If you or a veteran in your family has VA benefits, or you think you might qualify for help paying for home care, Assisting Hands Home Care can walk you through what’s available and provide the caregivers once you’re approved. We serve veterans throughout Aurora and work directly with the VA clinic here to help keep a veteran’s care plan on track between visits.
The Aurora VA Clinic
The Aurora VA Clinic, a community-based outpatient clinic under Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital, is located at 161 S. Lincolnway in North Aurora. It offers primary care, behavioral health services, lab work, prescriptions, and a walk-in food pantry, which means many veterans in Aurora can get routine care without traveling into Chicago. When we care for a veteran who uses this clinic, we can provide transportation to appointments and help keep track of medication changes and follow-up instructions from their care team.
VA programs that can pay for home care
To receive VA-funded home care, a veteran first needs to be enrolled in VA health care and evaluated through the geriatric extended care program by a VA nurse, social worker, and physician. That evaluation determines eligibility and how many hours of care are approved. Assisting Hands is an approved provider for two of these programs.
Homemaker/Home Health Aide. Covers up to 12 hours a week of help with bathing, dressing, mobility, meal preparation, and light housekeeping. Veterans generally qualify with a significant cognitive impairment or a need for help with three or more activities of daily living.
VA Respite Care. For veterans cared for by a spouse or family member. A caregiver comes to the home on a scheduled basis so the family caregiver can take real time off. Eligibility follows the same evaluation.
If a veteran needs help paying for care but isn’t enrolled in VA health care, or the home health aide program doesn’t fit their situation, VA Aid and Attendance is worth asking about. It’s a pension benefit for wartime veterans, or their surviving spouses, who need assistance with daily activities. The money goes to the veteran, who can then use it to pay for a home care provider of their choice, including Assisting Hands.
Local resources for veterans in Aurora, Illinois
Aurora is home to a number of veterans’ organizations that families often turn to first when trying to understand VA benefits, including Roosevelt-Aurora American Legion Post 84 and AMVETS Post 103. If you’re new to the VA system or not sure what a veteran qualifies for, these posts are a good place to ask, and so are we.
How our Aurora caregivers Help VA Seniors
We start every care plan with an in-home visit so we understand the veteran’s routine and needs before care begins. Depending on what’s approved and what the family needs, care can include:
- Bathing, dressing, and grooming assistance
- Medication reminders
- Meal preparation, including special diets
- Transportation to the Aurora VA Clinic, Rush Copley Medical Center, or Ascension Mercy Medical Center
- Light housekeeping and laundry
- Companionship and fall prevention support
For hospital-level needs, Rush Copley Medical Center and Ascension Mercy Medical Center both serve Aurora and have received high marks for patient safety. When a veteran we’re caring for is discharged from either one, we can start care right away to help prevent the kind of setback that often happens when there’s a gap between leaving the hospital and getting support at home.
Why families in Aurora work with Assisting Hands Home Care
Our caregivers are local, screened, licensed, bonded, and insured. We coordinate transportation and follow-up care around the Aurora VA Clinic for the veterans we serve, and if a veteran’s needs change, we adjust the care plan within the existing VA approval rather than starting the process over.
Talk to us about VA home care services in Aurora, IL
If a veteran in Aurora has VA benefits, or you think they might qualify and haven’t applied yet, call Assisting Hands Home Care at (630) 948-8193 for a free in-home consultation.
