Final answer:
The primary goal of home health care is to support a patient's independence in self-care, which can lead to increased satisfaction with care and lower healthcare costs.
Step-by-step explanation:
The goal of home health care is to promote and support a patient's independence in self-care. It aims to offer care within the comfort of one's home and to enhance the quality of life for patients, potentially with chronic conditions, recent hospitalization, or terminal illnesses. Home health care can lead to increased satisfaction with care and potentially lower costs for healthcare services, as demonstrated by the randomized trial mentioned in the study by Brumley et al. (2007). The study found that in-home palliative care resulted in increased patient satisfaction and lower healthcare costs, suggesting that effective home health care can minimize the need for more expensive inpatient care and reduce the frequency of unnecessary hospital visits.