We are dedicated to serving clients and families in Gaston, Mecklenburg, Cleveland and Lincoln Counties in North Carolina.

Skilled Nursing

EmeraldCare's Nurses provide professional nursing care for a range of medical needs. Working with the client's doctor, the nurse implements the individual plan of care for each client.

Skilled Nursing Services can include:

• IV therapy
• Ostomy care
• Client and family education
• Wound care

EmeraldCare's Home Health nurse provides client care guided by a plan of care developed in collaboration with the physician to meet the client's specific needs. The EmeraldCare Nursing Team members have superior assessment skills, sound judgment and strong management skills. When health care is provided to a client at home, it allows our nurses more time to assess, plan, implement and evaluate the client's needs.

Physical Therapy

EmeraldCare offers Licensed Physical Therapists to work with our clients to regain physical functions and improve range of motion. Our Therapists may help clients with gait training, use of equipment (i.e. wheel chairs, walkers, canes, artificial limbs, etc.), therapeutic exercise, pain control and client education.

The most common conditions requiring physical therapy include:

• Acute muscle weakness
• Amputation
• Arthritis
• Burns
• Cerebral palsy
• Certain postoperative conditions
• Hip fracture or surgery
• Hip replacement
• Knee replacement
• Muscular dystrophy
• Spinal cord injuries
• Stroke
• Other neurological disorders

Home Health Aide Services

The EmeraldCare Team of Home Health Aides help clients with personal care services such as grooming, bathing, meal preparation and light housekeeping. Home health aides also perform household services such as changing linens, preparing small meals and light housekeeping. Such services not only help the client feel better physically, but also contribute to the client's overall health and well being.

Our home health aide's primary function is to provide personal care and assistance with activities of daily living. Aide services are delivered under the supervision of one of our registered nurses or licensed therapists.

Some examples of personal care activities are:

• Assisting the family with the client's care such as positioning, transferring, bathing and skin care
• Assisting with exercises as directed by a nurse or therapist
• Assisting with walking, transfers and changing position in bed
• Bathing (tub, shower, sponge) including skin care
• Bowel care (including enemas and routine colostomy care unless the skills of a licensed nurse are required)
• Dressing changes which do not require the skills of a licensed nurse
• Hair care (excluding cutting, coloring, permanent waves or chemical treatments of any nature)
• Mouth care (brushing teeth, dentures)
• Nail care (excluding polishing and manicures)
• Routine catheter care
• Shaving

Occupational Therapy

The EmeraldCare Team of Occupational Therapists help clients learn to better perform activities of daily living. These activities include eating, bathing, grooming, dressing, toileting and walking/ambulating.

At EmeraldCare, Occupational Therapy is focused on helping clients reach their highest level of personal independence. Occupational Therapy involves improving or restoring functions that have been impaired by illness or injury and affect a client's ability to perform tasks required for independent living.

Our Occupational Therapists can also help adapt the client's home or work environment to make life safer and easier. They may recommend grab bars in a bath or a ramp for a wheelchair, for example.

Problems frequently encountered that require Occupational Therapy include:

• Amputations
• Arthritic conditions
• Brain injury
• Burns
• Hip fractures
• Stroke

Services provided by occupational therapists may include:

• Designing and teaching therapeutic activities to restore physical, sensory and motor functions
• Designing, fabricating and fitting orthotic and self-help devices
• Teaching activities of daily living and energy conservation

Nutrition Therapy

EmeraldCare Nutritionists counsel high-risk clients about dietary needs. A proper diet and good nutrition are essential in an effective treatment plan and for recovery.

Each client receives a nutritional screening on admission.

Speech Therapy

At EmeraldCare, we know that through an effective speech therapy program, clients learn to better use and comprehend language. Enhanced written, spoken and nonverbal communication skills help clients gain greater independence and enjoy an improved quality of life.

Speech therapists provide diagnostic and rehabilitative services to people with communication disorders. They can help home health clients learn to strengthen oral muscles for speech, improve understanding of other people's speech.

Medical Social Work

EmeraldCare's Medical Social Workers can provide clients and families with practical assistance with problems they encounter. The help they provide can often help families obtain additional community services.

Our medical social worker helps with personal, family and financial problems that may develop as a result of illness or injury. Social problems such as these can affect a client's response to treatment.

Our medical social worker will complete an initial assessment of the various factors that influence the person's ability to cope with his/her illness. These factors may be physical, social, mental, emotional, spiritual, economic and environmental. When the assessment has been completed, the medical social worker prepares a plan of care with the client and family or caregiver. Information, referral, and advocacy are some of the services the medical social worker may offer.

Medical social workers also counsel clients who may be experiencing severe loss, grief, anger, family strain or financial difficulties. The medical social worker provides short-term counseling, crisis intervention and long-range planning to help with these types of problems.

Medical social workers get involved if a client experiences:

• Barriers in meeting health plan goals
• Lack of financial resources to purchase food, medicine, utilities or other medical necessities
• Lack of caregiver resources
• Transportation need
• Lack of social interaction
• Suspected neglect or abuse
• Unsafe or unstable home environment

Many clients are able to safely remain at home because of the medical social worker's knowledge of community resources. Their efforts to secure homemaker services, respite sitters, personal care attendants, prepared meals, day treatment or partial day care services are all part of a day's work.

Medical Supplies & Equipment

At EmeraldCare we assist our clients and their families in making sure that all necessary supplies & equipment related to care are made available for home health care needs. Client and family education is provided as needed by EmeraldCare.