By the time most people have made the often difficult decision to bring in a caregiver to help with a loved one or family member, there is a lot of stress and uncertainty to deal with. In choosing the right caregiver, consideration has to be given to what’s best for the person needing care, but also how a caregiver will fit in to the family’s situation. Sometimes, especially after dealing with the primary care of a loved one for a length of time, it’s hard to remember what to ask.
I wanted to share the ten questions that are, in my experience, essential to ask when interviewing a prospective caregiver or in-home care service. Don’t be afraid to print them out and take them as a “checklist” to refer to during the meeting—this is a serious and important decision that will provide relief, comfort and assistance to you, your family and, of course, your loved one.
1. Find out if the owner of the company or field supervisor is familiar with issues of aging, and the health problems of older adults in general.
Education in the field of gerontology and human services can be a huge benefit to your loved one, as a person with that understanding will be designing a plan of care on more than just on the individual’s immediate needs, but also on long-term care.
2. Ask if the caregivers and certified nursing assistants are independent contractors, rather than employed by the agency.
If they are independent contractors, chances are that they are not bonded or covered by any liability insurance, and almost certainly not covered by worker’s compensation. This means that if they get hurt while working in your home, your homeowner’s insurance may not cover the cost. Also, there can be a tax liability for hiring self-employed people for work in your home.
3. Does the agency do a thorough background check on each employee?
If you have decided to hire a caregiver privately, without using an agency, it is highly recommended that you run a comprehensive background check.
4. How much experience do the caregivers have?
Caregivers have different levels of experience and credentials, and definitely look to match the right individual(s) for your situation. Credentials can include Personal Care Assistant (PCA) and Home Care Assistant (HCA), which means that they have been trained to assist with non-medical tasks, including bathing, dressing, fixing meals, companionship, transportation and housekeeping. Moving up to credentials based on light medical training are the Certified Home Health Aide (CHHA), the Home Health Aide (HHA) or the Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), and then advanced credentials include the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN), who have earned additional education and licensing. The more medical needs your loved one needs, the more that the credentials focused on medical issues are necessary. Make sure that they have experience with the same, or at least similar, conditions to what your loved one is dealing with.
5. Does the agency develop a unique plan of care for every client?
Make sure that they ask questions about your loved one’s condition before recommending a plan of action.
6. Are the employees (caregivers) supervised to ensure the plan of care is being carried out properly? How? Also ask what kind of system they use to keep track of hours. Right at Home Central Orange County uses an online timekeeping system that ensures that the caregivers arrive on time and stay for their entire assignment.
7. Before caregivers are hired, do they take any kind of an exam to ensure they are qualified?
With their unique Caregiver Education Recognition & Training Program(SM) or CERT, Right at Home tests and professionally trains every caregiver on their roster.
8. Will the caregiver be able to communicate with my loved one in their native language?
All of our caregivers speak and write English. If a client prefers to speak a language other than English, we will match them with a caregiver that speaks their language. If we don’t have a caregiver that matches, we will refer them to an agency that can meet those needs.
9. Can the caregiver provide transportation for my loved one?
One of the benefits of in-home care is giving your loved one a caregiver that can do errands, take them to social events and also to medical appointments. I firmly believe that if a person has lost their sight or ability to drive, their morale and attitude is much better if they have someone that is able to take them to their usual social engagements, so that they can keep their usual routine and contact with friends and relatives.
10. Ask about how they find and recruit caregivers.
Right at Home Central OC recruits caregivers and certified nursing assistants from the county’s nursing schools. We are sure to choose caregivers who are devoted to furthering their knowledge and their career in the medical field and, most importantly, who truly care about helping people.
For advice and consultation on any of these topics, please feel free to contact me, Karen Fazio, at Right At Home Central Orange County by calling (714) 730-2647 or via email at rahirvine@att.net.
What an interesting blog post. I will add this to my favorites. Keep up the great work!
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