If you’re feeling uncomfortable about bringing an in-home carer or support worker into your home or the home of your loved one, we completely understand.
It’s good to understand that reputable home care providers in Melbourne are committed to building positive relationships with their clients and their families.
Essentially, their role is to treat you or your loved one with the dignity and respect that you/they deserve.
It’s also natural to worry about any potential pitfalls with an in-home care service and all you can do is prepare for the best outcome possible and understand what your options are in the event that the carer doesn’t meet your expectations.
This article will give you all the confidence in the world to prepare yourself or your loved one for hiring an in-home carer.
What to Consider When Hiring an In-Home Carer
It’s perfectly natural to be cautious about bringing someone new into the home environment who is there to support you or your loved one to live an independent life.
So let’s look at some of the things you can consider:
- Start with a day or two a week. While the goal might be to have the in-home carer come to the house every day, it’s always a good idea to start small so both parties can get an understanding of each other.
- Consider how a carer can adequately provide support. Most of this will be organised during the home care package application process when your unique needs and requirements will be discussed.
- Testimonials and referrals are always useful. If you or your loved one are new to independent living, then it might be helpful to find out from others about the quality of care from various home care agencies. Things to focus on are police checks, qualifications, and insurance.
- Furthermore, costs & fees are always high on the consideration list when engaging an in-home carer. Some questions to ask are: is it an hourly or daily rate? What government funding does each level of care provide?
Quality Home Care Starts With Clear Expectations
Setting expectations from the very beginning can go a long way to establishing a great working relationship between care workers and clients with government-funded home care services.
Things to consider here are:
- Be clear about the type of home care support you wish to receive from your carer. Do you need help with shopping? Is social support high on your list of priorities? Perhaps you need a carer who is organised and is a great communicator.
Regardless of your expectations, it’s important to be clear about them from the beginning.
Trust is Important
Applying for home care services through an in-home care provider is meant to make things easier with regard to living independently.
But this is only possible if there is a good level of trust between the client and care manager to ensure a smooth working relationship.
Somewhat similar to setting expectations, you or your love need to know that the care manager will be able to perform their job and provide the level of care that is required for you to live independently in the comfort of your home.
In Summary…
Things to remember when preparing to hire an in-home carer for you or your loved one.
- Start small
- Level of support
- Source testimonials & referrals
- Consider how funds can be used
- Start with clear expectations
- Trust is important
If you would like to hear more about how Accent Home Care can assist you with home care services and a higher level of home care, call us on (03) 8720 1338 or email us at homecare@accenthomecare.org.au.