What Can a Home Visit Nurse Do? Wound Care, Tube Changes, IV Fluids, Injections and How to Prepare

What can a home visit nurse do? A registered nurse who comes to your home can both assess and carry out nursing procedures: checking vital signs and symptoms, reviewing your parent's medicines, dressing wounds, changing nasogastric feeding tubes and urinary catheters, and teaching your family or caregiver to continue care correctly. Injections or IV fluids given at home as part of treatment need a doctor's order or treatment plan first; the home visit nurse does not decide on their own that your parent needs an injection or a drip. A feeding tube through the abdomen also needs different precautions and steps from a tube through the nose, depending on the tube type and the doctor's decision.

Many families start thinking about this on the day their parent comes home with a feeding tube, a urinary catheter or a wound that needs daily care, and discover that taking them to hospital just to change a tube uses up a whole day. This guide sets out clearly which tasks a nurse can do at home, which need a doctor's order, which should not be done at home, what to prepare before the nurse arrives, and what information and documents your family should receive after the visit.

Quick answer

• A home visit nurse can assess symptoms, take vital signs, review medicines, dress wounds, change nasogastric tubes and urinary catheters, and teach the family to continue care
• Injections or IV fluids at home as part of treatment, and changes to medicines the doctor prescribed, must come from the doctor's plan; the home visit nurse follows that plan and tells the doctor when an adjustment seems needed
• Abdominal feeding tubes come in several types, and the doctor or team who placed the tube decides where and by whom it is changed; if it comes out, do not put it back yourself, and contact the care team or go to hospital straight away, because the opening can narrow quickly
• Before the visit, prepare the hospital summary, medicine list, tube type and size, date of the last change, wound photos, and a bright, clean area with somewhere to wash hands
• After the visit, you should have notes on what was done, what was found, what to watch for and the next appointment
• In an emergency, such as breathlessness, being impossible to wake or new confusion, call 1669 rather than waiting for a home visit

1. How a registered nurse at home differs from a caregiver

The short answer is that a registered nurse holds a professional licence from the Thailand Nursing and Midwifery Council and assesses, plans and performs nursing procedures, while a caregiver (nursing assistant) does daily care and certain specially trained tasks.

At KIN HomeCare we divide the work into three levels so families can see it clearly:

• Daily care: bathing, bed baths, feeding and giving medicines, tube feeding, turning, taking vital signs, walking and changing pads, done by caregivers
• Specially trained care tasks: suctioning, tracheostomy care, insulin injections and general shallow wound care at the level families do for one another at home, done by caregivers trained in that task, under the supervision of our registered-nurse team
• Nursing procedures: inserting or changing feeding tubes, changing urinary catheters, other injections, and deep or complex wounds, done by registered nurses

An easy way to remember it: tasks the hospital teaches families to continue at home can be done by a trained caregiver; tasks the hospital itself would not let families do belong to a registered nurse.

Before anyone performs a procedure on your parent, you can always ask for the nurse's full name and licence number, and check it with the Thailand Nursing and Midwifery Council's online nurse register on its website.

2. What a home visit nurse can do

A home nursing visit is not just a procedure and goodbye. The nurse also looks at your parent as a whole, which families often find more valuable than they expected.

Assessment and planning

• Measure blood pressure, pulse, temperature, breathing and fingertip oxygen
• Assess alertness, eating, swallowing, bowels and bladder, and the skin over pressure points
• Review the medicine list with the family: are medicines given as the doctor ordered, are any duplicated, is anything still being given that was stopped? The nurse informs the doctor of any concerns
• Prepare a written care plan and pass it on to the caregiver or family to follow

Nursing tasks often done at home

• Wound care: surgical wounds, pressure sores and diabetic wounds, assessing the wound each time and advising whether it is improving or needs a doctor
• Nasogastric tube changes according to the doctor's plan, checking tube position by the standard method; daily feeding is covered in tube feeding at home
• Urinary catheter changes according to the doctor's individual plan, which takes into account the catheter type, the manufacturer's advice and signs such as blockage or suspected infection, rather than a fixed schedule you set yourselves; care in between is covered in urinary catheter care at home
• Injections under a doctor's treatment plan, such as insulin in the amount the doctor prescribed
• Tracheostomy care and suctioning, plus assessing whether the family or caregiver can do it safely

Insulin injections, suctioning and tracheostomy care also appear among the "specially trained care tasks" in section 1. That is not a contradiction but the same work at different levels: a registered nurse can do all of it, assesses and acts when your parent's condition changes, and trains and supervises caregivers, while a caregiver trained in the task does it day to day under the nursing team's plan.

