Home Sweet Waiting Room …Home

We all know the struggle. You pick your child up from school or daycare, proud for accomplishing meal prep a few days ago. Tonight is the night! You will arrive home, put dinner on the table, help the kids finish homework and everyone will be in bed by 8:30!

 “Mom, I have a sore throat.”

The car groans through a turn as your driveway beckons. You turn back to see a sweet face with bright red glow-worm cheeks. You are certain there is a fever.

Brandishing a thermometer, you confirm what you already knew. Your sweetheart’s temp is 103.1 F.

Check your watch. 5:30 pm Ugh! Your physician’s late-night clinic is already full.  Should you wait and see them in the morning? Should you bring your child to the Pediatric Emergency Department?  Should you head to Urgent Care? Will the Urgent Care provider work well with kids?

There are plenty of benefits with medical home visits. Many benefits may seem ridiculous, but are also true!! The benefits of a home visit are:

COMFORT

Your child will be more comfortable waiting at home compared to an urgent care or waiting room.  (A perk – it is also more comfortable for you, the caregiver!)

Your child will experience less anxiety receiving medical care in a familiar environment.

Vomiting is no fun. Vomiting in the car, your doctor’s office bathroom, or waiting room is even less fun than at home.

Kids love staying in their pajamas when they are sick 😉

More time at home and less time in the waiting room means less time with other, also sick children and adults.

CONVENIENCE

Use the extra time at home to take care of your other children, complete your list of to-dos, and maybe even fix dinner while you wait.

Labs that you typically go to a doctor’s office for-can be done conveniently in your home during the visit.

Several lab tests are completed and results confirmed in your living room – no extra stops necessary.

Insurance is filed for home visits just like office visits.

Follow-ups on pending lab results for a home visit occur just like in an office visit.

The exam and information from a home visit are automatically sent to your primary physician to be added to your normal medical record.

COST AND QUALITY

A $200 co-pay, a 7 pm car trip, and 3 hours of your time at the ER for a popsicle and strep screen are not your idea of fun or easy.

Your Health Savings Account means an after-hours ER visit could turn into a $600-1000 adventure. Not the fun kind with dragons and rainbows.

The physician will spend more face-to-face time with you for a home visit – including examining your child, explaining the illness, and talking with you about when to be concerned if things are not improving.

Unlike most telehealth visits, the physician will be able to listen to the lungs and view the ears in a true physical exam, just like in your doctor’s office.

Ah – Home Sweet Waiting Room Home!