Trusted Post-Surgery In-Home Care in Chattanooga
Preferred Care at Home of Chattanooga sends trained caregivers, matched by personality, for anywhere from one hour to 24 hours per day to keep post-surgery recovery on track and provide the comfort your loved one needs at home. Serving Hamilton County and southeast Tennessee. Tennessee PSSA License #L000000038642.
- Experienced and trained caregivers, including CNA/HHA professionals
- Bilingual support in English and Spanish
- Flexible schedules from one to twenty-four hours
Why Choose Us for Post-Surgery Recovery Care in Chattanooga?
Preferred Care at Home of Chattanooga is led by Roxanne Clark and operates from 1200 Premier Drive, #210, Chattanooga, TN 37421. The office holds Tennessee PSSA License #L000000038642. The six-member administrative team brings more than 110 years of combined experience caring for older adults. The Chattanooga office has been recognized with the Pinnacle Award as one of the highest-performing franchises in the national network.
Every caregiver clears a 7-step screening process that includes criminal background checks and abuse-registry verification required by the Tennessee Department of Health. Caregivers are matched by personality and recovery needs — not just availability. The Transparency Room online portal lets family members track visits, notes, and tasks from anywhere across Hamilton County and beyond.
Our Post-Surgery Recovery Services in Chattanooga, TN
Post-surgery recovery in Chattanooga rarely fits a single service line. Most families need layered support during the first month at home — personal care for bathing and transfers, transition support from Erlanger or CHI Memorial, companion coverage for isolation gaps, homemaker help with meals and errands, and around-the-clock coverage when overnight risk is present. We build the mix around the surgery, the recovery timeline, and your family’s specific coverage gaps.
Personal Care During Recovery
Post-op restrictions limit reaching, lifting, and weight-bearing for weeks after surgery. Personal Care caregivers assist with bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, and mobility during the recovery window when family check-ins cannot cover every transfer. We adjust the schedule as your loved one regains independence — scaling from 12-hour daily shifts in week one down to a few morning hours by week four.
Highlights:
- 1 to 24 hours per day
- 7-step screened caregivers
- Schedule scales as independence returns
Hospital-to-Home Transition Care
Families coming home from Erlanger, CHI Memorial, Parkridge, Encompass, or Siskin get non-medical recovery support coordinated to discharge timing. Caregivers handle discharge-day coordination, transportation to follow-up appointments, medication reminders, and communication with the family member managing care. This is companion and logistics support — not skilled nursing — that bridges the gap between clinical visits and daily recovery life.
Highlights:
- 5 discharge hospitals covered
- Discharge-day coordination
- Follow-up appointment transportation
Companion Care for Recovery Isolation
Recovery days are long when family caregivers return to work and the post-op patient is still housebound. Companion Care fills the isolation window with company, appointment accompaniment, and light activity participation. Caregivers provide safety reassurance during the early-recovery period when mobility is limited — and matching by shared interests turns supervision into genuine connection.
Highlights:
- 1-hour minimums available
- Accompaniment to follow-up visits
- Matched by shared interests
Homemaker Care During Recovery
Post-op activity restrictions take household tasks off the table for weeks. Homemaker Care caregivers handle meal preparation, laundry, light housekeeping, and errands so your loved one can focus on healing. Meal planning adapts to surgeon-recommended diets — including diabetes-friendly menus when a surgeon recommends dietary limits. Grocery runs, pharmacy pickups, and weekly linen changes keep the household running. Schedule a free recovery consultation today.
Highlights:
- Meal prep around dietary needs
- Grocery and pharmacy runs
- Weekly linen and laundry rotation
24-Hour Replacement Care
Post-op patients with overnight transfer needs, fall risk, or no family member available at home need continuous presence. 24-Hour Replacement Care provides around-the-clock coverage with caregivers matched across shifts. Replacement coverage is built in when the primary caregiver is off. Continuous overnight presence reduces the risk events that drive readmission during the first month at home — including for individuals recovering with dementia who may be unsettled after dark.
Highlights:
- Continuous overnight presence
- Shift-matched caregivers
- Replacement coverage built in
Flexible Recovery Scheduling
Every post-surgery recovery looks different. We build schedules from one hour per day up to around-the-clock coverage, and we adjust as healing progresses. Payment pathways include TennCare CHOICES, ECF CHOICES, VA benefits (Aid and Attendance, VA Community Care, Guide Program), Long-Term Care Insurance, and private pay. Call before discharge day — coverage starts the day your loved one comes home from Erlanger, CHI Memorial, or Parkridge.
