If you need to find help for an aging parent or relative, it can be so overwhelming. There’s so much on the line. So much to consider. And the sad thing is that most people have no idea how to get someone who is going to be in their loved one’s home, taking care of things that are personal and, in some cases, even handling their medications. It’s not like hiring someone to come in and clean the house.

The downside is that there are all kinds of home care services, some of which employ registered nurses, some of which send aides that have had very little training, some which go back years in background checks and some of which only see if a person has ever been employed anywhere at all. Most people do not know this difference and what it means until it is too late.

The good news is that if you ask the right questions, you can avoid a lot of hassle. You can see which companies care about seniors and which ones just want to fill shifts. You can also get the information you need and not just rely on what their marketing materials say.

What Kind of Training Do Your Caregivers Actually Have

This is one of the first questions you should ask caregivers. Caregiver training is everything! But training differs from company to company. Some companies require their aides to have at least 75 hours of classroom training and competency testing. Others require almost nothing. Some companies go far beyond the minimum requirements even for the most lax state requirements for caregiver training.

If the caregiver needs awareness of this type of knowledge due to issues like dementia training, ask about this type of training as well. What about other areas like fall prevention training, medication reminders, diabetic meal planning, or even basic first aid skills? Again, ask for specific answers rather than vague statements.

Find out how often they have continuing education classes as well. Healthcare changes. Fields of practice change over time. And one certification can become outdated.

How Do You Handle Background Checks and Screening

Someone is going into a home where people are vulnerable. Some home care services do background checks. Some don’t really take it seriously. Ask the company what kind of background checks they do. What type of criminal history does the check examine? How many years are the look back years? Do they go back and check all states where an employee has lived? Does the company check for references? If the aide will be driving, do they check driving records?

Some companies like All American Home Care, who provide Home Care Pittsburgh services, for example, report that they do this far more thoroughly than other companies by far. This information is valuable when someone’s health and well-being could be in your hands.

Make sure they also do ongoing monitoring as well. A person could have committed a crime last week that would not be shown on a background check from 10 years ago, but they can always be working to change the course of their life.

Who Actually Supervises the Caregivers

Caregivers go to work, do what they’re supposed to do, and leave! But who is monitoring? Who is making sure the caregivers are doing the right things? Someone has to be checking in with the caregivers to ensure that they are meeting the needs of clients and elderly relatives.

Good home care services have nurses or social workers who regularly check in with their clients. These people supervise more than just the incidental staff, but they all matter. Nurses or social workers meet with clients. They see how the caregivers are doing their jobs and if they are doing okay or need something additional. They also make sure they are not burned out. Caregiver burnout is real and you do not want your loved one neglected because the aids are burned out.

Ask how often these supervisors meet with clients in their care. Ask who conducts these meetings and how they will notify family members about the meetings and caregiver status. If they only meet when something goes wrong, then a family should look elsewhere.

What Happens When the Regular Caregiver is Not Available

Caregivers get sick! Someone might have an emergency. Caregivers also go on vacation! What happens if your loved one is waiting for care, but no one shows up? What happens when a caregiver needs to fulfill their needs but it’s not that caregiver’s scheduled day?

Some companies send people who are available to fill shifts. Other companies have caregivers who understand the client and all the details and plan for this contingency.

Ask how the company handles this situation. Is there someone else available? How often do they know the client’s names? How often do they send the same person? And how are family members notified? Who meets with them and discusses status of clients?

How Do You Handle Medication Management

Over 100,000 elderly clients are placed in the hospital every year because caregivers made mistakes when it came to medication management. Other home care aides can only remind seniors to take their medications. They cannot give it to them.

Find out exactly what caregivers from this service will handle medications for seniors. Who manages medication in the home? What can the aides do? Medication reminders will not cut it if an elderly relative has complicated medication needs.

Ask if they have any training to handle medications and what it is! How do caregivers track what medications the patients take and what do they do if they forget?

What is Your Communication Process with Families

Someone cannot call multiple times a day to find out how their loved one is doing. Nor should they have to rely on caregivers having time to remember all updates of all patients and family members. A parent or grandparent may need to be updated regularly about the same issue. Also, as time goes on, it is more likely that their conditions will change.

Instead of just asking how the caregivers will notify families about their status, also ask how the company keeps records and what they will do if they need to notify family members about issues with the clients. This matters.

How Often Do You Update the Care Plans

Good companies will update their plans because needs change. Bad plans will make things awful as elderly relatives may change due to a myriad of reasons.

Ask how often caregivers reevaluate the plan for care from the caregivers. Who does it? Families deserve to know that their parent or grandparent will be taken care of regularly and that their needs will be evaluated regularly and that the plans will change as they do.

What Happens in Case of an Emergency

Hope for the best, and plan for the worst. Someone falls down. Someone doesn’t feel well. Grandma is confused and doesn’t remember how to get to the bathroom. It’s a Tuesday. Caregivers need to know what to do when things go wrong.

Ask how the company plans for emergencies with their clients. What does the caregiver do if someone needs help? Do they know how to deal with instances like burns, falling, being in a car accident or choking? How fast will help get to grandma or grandpa? What will happen in case of different emergencies? Do they have different plans in case of different levels of emergencies?

Conclusion: Overall Pattern of Answers

No answer will give anyone a clear indication if a company is good or if it should be crossed off a list but look for patterns in answers that are given by the representatives for the business.

Vague answers should not be accepted. Employees should never be defensive about questions being asked (especially detailed ones). This is also a bad sign. Representatives should never answer with excuse.

However, any company or representative that will discuss these things thoroughly with families and write it down is worth considering.

Take careful notes. Compare companies easily with a simple spreadsheet. Trust your gut. Finding someone to help take care of an elderly relative or parent is not just a simple task but not one that should be taken lightly. These are people’s loved ones.

Do your research and make sure it’s perfect.

Jane