Teaching family and caregivers

For everyday tasks such as tube feeds, catheter bag care, positioning and spotting changes, the nurse teaches and watches you try until you are doing it correctly. That is why many families book a nurse periodically, while day-to-day care still relies on the cooperation of family members or a caregiver.

3. Tasks that need a doctor's order or treatment plan first

The direct answer: injections or IV fluids given at home as part of treatment need a doctor's order or treatment plan first. Thailand's Nursing Council Regulation on Limitations and Conditions of Nursing and Midwifery Practice (2021) allows registered nurses to give medicines specified in a physician's treatment plan, or in primary care and first aid under set conditions, and IV fluids in certain crisis or emergency situations or under a physician's treatment plan. For a parent who is stable at home, regular injections or drips therefore start from the doctor's plan, and no nurse should agree to put up a drip simply because the family feels your parent is "weak".

Can IV fluids be given at home?

In some cases, when a doctor has judged it necessary and safe enough at home, but it is not a routine service for tiredness or poor appetite. IV fluids carry risks, especially fluid overload in people with heart or kidney disease. There must be a doctor's order stating the fluid type, volume and duration, someone watching during the infusion, and a plan for whom to contact if something goes wrong. If your parent is eating little or seems dehydrated, the first step is a doctor's assessment to find the cause.

Can a nurse give injections at home?

Yes, when the doctor's treatment plan clearly states the medicine, amount, route and frequency, and that medicine is suitable to give outside hospital. Have the prescription or doctor's document and the medicine supplied by the healthcare facility ready.

Which tasks does KIN HomeCare take on?

The procedures our team routinely provides are wound care, nasogastric tube changes and urinary catheter changes. For IV fluids, injections or other procedures, please ask our staff whether your parent's case can be done at home, and send the doctor's documents for the team to review first.

4. Abdominal feeding tubes follow different steps from nasal tubes

The abdominal feeding tube that many families call a "PEG" comes in several types: some are held inside the stomach by a disc, others by a water-filled balloon, and they are changed in different ways and places. The doctor or team who placed the tube tells you when it should be changed, where, and who can change it. It is not something any nurse can change at home in the way a nasal tube is changed.

Guidance from a community health service in the UK's NHS sets out a similar principle: a PEG-type tube that comes out needs a hospital visit for assessment and replacement, while whether a balloon or button tube can be replaced outside hospital depends on how established the opening is and on the conditions the team sets. For your parent, follow the advice of the team who placed the tube: replacement is done by a doctor or a trained nurse, as that team specifies.

Questions to ask the hospital before going home:

• What type and size is the tube, and when was it placed?
• When does it need changing, where, and who can change it?
• If it comes out out of hours, whom do we call and where do we go?

What to do if an abdominal tube comes out

• Stop giving food, water and medicines through that tube straight away
• Note the time it came out, so you can tell the care team
• Cover the opening with clean gauze
• Do not put the tube back yourself or push anything into the opening
• Contact the care team immediately, or go to hospital according to the plan you were given, taking the old tube, any spare tube and the tube details with you, because the opening may narrow or close within a few hours

Caring for the skin around the tube, cleaning it and watching for infection around the opening are things a home visit nurse can assess and teach.

5. When a home nursing visit is not the answer and hospital is needed

Home nursing visits suit people whose condition is stable and tasks that can be planned in advance. With any of the following, go to hospital or call 1669 rather than waiting for a nurse:

• Breathlessness, being impossible to wake, new confusion, or pale or bluish skin or lips
• Chest pain, weakness on one side or slurred speech
• A nasal feeding tube that has come out or moved, followed by coughing, choking or difficulty breathing
• An abdominal feeding tube that has come out, even if your parent has no symptoms: contact the care team straight away or go to hospital according to plan, and do not put it back yourself
• Bleeding that won't stop from a wound or around a tube
• A wound deep enough to see inner tissue, with a lot of dead tissue or spreading quickly, which needs a doctor's assessment and possibly removal of dead tissue in hospital

If your parent has a fever, lots of phlegm or unusual drowsiness and you are unsure how serious it is, see the 3-level plan in bedridden parent with fever, phlegm or drowsiness: when to go to hospital.

