Recovering from Cardiac Surgery at Home: Answering FAQs

Undergoing cardiac surgery is one of the fragile conditions that need serious monitoring upon recovery. Thankfully, with available providers of skilled nursing in McLean, Virginia, recovery from these complicated procedures can now be done at home.

More patients will prefer to recover at home for the reasons of convenience, comfort, and familiarity of the environment. With skilled nurses attending to their health and recovery needs, this is now possible.

Here are helpful questions to know when recovering at home after a cardiac surgery:

1. What should patients expect when they recover at home?

   Patients may feel a fluctuation of fatigue and strength when they’re recovering. This is a normal scenario for heart surgery procedures and should not discourage the patients. For this reason, it’s important that they have skilled nursing assistance so that these medical concerns can be immediately addressed, and reduce the chances of feeling low.

2. What does a usual day for recovering patients look like?

   The patient’s doctor will most likely provide a recovery plan they need to apply at home. This plan has to be integrated into their routines so that they can regain their strength faster. Their daily routine roughly includes the following:

   • 6-8 hours of straight sleep
   • taking a bath
   • taking weight measurement
   • eating healthy meals
   • taking medications

   They can get help from providers of home care service to attend to their chores and other home tasks.

3. What can patients do with their incisions when they’re showering?

   As soon as the surgeon approves of the patient’s shower, they can do this at home already, although, they may feel some itchiness or soreness in the incision area. The wounded area may also feel tight or numb in the weeks that follow. Here are important reminders when showering while the incisions are healing:

   • Use warm water to bathe.
   • Gently wash the incision area with soap and water BUT do not scrub it.
   • Pat-dry the incision area.
4. What should the patient be eating?

   Meals are also crucial in the speedy recovery of the patient. You can request for your meals to be prepared by providers of companion services in Fredericksburg, Virginia. But here are important points on the patient’s meal plan:

   • Ensure that they’re eating a balanced diet.
   • Be adequately hydrated, especially with water.
   • Follow the doctor’s diet recommendation, if there’s any.
   • Eat smaller food portions instead of three big meals.
   • Ensure that you’re staying away from too much salt and bad cholesterol.

The patient recovering from a cardiac surgery will surely have many questions still. For this reason, they have to be consistently in touch with their primary physician so that their care needs are properly checked at home. While they’re recovering, our team at OptimumCare Home Care Services can assist the patient for their other responsibilities and chores at home.

Do you know someone who needs this kind of service? Forward this post to them.