How To Hire In-Home Care For Your Senior

Caring for aging parents can be a real challenge. It sometimes requires making difficult decisions as to where your senior is going to live. Many aging individuals would much rather remain in their homes than be moved to a facility or assistance home. For those seniors who would prefer not to move, in-home care is usually the next option. But it’s important to find the right type of caregiver.

Older individuals don’t want to give up their independence and trying to convince your senior that they need someone to help out around the house can also be tough. It’s no secret that we can lose some of our faculties as we age and while many seniors don’t want to admit that their faculties are waning, evidence to the contrary could be visible and possibly life-threatening.

Potential Problems

When it’s time to hire in-home care for an aging parent, they may have many questions, concerns, even some demands. Whomever you hire must be compatible with your elderly mother or father and helping them ease into the idea of having a stranger in their home is a critical first step. There may be emotional or psychological stress that initially occurs from this arrangement but the more time they spend with a caregiver, the more likely they are to get along with and even accept that person into the home.

Assess the Situation

Hiring in-home care means deciding on what type of care is needed. There are a number of options available, each one tailored to your senior’s specific needs. Your elderly parent might need home medical care service in which medical assistance in the form of medication distribution, physical therapy, or doctor visits are a vital component of the position. If there are little to no medical services required, then you might wish to seek out a more traditional in-home caregiver who is tasked with helping out with various errands around the house, prepare meals, help your parent bathe and clothe him or herself. It’s important to know the extent of the senior’s needs before you hire someone on.

Do Your Research

There are a variety of caregiver agencies out there; some are more reputable or reliable than others. It’s up to you to distinguish the best from the rest and that’s going to require some research on your part. Find an agency that does thorough background checks on all of its caregivers in addition to maintaining all necessary licensing, bonding, and insurance as required by law, if applicable in your area. Many good agencies also drug test all of their caregivers so you need not worry about putting the care of your parent in the hands of someone who may be prone to stealing in order to feed a habit. Check into each agency’s history of any disputes or claims made against its personnel. Elder abuse, fraud, and theft are very dangers that seniors face each day.

At Seniors Helping Seniors, we always perform exhaustive backgrounds on all of our caregivers to provide the highest quality care for your aging senior. We will always be there to provide a caring smile and a helping hand.