Companion service
Hospital-to-home recovery
Everyday support while you settle back in at home.
Hospital-to-home recovery is non-medical, everyday support in the weeks after a hospital stay, a surgery, or an illness. A companion keeps the home running and the person company while they get their strength back: meals, tidying, errands, and someone there. It works alongside the nurses, doctors, and personal support workers in the person's care, and never replaces them. It is support from someone you choose.
What a visit looks like
The fridge stocked and the bed made fresh before the person gets home. On the first days, a hot meal, the dishes done, the prescription the pharmacy has prepared picked up, and someone in the next room. Later, a short walk to the corner and back, and a companion at the follow-up appointment, sitting through the wait.
The companion follows the plan the hospital and the family have already made. They do not change it, add to it, or judge how the recovery is going. They help the ordinary parts of the day happen, so the person can rest, and they tell the family how the day went.
What a companion does
- Getting the home ready before the person comes back: groceries in, bed made, a clear path through the rooms
- Meeting the person at the hospital on discharge day and travelling home together
- Cooking meals, washing up, laundry, and light tidying while the person rests
- Picking up prescriptions the pharmacy has already prepared, and other errands
- Reminders for a medication schedule or exercise routine the care team has already set
- Going along to follow-up appointments, and writing down the questions the person wants to ask
- Company, conversation, and a steady presence through the slow weeks
What a companion does not do
- Wound care, changing dressings, or looking after drains, catheters, or stomas
- Checking vital signs, blood sugar, or symptoms, or deciding whether the person is recovering well
- Personal care such as bathing, dressing, or toileting
- Lifting, transferring, or helping someone move who cannot bear their own weight
- Physiotherapy, or designing or changing an exercise plan
- Changing anything in the discharge plan, or speaking to the care team for the person
A companion goes with you; they never drive you and never provide the vehicle. You arrange the ride, or you travel together by transit, taxi or rideshare.
Saheli is non-medical. Companions do not replace family, nurses, doctors, or personal support workers. They add something different: human presence.
On every visit, whatever the service, a companion does not provide:
- Counselling or therapy
- Advice about health, treatment, diet, legal matters, or money
- Lifting or transferring someone who cannot bear their own weight
- Handling money or signing documents
- Nursing or medical care, including injections, wound care, or monitoring a health condition
- Administering medication. A companion does not give, measure, sort, or apply it, or decide anything about it. Reminders for a plan already set are fine
- Anything that needs a regulated health professional
For anything medical, speak to a doctor, nurse, or pharmacist. In an emergency, call 911.
Who this is for
People coming home after time in hospital, and the families trying to make that homecoming go well.
Recovering
Someone home after surgery
A new hip, a repaired knee, an operation that went well and still leaves them tired. A companion takes on the cooking, the tidying, and the errands, so the person can do what the surgeon asked: rest.
At home
Someone who lives on their own
Being discharged to an empty home is hard. A companion is there in the first days, keeps the house running, and makes sure the person is not alone for all of the recovery.
For a younger person
A child or young person home from hospital
Weeks at home, off school, needing company and a meal on time. A companion keeps them company and keeps the day ticking over. A parent or guardian arranges it and stays responsible for their care.
After an illness
Someone slowly getting their strength back
Pneumonia, a long infection, a hard round of treatment. The illness is over, and the energy has not come back yet. A companion does the everyday jobs until it does.
Living with a disability
Someone whose usual routine was knocked over
A hospital stay can undo a routine that took years to set up. A companion helps put the everyday pieces back in place, alongside the person's usual supports.
For families and caregivers
A family who cannot take weeks off work
You were at the hospital every day, and now the recovery at home will take weeks. A companion you choose covers the hours you cannot, and tells you how the day went.
Appointments
Someone with follow-up visits to get to
The check-up, the scan, the clinic. A companion goes with them and sits through the wait, so the family does not have to leave work for every one.
How it works
- 01
Browse companions
Use the filters to find people who fit your language, community, and needs.
- 02
Choose who feels right
Review companions and decide who you want to meet. Nobody gets assigned to you.
- 03
Agree on the details
You and the companion set the visits, tasks, and hourly rate before care starts.
Companions who offer this
Each companion sets their own hourly rate, and you see it before you book.
Activities of daily living note below:- bathing Toileting grooming Feeding Walks Medication reminders Exercises Errands Companionship
I enjoy spending meaningful time with people through friendly conversations, including regular telephone conversations, listening to their stories, go…
I’m passionate about helping others, building meaningful connections, and creating a safe, welcoming environment.
A warm, caring, and dependable companion dedicated to person-centered care.
I am Dedicated and compassionate Personal Support Worker with over 2 years of experience providing high-quality, patient-centered care.
Being a Personal Support Worker, i believe it is not just a job.
Questions
Is this the same as home care or nursing?
No. A companion does not give any medical or nursing care, personal care, or physiotherapy. If the person needs help with wounds, bathing, dressing, getting to the toilet, or moving, ask the hospital's discharge team about home care or a personal support worker. Many families use a companion alongside those services.
Can a companion help with medication after discharge?
They can remind the person of a schedule the care team or family has already set, and pick up a prescription the pharmacy has prepared. They do not give, measure, sort, or apply medication, or decide anything about it.
What if something seems wrong?
A companion does not judge how the recovery is going, but they tell the family if something seems different from usual. In an emergency, they call 911. For anything medical, speak to the care team, a doctor, a nurse, or a pharmacist.
Can a companion pick the person up from the hospital?
They can meet the person at the hospital and travel home with them by taxi or rideshare, or in a car the family arranges. A companion never drives the person or provides the vehicle.
How soon can a companion start?
As soon as you find a companion whose availability fits. It helps to start looking before the discharge date, so the home can be ready and the first days are covered.
What does hospital-to-home recovery cost?
Each companion sets their own hourly rate for hospital-to-home recovery, shown on their profile before you book. Saheli adds a service fee as its own line before checkout, and the companion keeps their full rate.
Find care that feels like family
Browse vetted companions, matched on language and the traditions that already feel like home.