Frequently Asked Questions

A: We are a licensed home care agency in good standing by the North Dakota State Health Department to service Morton, Burleigh, Stark, Cass, Williams, Kidder, Hettinger, Sioux, Adams, Benson, Dickey, Dunn, Eddy, Emmons, Foster, Grant, Logan, McHenry, McIntosh, McLean, Mercer, Mountrail, Oliver, Pierce, Sheridan, Stutsman, Ward and Wells counties. We provide home health aide services primarily in the cities of Mandan and Bismarck; Morton and Burleigh counties. We serve the surrounding counties as applicable. We routinely provide private duty nursing services in Mandan, Bismarck, Fargo and Minot.  We serve the other counties as applicable. Please see our Communities Served page for more information.

North Dakota is a rural state and we take great pride in helping people in rural communities remain in their home too. We utilize DTN Staffing to provide care in rural North Dakota. DTN Staffing employs hundreds of CNAs and nurses throughout the entire state. When we receive a referral from outside our close geographic area, we contract with DTN Staffing to find local caregivers. DTN Staffing is owned and operated by our founder, Jamie Fleck, so we have the utmost confidence in their staff. We screen their staff the same way we screen all our staff.

A: Research shows that one out of two North Dakotans will need care sometime during their lives. Your odds of needing care generally increase as you get older. Think of in-home care as help needed with day-to-day activities.

10 signs it’s time to consider in-home care for your loved one:

1. Isolation
2. Health decline and frailty
3. Accidents, falls or injuries
4. Messy house – spoiled food in the refrigerator
5. Poor hygiene
6. Not eating well
7. Unpaid bills
8. Lapse of home maintenance
9. Forgetting medication
10. Driving accidents

We offer a free in-home consultation to assist families and prospective clients with determining what level of care and what frequency of care they need. We also have a registered nurse conduct an assessment to develop a personalized care plan to meet the client’s and family’s goals prior to the start of care.

A: We provide a wide range of services. Our services are broken down by both the level of care required and the duration of each visit.

Private Duty Nursing Care – Provided by an RN or LPN under the orders of a physician, these services are billed at an hourly rate for long hour (usually between 8 and 24 hours a day) nursing care in the home. These services require both physician orders and prior approval from an insurance carrier. Private duty nursing is an option for people of all ages (infants, children and adults) with complex medical needs such as tracheostomy and ventilator care, feeding tubes, nebulizer treatments and TPN.

Skilled Nursing Visits – Provided by an RN or LPN, these services are usually billed at a flat per-visit rate and are usually less than 2 hours.

Post-Surgical Care – Provided by an RN, LPN, or home health aide, depending on the doctor’s orders, our post-surgical care can help make your recovery at home go smoothly.

Home Health Aide – Provided by a certified home health aide, these services can be as little as one hour per visit or up to 24 hours per day, and are billed by the hour. Home health aides provide personal care, meal preparation, companionship and light housekeeping.

Memory Care – Memory care services are provided by a certified home health aide who has completed a memory care training program.

Comfort Care – Comfort care is provided by a certified home health aide who has completed a hospice care training program.

Housekeeping Services – Cleaning services are provided by a home health aide on a weekly, bi-weekly or monthly basis.

Transportation Services – Transportation is provided by a home health aide door-to-door for doctors’ appointments, hair appointments, social gatherings, or any other reason.

Courier Services – Errands for you are provided by a home health aide, including grocery shopping, making deliveries, picking up prescriptions, or any other requests.

A: We understand the need for in-home care can happen unexpectedly, and we pledge to help families arrange care quickly in the event of an emergency; however, to provide continuity of care, we recommend a 2-week notice to start care.

A: Services are billed hourly and rates are based on the level of care required and the duration of care. For current rates, please call us at (701) 663-5373. We can provide a fee schedule upon request.

A: We do have a minimum of one hour per visit. We do not require a minimum number of visits per week.

A: We offer the following payment options:

Private Pay: Most clients pay privately for in-home care, just like they would for any long hour care unless they have long-term care insurance, Medicaid, VA benefits or Workforce Safety Insurance. In-home care is usually more affordable than a nursing home.

Long-Term Care Insurance: Long-term care insurance usually covers in-home care if the client needs assistance with two or more activities of daily living. We do accept long-term care insurance payments. Most long-term care insurance companies require home care agencies to be licensed and insured, which we are.

Health Insurance Plans: Most home care services are not covered by health insurance plans.

Medicaid: Medicaid does offer some home and community-based in-home care services under a QSP program, and we are a QSP provider.

Veteran’s Care Program: The VA does offer some home and community based in-home care benefits. We are a provider under the Veteran’s Care Program and thus can accept VA payments.