Highlights:
- TennCare CHOICES and VA Benefits
- From 1 hour to 24-hour coverage
- No provider change as needs change
What To Expect: Our Post-Surgery Recovery Process
Step 01
Call Before Discharge Day
Reach out to Roxanne Clark’s office at (423) 531-8696 once surgery is scheduled, so coverage starts the day your loved one comes home — not after a problem appears in the first-week post-op window.
Step 02
We Build a Recovery Plan
A consultation maps which services fit the first month based on the surgery, the recovery timeline, and the family’s coverage gaps. The plan names hours, tasks, and how coverage scales as independence returns.
Step 03
You Meet Your Caregiver
The caregiver is matched by personality and recovery needs — not just by who is available that week. Every caregiver clears our 7-step screen including background checks and abuse-registry verification.
Step 04
Care Begins — You Monitor Everything
Family members track schedules, caregiver notes, and tasks through the Transparency Room portal from anywhere — so adult children in other cities stay informed without constant check-in calls.
Step 05
We Adjust as Recovery Progresses
As your loved one regains independence, the schedule scales down — from full-day coverage in week one to a few targeted hours in week four. No need to cancel and restart with a new agency as needs change.
Common Post-Surgery Recovery Challenges in Chattanooga
Recovery in Hamilton County rarely fits a single service line, and the first month after discharge is where most families need layered help. These are the specific challenges we see most often.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
How We Help
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Hamilton County’s summer heat and winter ice make follow-up appointment trips, grocery runs, and post-op walks harder during recovery weeks — especially for seniors living alone in Signal Mountain or Lookout Mountain communities.
How We Help
Companion Care and Homemaker Care cover transportation and errands so post-op patients are not forced outside in unsafe conditions during the critical first weeks of recovery.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Description
Signal Mountain, Lookout Mountain, TN, and older Hamilton County homes often have stairs, narrow halls, and bathrooms not built for post-op mobility limits — making transfers and bathing high-risk without a trained caregiver.
How We Help
Personal Care assists with transfers and bathing, while 24-Hour Replacement Care covers overnight stair-risk windows so no moment of the recovery day is left unmanaged.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Description
Tennessee rule 0720-35-.02 requires personal support services agencies to be licensed, but many families never ask to see the license number before hiring — putting their loved one at risk with unverified informal caregivers.
How We Help
Transition Care and Personal Care are provided under PSSA License #L000000038642, verifiable before discharge day. We encourage families to ask for the license number from any provider they consider.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Description
Families assume only skilled home health helps after surgery, missing that bathing, transfers, meals, and follow-up rides are the specific gaps that cause setbacks — and that Medicare-covered home health does not cover these tasks.
How We Help
Transition Care plus Personal Care cover the non-clinical recovery work that family-only coverage misses — and we explain the line between medical home health and non-medical recovery support on the first call.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Description
According to CMS, unplanned hospital visits after outpatient surgery are measured within 7 days for Medicare beneficiaries — making the first week home the highest-stakes window when families are least prepared.
How We Help
Transition Care and 24-Hour Replacement Care can start on discharge day rather than waiting until problems appear — so the highest-risk window is covered from hour one at home.
Challenge
What It Looks Like
Description
According to CDC STEADI, older adults who have had a hospital stay are more likely to experience a fall in the first month after discharge than those who have not been hospitalized — and most families only add care after the first fall.
How We Help
Personal Care and 24-Hour Replacement Care provide mobility supervision through week four — not just the first few days — so the full high-risk window is covered, not just the discharge weekend.
Local Services Throughout the Chattanooga Area
Celebrating life, dignity and independence.®
Since 1984, the founders of Preferred Care at Home have had the privilege of assisting clients in improving their quality of life while still recognizing and maintaining their dignity and independence. Preferred Care at Home has continued this tradition by only referring the most reliable, compassionate, experienced and affordable caregivers to client’s homes or care facilities.
We understand that long-term care can be costly, which is why we have focused on building a reputation of offering access to quality services at affordable prices.
Ask about the wide range of non-medical services available from 1 to 24 hours per day, and about qualified live-in caregivers who can provide 24-hour peace of mind for you or your loved one.
