High mortality rate for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been reported worldwide in nursing home residents, and the global concern about the safety of patients and professionals in these institutions is relevant. A large part of post-acute and chronic patient care in Brazil is performed at home through Home Care (HC) services. The objectives of this chapter are to describe the main measures that can be implemented in patient homes in order to keep professionals, patients, and family members safe and to analyze the safety of choosing the home as the place of care during a pandemic, especially in contrast to the results observed in long-term care facilities. COVID-19 infection data among home care patients, obtained after a year of severe epidemic in Brazil, demonstrate that home care is safe and is associated with a low incidence and low lethality related to the new coronavirus.
Part of the book: Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic