Home Care for the Elderly - Who Do You Trust?
Approximately 7.6 million people in the US require some form of
home health care. Responding to this growing need there are now
more than 20,000 home health care companies registered
throughout the United States. (Source: National Association for
Home Care)
Each state's criteria vary for home care companies. Some states
have no standards or requirements. Think about that last
statement for a minute. Who are you trusting to provide care and
companionship for your elderly loved one and on what basis do
you determine that trust?
While researching for this article, we asked a number of private
pay home care agencies, "How do you ensure that your clients
receive excellent care?" The most popular answer to this
question referenced the home care agency's commitment to hiring
quality aides and companions. In fact, not to sound rude, but
this answer was given so often it seemed that each were reading
from the same script.
"We interviewed 4 different agencies before hiring one to
provide care for mom. Each promised the basic same things to us
... in the end, in all honesty, we simply went with our gut
feelings," Mary Beth W. of Rocky River Ohio.
Mary Beth went on to explain that she 'wished' there was some
outside entity that she could turn to that would validate the
promises and claims of these agencies. She is not alone in this
fact. Recent consumer surveys show that most families would
prefer an unbiased reporting system on the history of quality
care prior to contracting with a home care agency. (Survey
source: Certified Quality Elder Care)
Only two of the companies we interviewed were able to provide a
method to verify their claims. Carefree/Homecare Companion
Services, Inc and the Florida office of a franchised Visiting
Angels offered the following statements,
"We are a Certified Senior Approved Service. As part of our
overall commitment to quality service for our seniors, we
contracted with this independent survey company. If you like,
you may phone Senior Approved Services to verify our customer
satisfaction survey results at toll free 877-620-6448."
This was a powerful statement to hear and we did follow up with
their offer. By contacting Senior Approved Services we were able
to validate the claims made by Bob Hebert of Carefree/Homecare
Companion Service, Inc., located in Phoenix Arizona who
described how his service ensures quality and safe practices.
Mr. Hebert stated, "Excellent care starts with hiring excellent
caregivers. We tend to hire older caregivers (we average
49-years old) that are more mature, reliable and compassionate.
We also conduct hands on training in a controlled environment
and observe the new employees before they are sent out to work
alone. The last part of ensuring excellent caregivers is to have
a Case Manager visit our clients un-announced at least once a
month." (http://www.carefreehomecare.com)
We were also assured of the validity of the statements made by
Phyllis Rosen, owner the Florida Visiting Angels office, when
she offered, "We never just assign the next available Caregiver
to any patient.... We strive to create relationships...not just
a robot caregiver doing chores... Every member of our team must
approve anyone applying for a position as caregiver. We select
only the best... Without the best caregivers, we have no
business...they're our lifeblood and we let them know that.
(http://www.visitingangelsfl.com)
It seemed odd that only two home care companies (we spoke with
42 agencies across the US) were able to point towards third
party validation. Many boasted certifications however;
contacting the associations that issue or award the
certifications was a disappointment. We were not able to find
any that would validate the businesses that they certified. In
fact, disclaimers removing the liability of referring to one
company over another was common.
It is clear that the number of families in search of quality
elder care will continue to grow. The number of home care
agencies will increase in direct response. Perhaps it is time
that all home care companies allow an unbiased outside service
to verify its claims. At this point, it appears that Senior
Approved Services is the only company that does offer unbiased
third party validations. If our research is incorrect (or
incomplete) and you offer a method to verify the claims of home
care companies please send an email to jonathanreports@yahoo.com
Resources:
Free: Seniors and family can contact Senior Approved Services by
visiting http://www.seniorapprovedservices.com
Home care companies can apply for Senior Approved Certification
by visiting http://www.qualityeldercare.com