Home care encompasses a wide range of health and social services. These services are delivered at home to recovering, disabled, chronically or terminally ill people who need medical, nursing, social or therapeutic treatment and/or assistance with the essential activities of daily living.

Generally, home care is appropriate whenever a person is able to stay at home but needs ongoing care that cannot be provided solely by family or friends. In addition, Medicare requires that the beneficiary be homebound as a prerequisite for receiving care.

This article originally appeared on McKnight's