As we age, there are many choices that have to be made to maintain any sort of independence. When beset with health issues, home care services can provide the opportunity to age in place rather than moving to a nursing home.
Finding a solution that both allows you to remain in the comfort of your home and provide you many of the services offered in more institutional living is the specialty of home care providers. They offer a variety of services tailored to individuals, such as medication management, help in bathing and dressing, as well as shopping and cleaning.
“Finding a home care service you can trust can be challenging but ultimately rewarding,” says Alex Gerdes, ARNP at UnityPoint Health PACE Senior Care - Siouxland. “In-home care means you — or your elderly loved ones — can remain home, which can make a huge difference in quality of life.”
But it’s important to determine needs in advance of looking for a provider. Services vary from basic assistance with simple daily needs, such as getting dressed and minor chores and errands, to more advanced nursing care and medical treatment.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when shopping for a home service provider.
Medical care
It’s important to know what level of medical care, if any, will be provided.
Senior service providers vary widely in the types of help they offer people. Some are staffed by nurses or other licensed healthcare providers, which is important if you’re looking for any actual medical care.
But for many seniors who don’t necessarily need medical services in their home, there are other providers who focus on helping with day-to-day needs like cleaning, cooking and personal grooming. They’re more like personal assistants to help seniors live a great life, not necessarily offering any nursing care.
Make sure you know the difference and ask exactly what kinds of services will be provided. For medical needs, always talk to your doctor to get advice about what would be best for your situation.
The staff
Different companies handle staffing in different ways. Most likely, you’ll be assigned a regular person who you can get to know and be comfortable interacting with. Inviting someone into your home is a big responsibility, so it’s important you find someone you can trust and enjoy spending time with.
What happens when your regular staffer can’t visit, though? Vacations, illness and other conflicts mean sometimes you’ll need to have a different person do the job, so ask your provider how they handle substitutes when needed.
Track record
Find out how long the home care service has been in business. Usually when a company has been around for a long time, that’s a good sign. With a competitive market for in-home care services in most areas, only the best ones will stay in business for a long period of time.
Find out as much as you can about the firm’s workers. Ask about how much supervision they get, what their qualifications are and how long they’ve worked for the service.
Making a plan
Because every person’s needs are different, find out what kinds of plans will be a good fit. From the frequency of visits to the types of services offered, you need to find a good match for your exact situation.
If the in-home service will be helping with any medical needs, your doctor ought to be involved with making the plan. Most home care services will be able to coordinate with your doctor or hospital personnel to come up with a plan of care.
Reputation
Finally, ask around to learn whatever you can about the service’s reputation. Your doctor, friends and family may be able to tell you their experiences with certain service providers in your area — good or bad — so try to find first-person experiences to make a good choice.
The best home health providers will have a long track record and lots of happy customers, so a good reputation in your community is a sign that you’re making the right pick.
Click here for more information about Siouxland PACE.
