Four Tips for Welcoming a New Caregiver

Once you finally decide it’s time to hire home care providers, you might be wondering what happens next. The experience can go so much easier if you and your senior talk about things beforehand and if you have a bit of a plan for how introductions should go. You may not get the exact picture perfect meeting you want, but a plan helps things go smoother than they would if you didn’t have a plan at all.

Talk to Your Senior Beforehand and Ease the Path

This image requires alt text, but the alt text is currently blank. Either add alt text or mark the image as decorative. Home Care Glenview, IL: Hiring Home Care

Setting expectations for your senior well before the new home care provider stops by the first time can be really helpful. Talk to your aging family member about why home care is a good idea, what she’ll get from this service, and anything that you know about the new caregiver. This gets your senior thinking about this new interaction beforehand and can make things easier.

Make Introductions between Your Senior and the New Caregiver

The first time your senior and her new home care provider meet will ideally be before your senior is left with her caregiver for the first time. This first meeting is a chance for them to each get to know each other and to hopefully explore common interests. It’s possible that this first meeting will go a lot easier than you expect.

Let the Home Care Provider Have Any Information that Could Help

The rules of your senior’s house are important for home care providers to know. Your elderly family member may have some very specific preferences, and it helps if her caregivers already know and understand these beforehand. There will still be a learning curve, but make sure you offer up any information you possibly can.

Check in with Everyone about How it’s Going

Once the home care provider has been working with your senior for a few days, check in. There may be some things you weren’t aware of regarding your senior’s situation and home care providers can be really helpful in sorting that information out. It’s also important to check in with your senior and get her take on how things are going.

Accepting help at first from home care providers can be really difficult for your elderly family member. She might even tell you that it’s impossible, but that’s not necessarily true. She just needs time and a proper introduction to ease the way a little bit.

 

If you or an aging loved one are considering home care in Glenview, IL, contact the caring staff at Companion Services of America today at (847) 943-3786. Our home care service area includes Northbrook, Highland Park, Deerfield, Glenview, Buffalo Grove, Evanston, Des Plaines, Skokie, Lake Forest, Wilmette and the surrounding areas.

Jamie Shapiro