Family health care refers to the practice of family members helping each other maintain good health through adopting health promotion behaviors and caring for sick and recovering family members during illness and convalescence.
Patients and their family members can provide crucial insight into healthcare provision, identify errors in care delivery and help facilitate family-centered dialogue.
Preventive Care
Preventive care offers an alternative approach to traditional medical care that focuses on treating disease or injury after they arise, providing physical exams, screenings, tests, vaccinations and monitoring programs to stay healthy and educate the individual on health matters. Many family physicians also provide health counseling as well as referrals for certain conditions like heart disease and diabetes.
Preventive care is crucial for all, but especially important for families. That’s because members often share similar lifestyle habits such as smoking or an unhealthy diet, meaning high-quality preventive care may help your loved ones avoid serious illnesses while cutting costs.
Under health reform, most plans must cover preventive services without charging copayments or deductibles for them. CDPHP’s guidelines can help you decide the appropriate preventive care to offer your family based on age and risk considerations.
Health Education
One key component of family health care is providing patients with information on all the factors influencing their wellbeing, such as nutrition, physical activity, risk behaviors and meaningful social connections that may impact their health.
Studies have highlighted the significance of family environments and roles for promoting individual and children health. Christensen created a conceptual model of what she called “health-promoting families”, with core characteristics including:
Family Health Network is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), serving Cortland County and its contiguous counties. No one will be denied care due to an inability to pay. We’re honored that we received Quality Recognition from Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services; come learn more about us, get involved or become part of our mission today by visiting us!
Counseling
Counseling has long been an integral component of human life. From grieving a loss or divorce to anxiety and depression – counseling provides invaluable insights that help individuals cope with such difficult life experiences.
Family counseling or therapy aims to address emotional, psychological and behavioral problems within families that could be due to various causes. Sessions often occur both individually and jointly depending on each family member’s specific needs.
New York Behavioral Health provides counseling and supportive services for children, adolescents, and adults in a safe, compassionate and culturally appropriate setting. We assist people who are struggling with anxiety, depression, relationship difficulties or any other form of behavioral issue such as relationship troubles. As members of Bronx Community Health Network as well as Federally Qualified Health Centers we do not discriminate based on race, sex, national origin or religion and welcome everyone equally.
Support
Family health care is an integral component of healthcare systems worldwide. In the US, family doctors see more patients than any other specialty; family medicine treats all ages from young children to senior adults as it emphasizes preventive healthcare and education programs.
Studies demonstrate the correlation between families’ involvement in healthcare decisions and quality care outcomes, specifically hospital settings where family-centered rounds (in which nurses present patient issues to a family member present) have proven successful at improving patient outcomes.
Family members can assist their ill loved ones by seeking financial support from family and friends, researching available local care resources, arranging transportation between appointments, providing emotional and physical caregiving support and finding suitable family health insurance plans. Family members may also provide vital information on their patient’s condition while offering written correspondence support as needed. Research shows it may also be beneficial for caregivers to form friendships with families of patients who share similar experiences – commonly referred to as peer support networks.
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