More Information on Medical Escort and Transport (MET)

Why appointments at hospitals and clinics can be daunting

Receiving continuing care and maintaining follow-up medical appointments, as well as preventive care services is critical to the long-term care outcome, yet these visits can be disruptive and time-consuming. A simple consultation can take hours or even most of a day. These care needs and the difficulty of keeping track of appointment times can result in missed medical appointments, which in the long term is damaging to the care recipient and the family caregiver.

For seniors and those with mobility constraints, travelling to and from hospitals or clinics and home can also be a challenge.  The use of wheelchairs and mobility aids further complicate the issue of getting your loved one from bed to a vehicle and these transfers involve physical challenges that can be mitigated by the right techniques and training.  Unless you have a professional caregiver or a care team who can assist you with such services, the trip to the hospital or clinics for the appointment can be quite daunting.

Need support travelling to and from appointments

In many cases, the burden of medical escort falls on a family member to accompany the loved one to the hospital or clinic. This is a challenge for family members who have other commitments such as employment. Family caregivers may not always be available to provide medical escort or the long wait times for consultation may be inconvenient due to time constraints.  This can be stressful for both the family member and the loved one. 

Where the caregiver is also elderly, being a medical escort is never easy for them, as they may have their own health conditions and physical constraints. Whatever the reason, take the hassle out of medical appointments. That’s where Home Instead can assist in both medical escort services and transport services.

Having a trained Care Professional provides the peace of mind

Our Care Professionals are trained on proper transfer techniques and safety in and out of vehicles and experienced to keep our seniors safe during the medical escort. From the time your loved ones need to get ready for the medical appointment till the time they are safely home, we will escort and accompany them and ensure they’re assisted in every way necessary and relieving your family members from the worry. Our medical escort and transport service involves the following:

• Arranging round trip transportation
• Safe transfers in and out of vehicle
• Help navigating in the hospital
• Take note of or schedule the next medical appointment​ or treatments
• Note and relaying instructions from doctor to senior
• Liaising with the senior’s family and the hospital staff to help explain procedures and communicate concerns
• Prescription medication collection
• Assist on toileting and necessary personal care
• Keep your loved one company while travelling and waiting