We Serve:
- Apison
- Athens
- Cleveland
- Collegedale
- East Ridge
- Georgetown
- Harrison
- Lookout Mountain
- Lookout Valley
- Middle Valley
- Ooltewah
- Signal Mountain
- Snow Hill
- Soddy Daisy
- Walden
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Preferred Care at Home serve Chattanooga and the surrounding area?
Yes, Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga serves Hamilton County and reaches into Bradley, McMinn, and adjacent counties across southeast Tennessee.
The local office at 1200 Premier Drive, #210, led by Roxanne Clark, supports families in Chattanooga, Signal Mountain, Lookout Mountain TN, Ooltewah, Collegedale, Soddy Daisy, and surrounding communities. Call (423) 531-8696 or email billtobin@preferhome.com to begin a post-surgery care consultation.
What post-surgery in-home care services does Preferred Care at Home offer in Chattanooga?
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga offers Personal Care, Transition Care, Companion Care, Homemaker Care, and 24-Hour Replacement Care during recovery.
The five services layer together based on the surgery, the recovery timeline, and the family’s coverage gaps. Most post-op recoveries start with daily living assistance and transition support, with companion and homemaker care added as the family caregiver’s availability narrows.
How does the process for post-surgery in-home care work with Preferred Care at Home in Chattanooga?
A consultation builds a recovery plan, a screened caregiver is matched by personality, and care begins on discharge day if scheduled in advance.
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga starts with a phone consultation, builds a recovery plan covering bathing, transfers, meals, transportation, and overnight needs, and matches a 7-step-screened caregiver to your loved one. The Transparency Room portal lets family members in other cities monitor the schedule and caregiver notes in real time.
How quickly should I arrange in-home care after surgery?
Before discharge day if possible, because the first week is the highest-stakes window.
Arranging care before discharge day means a caregiver is in place when your loved one comes home — not after a problem appears in the first-week post-op window. Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga can coordinate around a scheduled surgery date so coverage begins the day of release from Erlanger, CHI Memorial, Parkridge, Encompass, or Siskin.
What is involved in post-surgery home care?
Non-medical help with bathing, dressing, transfers, meals, medication reminders, follow-up transportation, and around-the-clock supervision when needed.
Post-surgery home care from Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga covers the recovery work that family check-ins cannot sustain: assistance with bathing and dressing, mobility and transfer help, meal preparation, medication reminders, grocery and pharmacy runs, and transportation to follow-up appointments.
How many hours of care do families usually need after surgery?
Care ranges from 1 hour to 24 hours per day, and pricing depends on hours, service mix, and whether long-term care insurance, TennCare CHOICES, or VA benefits apply.
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga builds plans from a few hours of daytime help up to around-the-clock coverage. The office accepts long-term care insurance, TennCare CHOICES, ECF CHOICES, and VA benefits including Aid and Attendance, VA Community Care, and Guide Program. Call (423) 531-8696 for a recovery-specific cost estimate.
What is the difference between post-surgery home care and home health?
Home care is non-medical: bathing, meals, transportation, supervision. Home health is clinical: nursing visits, therapy, wound treatment.
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga is a non-medical agency. The team helps with daily living and recovery support, not clinical procedures. Families needing nursing visits, therapy, or wound treatment are referred to medical home health providers. Preferred Care at Home often runs alongside those services to cover the rest of the day.
How do you make sure families feel supported during a loved one's recovery?
Caregivers are matched by personality, schedules adjust as recovery progresses, and family members monitor everything through the Transparency Room portal.
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga checks in with the family contact, adjusts the schedule as the recovery timeline changes, and provides Transparency Room access so adult children in other states can see caregiver notes, schedules, and tasks in real time. The team stays committed to supporting your family through every stage of recovery.
What should I look for in a post-surgery home care agency in Tennessee?
A current Tennessee PSSA license, documented background and abuse-registry checks, and a clear explanation of what the agency does and does not provide.
Tennessee requires home care organizations providing support services to be licensed. Before hiring, ask for the license number, ask how caregivers are screened against the state Abuse Registry, and confirm the agency is upfront about non-medical scope. Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga operates under PSSA License #L000000038642.
Is post-surgery in-home care only for seniors?
No, recovery support is available to adults of any age, though most clients are older adults coming home from surgery.
Preferred Care at Home Chattanooga primarily supports adults 65 and over, but recovery care after surgery is available for younger adults who need short-term help with bathing, transfers, meals, and follow-up appointments. The same screening, matching, and Transparency Room access apply regardless of the client’s age.
Preferred Care at Home of Chattanooga