Workforce Safety Insurance (WSI): WSI does offer home and community-based home care services for injured workers.

We offer free consultations, so call us to discuss your payment options.

A: Yes, we accept long-term care insurance. Dakota Home Care is one of the few agencies that is licensed by the State Health Department which is required by long term care insurance. Long-term care insurance usually covers in-home care if the client needs assistance with two or more activities of daily living.

A: We are a Medicaid provider. We are not a Medicare provider. We accept all major insurance plans, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, Sanford Health Plan, ND PERS and other health insurance plans with prior approval.

A: Yes, we are licensed in good standing by the North Dakota Department of Health. Our license number is 4075.

A: Yes. To learn more about our caregiver training and qualifications please see our Care Team page.

A: We conduct:

• Both a state and nationwide background check
• A state licensure check (CNA/HHA/RN/LPN)
• OIG checks
• DMV checks
• Automobile insurance verification
• Prior employment history checks
• And most importantly, a detailed interview to ensure employees demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of our core values.

A: Dakota Home Care is passionate about providing caregivers with the very best training and education in the home healthcare industry. Each home health aide is supervised by a registered nurse case manager, ensuring quality and appropriate care. The registered nurse case manager provides caregivers with client specific training and education on an ongoing basis.

A: We believe our ability to serve is directly related to the high degree of quality service we offer; the professionalism, expertise, and experience of our people; and our philosophy of close, personal attention to our clients. We are accredited and A+ rated by the Better Business Bureau. And, we provide both medical and non-medical care as an affordable alternative to nursing home placement for as little as one hour per visit or up to 24 hours a day.

A: In addition to being the type of care most people prefer, the following are 10 proven benefits of being cared for at home:

1. Recovering more quickly from illness. Research shows that individuals recuperating from illness, injury, or surgical procedures heal more quickly and successfully when recovering at home instead of in a medical facility. There are also fewer incidents of re-hospitalization.
2. Enjoying the comfort of your home. In-home care enables a faster recovery because of familiar surroundings and the comfort of family and friends nearby, while providing companionship that helps people not only medically, but emotionally.
3. Decreasing the risk of infection. Studies show that there is less exposure to and contraction of infections when the patient recovers at home, compared to care in hospitals or care centers.
4. Developing ongoing quality-of-life strategies. Care is tailored to the needs of the individual, improving the patient’s quality of life.
5. Extending longevity. Schools of nursing and government agency studies prove that patients live longer when cared for at home. They also experience less depression.
6. Providing patients with privacy, dignity and more personal choices. Patients can sleep in their own beds, eat what and when they want to, and have control over their schedule and other activities of daily living. They often improve bladder control and get better at bathing and personal hygiene.
7. Improving many patients’ ability to move around. When at home, many patients walk more, learn how to get in and out of bed by themselves, and have less pain when moving around.
8. Reducing stress on loved ones through participation. Home care involves the patient and the family in the care that is delivered. The whole family is taught to participate in the patient’s healthcare, how to get well and how to stay that way.
9. Saving money. Home care is a more affordable option. A study by the U.S. General Accounting Office has established, “In general, home care costs only one-tenth as much as hospitalization and only one-fourth as much as nursing home placement to deal with comparable health problems.”
10. Freeing up family members through one-on-one personal care. In-home care assistance allows family caregivers to carry on with their life priorities like work, childcare, spousal relationship, and self-care.

A: Anyone can receive at home care in Bismarck/Mandan and the surrounding areas! We provide care to people of all ages, including infants, children, adults and seniors. We provide as little or as much care as you need, whether that be assistance with activities of daily living or skilled nursing care. It is our mission to keep home an option for a lifetime.

A: Dakota Home Care provides in-home care services to people in assisted living communities as an alternative to moving to a skilled nursing facility. These unique services offered to residents are being used frequently, because they allow someone who has already left one home behind to have more independence, autonomy and a higher level of care, without having to move again.

Dakota Home Care works with each assisted living facility to ensure our agency follows the facilities’ rules and regulations to ensure a positive experience for everyone. We work closely with many facilities in the community, including Touchmark on West Century, Edgewood Vista properties and Lakewood Landing, to name a few.

A: If a scheduled caregiver calls in sick, we call the client or family to inform them immediately and ask if they would like us to schedule another caregiver or if they would like to reschedule the visit. With over 100 caregivers on our team, finding a replacement caregiver is usually not a problem. If a client cannot be left alone, it is our policy that the client has a backup plan, such as a family caregiver to call in an emergency when we are not able to find another caregiver to fill a shift short notice.