience.

Get The Home Care You Need with Kinkaid:

If you or your loved one is in need of an at-home chest x-ray, please reach out to us to see how we can help. Kinkaid Private Nursing Care offers premium in-home services to patients looking for the best and most intensive care on the market. We only take on a few clients at a time, so we always provide specialized care to meet the needs of each client.

For more information,  call us at 866-344-9050 or fill out the contact form here to learn about the array of services we provide. These services include at-home chest x-rays, in-home nursing care, and the coordination of a variety of at-home medical services in the Los Angeles area, as well as home detox services all over the state of California. We also offer at-home Covid-19 testing.

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