Hiring an in-home care agency is a huge responsibility because their caregivers will be the ones taking care of your senior loved one’s needs. Find an agency with plenty of professional staff and excellent service and ask the following six questions to make sure you’re making the right decision.
1. What Services Are Available?
Some agencies may specialize in different areas of care, such as Alzheimer’s care, respite care, or 24-hour care, while others offer all these options and more. Make sure the agency offers the right services for your loved one’s needs, and ask about the times these different services are available.
Although it may be challenging to find reliable, highly rated in-home care, you can turn to Assisting Hands Home Care. Our caregivers are expertly trained to assist seniors with a wide array of important tasks, including cooking, bathing, light housekeeping, and exercise.
2. How Are Caregivers Selected for Assignments?
Talk to the agency to see if you get to be involved in choosing the person who works with your loved one. Learn about what happens if your scheduled caregiver doesn’t show up at the right time, and ask if you can change caregivers whenever desired. Try to find out if your loved one will have the same caregiver or cycle through several staff members.
3. What Qualifications Do the Caregivers Have?
Ask about how the agency picks its staff to make sure the caregivers are properly trained. Find out how much experience its caregivers have and if they undergo certification or training courses before being hired. It can also be helpful to find out if its caregivers are given background checks or insured against theft. It’s crucial to pick an agency with qualified and responsible caregivers.
If you have a senior loved one who needs help maintaining a high quality of life while aging in place, reach out to Assisting Hands Home Care, a leading provider of home care Northern Kentucky families can rely on. All of our caregivers are bonded, licensed, and insured, there are no hidden fees, and we never ask our clients to sign long-term contracts.
4. How Will Staff Communicate with Me?
A good caregiving agency should take the time to provide customer service and keep the senior’s family members involved. Talk to the agency about how often it will get in touch with you, and ask if you’ll get regular reports on the caregiver’s actions.
5. How Does Payment Work?
Make sure you understand the agency’s payment system before getting locked into some sort of contract. Ask for a complete list of all costs and payment expectations, and find out what types of payment the agency accepts. If you’re planning on using Medicaid or other government programs to pay for the caregiver, make sure the agency is certified for government assistance.
6. How Will You Plan for My Loved One’s Care?
The ideal agency will work with you to create a customized plan for your loved one’s needs. Ask if the agency has any sort of system for determining care, and check to see what they’ll do if the caregiver feels your loved one’s needs are changing. Make sure the agency writes down instructions for the caregiver and lets you review any caregiving plans.
If you have a senior loved one who needs help maintaining a high quality of life while aging in place, reach out to Assisting Hands Home Care of Northern Kentucky, a leading provider of home care service Northern Kentucky families can trust. Our caregivers help seniors focus on healthy lifestyle habits such as eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly, and maintaining strong social ties, and we offer mentally stimulating activities that can boost cognitive health and delay the onset of dementia. To learn about our high-quality in-home care options, give us a call today.
