In-home care around Charleston

What is in-home care?

Non-medical help at home from aides sent by a DPH-licensed in-home care provider: bathing, dressing, toileting, meals, light housekeeping, errands, reminders and companionship, by the hour.

DPH licenses 136 in-home care providers with offices in Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties: 91 in Charleston County, 28 in Berkeley County, 17 in Dorchester County.

How is in-home care different from home health?

Home health agencies send nurses and therapists for skilled visits under a doctor's order, usually paid by Medicare; in-home care providers send aides for daily living help, paid privately, by long-term care insurance, VA benefits or the Community Choices waiver.

Families often use both after a hospital stay: home health visits for a few weeks, plus aide hours for everything else.

What does in-home care cost around Charleston?

No local figure is published; CareScout's 2025 South Carolina median works out to about $31 an hour, or about $5,982 a month at 44 hours a week.

Agencies often set minimum shift lengths of three or four hours, and weekend and overnight rates can be higher. Ask for the rate sheet in writing.

What can an in-home aide do, and what can't they do?

Aides from a licensed in-home care provider can help with bathing, dressing, toileting, meals, light housekeeping, laundry, errands, reminders and companionship, but they do not provide skilled nursing such as wound care, injections or IV therapy.

Skilled tasks come from a licensed home health agency under a physician's order. Ask the agency for its written list of tasks aides may and may not perform, and how the care plan is updated when needs change. A clear task list prevents misunderstandings in the first weeks.

How do I choose an in-home care agency around Charleston?

Confirm the agency's DPH license, then ask about minimum shift length, screening and training of aides, whether aides are employees, backup when an aide calls out, how the care plan is updated, and whether the agency takes Community Choices clients or long-term care insurance.

An agency with an office near your parent, whether in Summerville, Mount Pleasant or North Charleston, often staffs early-morning and short shifts more reliably. Our roster lists every licensed office by city.

When is in-home care no longer enough?

When help is needed at unpredictable hours, especially overnight, when falls or missed medications continue despite paid help, or when hours climb past about 40 a week, a CRCF's round-the-clock staffing is usually safer and cheaper.

Track incidents for a few weeks before deciding, and revisit the plan before hurricane season if your parent lives alone.

How is in-home care spread across the Lowcountry?

DPH's licensing data puts in-home care in Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties as shown below; agencies are licensed without a bed count.