Home visits and the housebound

Abstract

Home visits remain an important and integral part of general practice. Many home visits are on an unscheduled acute basis, but for permanently housebound patients home visits are often the only way of seeing a GP. Housebound patients have higher rates of co-morbidity, functional impairment and mortality than their non-housebound counterparts. As the elderly population and potentially the number that are housebound continues to rise; the value and importance of home visits to enable continuity of care to this frail subset of patients is also likely to grow. Home visits can undoubtedly be difficult but they offer many advantages that can easily be overlooked, including gaining valuable insight into the home life of the patient. This article aims to improve awareness of the needs of the housebound as well as highlighting the advantages of home visiting in general. It gives useful advice on how to get the most out of a home visit.