Hiring an At-Home Caregiver: 5 Things to Consider

Hiring an at home caregiver can ensure that you receive the medical and day-to-day assistance you need for your injury or illness without having to leave the comfort of your home. A caregiver can help to significantly improve your quality of life and outlook. If you are considering hiring an at home caregiver, consider these 5 things first to ensure you find the right person to help you.

1. Consider how you want to go about beginning the hiring process. You may feel comfortable searching for a caregiver on your own. This is ideal if you have friends or family members who can recommend quality caregivers to you. You may also have contacts such as a doctors, nurse or physician who can refer you to a qualified professional. However, in other cases you may feel more comfortable working through an agency. Agencies will take a commission for their services, but they have access to a wide range of caregivers so that they can find the person who’s skills and abilities match your personal and medical needs just right. This is also less stressful since they will set up the meetings and interviews and have screened all applicants to ensure they are qualified and reliable.
2. Determine your expectations of an at home caregiver. What will you want them to do on a daily basis? What will their schedule and hours be like? Will you only ask that they take care of your medical needs, or do you need some help around the house as well? Maybe you will need someone to drive you to appointments or to run errands. Perhaps you will need them to help with some light house cleaning and laundry. It is important that you know your own expectations so that you can communicate them to an agency or the applicant. This ensures that everyone is on the same page and knows what you need so that you are happy and the applicant is not misled.
3. Next will be the interview. Once you have screened applicants and narrowed down the pool, you will want to meet in a public place for an interview. While this person will eventually feel almost like family, you still need to conduct the interview as a job and so you need to act professionally. You may ask the applicant to fill out an application or provide you with specific information or documents such as HHA certification, trainings and more. You may also ask for recommendations from pat clients or employers so that you can follow up.
4. Bring a friend or relative with you to meet the applicant. It is always helpful to have a second opinion when interviewing a potential home caregiver. They may be able to think of questions or concerns that you didn’t think of or forgot to mention. They can also be there for you for support and as a safety precaution when meeting someone new for the first time.
5. Finally, consider how this person makes you feel. If the have all the credentials but you don’t feel comfortable around him or her, it may not be a good fit. Remember that you will likely be with this person for extended periods of time each day. You want to feel a connection with this individual so that you can trust them and rely on them for your health and well-being.

If you are in the process of hiring an at home caregiver, it is important that you consider these 5 items carefully. Be sure to understand your own expectations, determine how you will search for potential caregivers, interview professionally, check for HHA certification, bring a friend and consider how comfortable you feel with the applicant as a person. All of these considerations will help to ensure that you find the right caregiver for your needs.