The Care Company

empowered caregiving™

There are hundreds of companies claiming to have the most capable, patient, kind, and trustworthy caregivers. There are vast pricing differences and with those differences comes an equally vast difference in quality of service. You must approach this task as you would any business transaction. The safety of your loved one and the security of the home depend on it. Research. Interview. Interview some more. Request recommendations and ask to see a current license. It seems easy, right? Well, it’s not. Too many people panic and hire the first or second person who comes along. They lose their perspective and, consequently, make quick and often rash decisions.

Hiring professional help, even if it’s for a few hours a week, is a great way to offset some of the stress that accompanies family caregiving. However, you must be cautious. Have you ever noticed how amazing it is that when people make a decision to adopt a dog or cat from a rescue organization, they’re required to answer endless questions about themselves and their family? And the answer is sometimes a resounding, “I’m sorry, but you don’t meet the criteria for adoption.” Kudos to the animal rescue for their thoroughness, but the irony here is that we’re often not nearly as thorough in screening the people who will care for our loved ones.

Finding a caregiver requires that you do some research and work. If you are willing to do this, the payoff is going to be huge for your family and your loved ones. There are wonderfully compassionate caregivers in need of work, but alternatively, there are some real predators out there and you do not want to bring them into your loved one’s home or you’ll be heading into a real disaster. Let us guide you through the process of selecting a caregiver.

Do Your Homework

Hundreds of agencies represent caregivers. The best way to select one is via a referral. Do an extensive interview on the phone and, if possible, meet with the owner of the company in advance. Be sure to ask about the owner’s experience and qualifications with caregiving. This is really important. . It’s important that you let the owner of the caregiving company know that you are in control of this process. Due to the huge demand for caregivers in this country, many people are jumping onto the bandwagon without ANY previous experience. Find a company that is owned and operated by someone who has been in the caregiving business with personal case experience, and make sure that the company is licensed, insured and bonded.

Implement a Thorough Screening Process

Once you have selected a company, ask to interview several caregivers and make sure that you are doing a background check on all of them. Ask for fingerprints, a resume and references. Contact their references. No excuses about this. Personality plays a major role when selecting a caregiver for your loved one. Even if you are in a huge hurry to find someone, you really need to slow down and take your time to find the right person. By doing this, you will avoid hours of future work for yourself. If a candidate finds this process offensive, move on. We’re talking about your loved one’s safety and well-being and you must be a soldier about this. Remember, your goal is to find a caregiver whom you trust with your family or loved ones. Trust takes time. Be cautious and careful and remember that caregivers often have very limited training and are not required by law to have a license. A caregiving course can be completed in a weekend. (We require more certification from fitness trainers!) Ask about experience in addition to references.

Outline Specific Responsibilities and Expectations

What should caregivers be expected to do? It is unreasonable to think that they will be able to provide any kind of care beyond simple, low-maintenance needs such as basic hygiene, meal preparation, and cleaning. Moreover, they are generally not professionally trained in medical treatment procedures and emergency circumstances other than CPR. Unfortunately, due to a lack of understanding by the family about limitations, many caregivers are expected to administer medical modalities such as providing wound care, gauging blood pressure medications, assessing and interpreting vital signs, etc. In no way, are they trained to do this! It frightens us when caregivers make medical decisions for patients without the fundamental knowledge of anatomy and physiology at the very least. Lack of knowledge often leads to a variety of physical side effects the patient unwillingly endures.

Be aware that caregivers are not regulated by the state. When they are engaging in activities that are way out of their scope of practice (basic custodial care), problems definitely ensue. There are real positives in having a support system for the elderly/patients so that they are not alone and are supported in basic needs, and you can have a break from the day-to-day responsibilities.

Caregivers are not even supposed to administer medications. Here’s an example of what can happen. Cindy was brought in to consult with a family after the following incident occurred: The family had hired a caregiver for their elderly mother and made the mistake of leaving things in the caregiver’s hands. The mother was taking blood pressure medications. The caregiver took the patient’s blood pressure and it was low. In response, the caregiver withheld the blood pressure medication, thinking this action would help lower the patient’s blood pressure even further. Unfortunately the patient suffered a stroke because her pulse rose rapidly. The cardiac medication prescribed was for the pulse purpose, not just for the blood pressure. This was a nightmare, and an unnecessary incident resulted in the patient requiring hospitalization and a higher level of care upon her return home due to her stroke. She never fully recovered.

It’s not fair to expect caregivers to ascertain the difference in pharmacology. These types of mistakes are made everyday, especially with the rise of polypharmacy, which simply means that multiple doctors are prescribing numerous medications and no one is monitoring them. As discussed before, this happens on a regular basis with the geriatric population. If you wish to have the caregiver administer medications, it’s wise to put this in writing, sign it, ask the caregiver to sign it, and keep it in the caregiver’s file. It is really a protection for the caregiver. Be specific about your intentions.

Assuming your goal is to ensure that your elderly loved one is properly cared for while you are provided with some relief, you must be diligent about selecting the caregiver who is best suited for your loved one’s needs and personality, and who is going to interface the most effectively with you. You also must keep your perspective about the requirements of the position and not ask a caregiver to do more than they are trained and able to do. Take your time, do your research, follow this advice, and we assure you the rewards will be worth the investment.

If you are interested in learning more about this subject, The Care Company sends special reports not available on the site to those who desire to receive our regular updates. A complete caregiver hiring package is yours if you want it. Click here.