If the nurse assesses that your parent's condition is too serious to be cared for safely at home, they will advise hospital or help arrange a referral. If your parent suddenly deteriorates while the nurse is there, calling 1669 is still the fastest route. Keep the name of your parent's usual hospital, contact numbers and the latest documents in one folder you can grab at once.

6. What to prepare before the nurse arrives

The short answer: information, equipment and space. Complete information lets the nurse bring the right supplies from the start and finish without a second appointment.

Information and documents

• The latest hospital discharge summary, appointment card and any doctor's orders, sent to the team on LINE before the visit; if the hospital has not given you documents about the tube or a doctor's order, ask the hospital where your parent is treated first
• The full medicine list, including recent changes, eye drops, creams and supplements
• The type and size of any tube, the date of the last change and the doctor's plan for changing it
• Recent wound photos in good light, sent to the team on LINE before the visit
• Any allergies to medicines, plasters or latex

Equipment and space

• Supplies the hospital sent home, such as spare tubes, dressing packs and urine bags, kept together; tell the team in advance what you already have
• A bright overhead light or a lamp that reaches the work area
• A small table or tray wiped clean, close to the bed
• Somewhere to wash hands, soap and a clean hand towel
• A separate rubbish bag for used items
• An electric bed raised to a working height if you have one, and a clear path around the bed
• Pets kept in another room during procedures

Needles, sharps and dressing waste

If your home has regular injections, such as insulin, or regular wound care, put needles and other sharps into a rigid container with a tight lid, such as a thick plastic bottle, immediately after use. Do not throw needles into household rubbish, do not overfill the container, and keep it out of reach of children and pets. Put gauze soiled with blood or pus in a separate bag and tie it tightly. Disposal differs by area, so ask the care team at the first visit who will take the waste away, and ask your nearby hospital or local health service whether they accept it.

Family members and main caregivers

A family member who knows your parent's condition and can make decisions should be at home during the visit. If a caregiver or relative will continue the care, they should listen and practise in front of the nurse.

7. What information and documents your family should receive after the visit

A good home visit ends with notes the family can understand, not just a finished task. These notes are useful for the next doctor's appointment, for the caregiver and for the next nurse.

• What was done that day, for example the type and size of tube changed and how the wound was dressed
• Vital signs and assessment findings
• The next tube change date under the doctor's plan, or the next dressing appointment
• What the family should watch for, and which signs mean calling back or going to hospital
• The name of the nurse and a receipt (tax invoices are available)

Keep every set of notes in one folder with the hospital documents, so you can give the doctor the full history without relying on memory.

Health coverage and insurance

Conditions differ between health coverage schemes and between insurance policies. At KIN HomeCare, the team issues receipts, tax invoices and medical certificates that families can use to claim on insurance, subject to the terms of each policy. If your parent's policy has terms covering home care, ask the scheme office or insurer before booking whether it is covered and which documents they need.

Common mistakes families make

• Asking a nurse to put up a drip because your parent is weak, without a doctor's assessment: the real cause may be missed, and there is a risk of fluid overload with heart or kidney disease
• Not knowing the type and size of the tube: the nurse can't bring the right supplies, a new appointment is needed and your parent waits longer; ask the hospital and write it down on discharge day
• Assuming an abdominal tube can be changed at home like a nasal one: some must be changed in hospital, and if a tube comes out and you wait too long, the opening may narrow
• Setting your own schedule for changing a urinary catheter: catheters do not need changing at fixed intervals; the doctor plans for each person based on the catheter type and symptoms, and if the catheter is blocked or no urine is draining, tell the care team straight away rather than waiting for the appointment
• Using a home visit instead of the emergency department: if your parent is breathless, very drowsy or newly confused, call 1669 first
• Letting the nurse finish and leave without anyone at home learning anything: daily care still relies on the cooperation of the family and caregiver, so make the most of the visit by asking and practising

When to bring in a professional team

If the doctor has planned periodic tube changes for your parent, there is a wound needing ongoing care, or you have just brought a parent home from hospital with several devices, a registered nurse visiting periodically reduces trips for your parent and gives everyone at home confidence that the care is on track. KIN HomeCare's nursing team is led by Sarinee Suphaphon, RN, our Nursing Manager, who oversees home visits, care planning and training of our caregivers.

• Registered nurse home visit: assessment and care planning, 1,800 baht per visit
• Individual procedures from 1,200 baht: wound care 1,200 baht (10-session course 10,800 baht, 20 sessions 19,200 baht), nasogastric tube change 1,600 baht (silicone 1,900 baht), urinary catheter change 2,200 baht; supplies and travel are confirmed before booking
• 3-change tube packages, for homes where the doctor has planned periodic tube changes, available to purchase until 31 December 2026: standard nasogastric tube 4,500 baht (normally 4,800 baht), urinary catheter 6,000 baht (normally 6,600 baht)
• A registered nurse for a full shift: 12-hour shift, 3,500 baht a day, for periods that need close nursing observation
• Monthly caregiver with a free nurse visit: a monthly caregiver on a 12-hour shift at 30,000 baht or a 24-hour live-in at 36,000 baht (no-day-off versions 36,000 / 41,000 baht) includes one registered nurse home visit within the first 3 days to assess your parent, prepare a written care plan and pass it on to the caregiver in front of the family; Bangkok and surrounding provinces only, for contracts signed by 31 December 2026. See what caregivers do at elderly home care

If you are comparing the monthly cost of a nurse with a caregiver, see home nurse cost compared with a caregiver; full service details are at home nursing.

Frequently asked questions

What can a home visit nurse do?

Assess symptoms, take vital signs, review medicines, dress wounds, change nasogastric tubes and urinary catheters, give injections under a doctor's treatment plan, and teach the family to continue care. Injections or IV fluids at home as part of treatment need a doctor's order first.

Can IV fluids be given at home?

In some cases, when a doctor has assessed your parent and ordered it at home, specifying the type, volume and duration. It is not a routine service for tiredness, because of the risk of fluid overload with heart or kidney disease. If your parent is eating little or seems dehydrated, have a doctor look for the cause first.

Can a nurse give injections at home?

Yes, when the doctor's treatment plan states the medicine, amount and frequency and the medicine is suitable outside hospital. Have the doctor's documents and the supplied medicine ready. For KIN HomeCare, please ask our staff first whether your parent's case can be done at home.

Can a nurse prescribe or change medicines?

Prescribing medicines for long-term conditions or changing what the doctor ordered is the doctor's decision. A home visit nurse follows the treatment plan, checks medicines are given correctly and informs the doctor when an adjustment seems needed. Families should not stop or change medicines on the advice of anyone other than the treating doctor.

Can a urinary catheter be changed at home, and how much does it cost?

Yes. A registered nurse changes it at home according to the plan the doctor has made for your parent. At KIN HomeCare it is 2,200 baht per change, and for homes where the doctor has planned periodic changes there is a 3-change package for 6,000 baht, available to purchase until 31 December 2026. Have the catheter type, size and date of the last change ready for the team.

Can an abdominal feeding tube be changed at home?

It depends on the tube type and the decision of the doctor who placed it. Some must be changed in hospital, while others can be changed outside hospital by a doctor or trained nurse, as the team who placed the tube specifies. If the tube comes out, stop feeds and medicines through it, note the time, do not put it back yourself, and contact the care team straight away.

Do I need a doctor's order to book a home visit nurse?

Not for assessment and family teaching. For tube changes, it helps to have a document stating the tube type, size and change plan. For injections or IV fluids at home as part of treatment, a doctor's order or treatment plan is needed. If you don't have the documents yet, ask the hospital where your parent is treated before the visit.

Talk to the KIN HomeCare team

If your parent has a wound or a tube, or has just come home from hospital, and you are unsure how often to call a nurse or which tasks a caregiver can take on, tell the team. Sending a wound photo or the hospital documents first helps us answer more precisely.

• Nurse home visits, procedures and caregivers: 061-881-9399 (+66 61 881 9399)
• LINE @KINHOMECARE
• Get a self-service price estimate for daily, weekly or monthly caregivers or nurses with our service request form (in Thai)
• Free consultation; the team helps you decide which service fits. Outside Bangkok, please ask first whether a nurse can be arranged in your area

This information is general guidance for families and does not replace advice from your parent's doctor.

Written by Orrathai Boontuang, RN (licence 5311192883) · Medically reviewed by Dr. Kamolchat Choktanomsup (licence 40854) · Prices as of October 2026; please confirm with our staff before booking.