Home care means different things to different people. For some it is just cleaning. For others is means full care of an elderly person in their home irrespective of their disability and personality.
What should the discerning customer of homecare services look for in an aged care provider - whether they are family, friends, relatives, church or faith-based organisations, private companies, or government contracted organisations?
Consider the following
checklist when selecting a home care service
You can download this checklist in Word
here (56kb) or as a PDF
here (56kb)
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Valuing the caregiver – does the organisation value their caregivers and pay them accordingly? (e.g., $17/$18 p/hour) Ask the organisation for their pay rates. |
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Accreditation – does the organisation meet national standards? Ask the organisation if they have accreditation to New Zealand Standard 8158 Home and Community Support Sector Standard. |
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Personal – will the carer provide care for me as a person rather than just my home? Will they be interested in me as a whole person? |
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Compatibility – will the carer be able to relate to me: my interests, my language, my personality, my beliefs and my values? |
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Contactibility – will I be able to contact a manager at any time of the day or night? |
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Reliability – will the carer be there on time when they are expected? |
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Security – will the carer look after my property and possessions? |
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Privacy – will the carer who gets to know me not tell other people about me? |
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Safety – will I be comfortable in telling them when they have made a mistake or comfortable to make a complaint to the health and disability commission? |
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Capability – will the carer have the knowledge and skill to provide the care and not do things that make my health deteriorate? |
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Trust – will the carer put my well-being first over their other commitments? |
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Positivity – will the carer be a half glass full person who approaches life and their role with enthusiasm to Enliven their client? |
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Competence – does the organisation provide training for Caregivers to develop increasing competence? Ask the organisation to describe their caregiver training policy and processes. |
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What does
poor quality care look like?
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Unreliable – Carers coming at different times, not staying for the full time, different carers on different days
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Limited scope – a task oriented role where the carer leaves your home when the task is completed rather than being interested in the client as a person
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Non-communicative – Carers who have limited language or knowledge to provide substantive conversations
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Unskilled – Carers who don’t have the knowledge or skill to recognise or deal with changing circumstances
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Worry – will the Carer steal my possessions, treat me badly, or neglect my needs
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Negativity– will the carer be a half glass empty person who approaches life and their role with pessimism?
Circumstances that are irrelevant to quality care?
Not-for-profit organisations and charities.
In the Wellington and Hutt Valley region most of the care providers that are funded by the government promote themselves as "not-for-profit". However these providers also generate significant reserves that are often used in promotion, advertising and building (often to build up their privately funded services). When choosing an aged care homecare provider, focus on the quality of care rather than the perceived motive for providing the care.
How does Elder Family Matters Ltd compare?
Elder Family Matters Ltd has quality systems and policies to ensure Clients and Clients’ families have confidence that the homecare provided meets their expectations. These quality systems include:
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Accreditation to NZS 8158 Home and Community Support Sector Standard.
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Thorough assessment to really understand who the client is, what their situation is, and what they need to ensure a quality of life? Assessment form can be accessed from Client Assessment Questions (RTF, 626 kb);
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Clear and detailed descriptions of tasks that Client's wish to have completed;
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Checklist of tasks that Carers complete but ability to add tasks based on the observation of Carers of other tasks needing to be done;
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Regular communication to Clients with suggestions to ensure personal cares, house care, and home maintenance is up to an appropriate standard;
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Careful selection process of Carers including personality checks, reliability checks, and infringement checks;
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Careful management of Carers that fulfill all Elder Family Matters' policies e.g. privacy, asset protection, abuse and neglect, client participation, complaints process, training.
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Careful spread of Carers across the geographical region of Greater Wellington so that travel is kept to a minimum;
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Detailed invoices carefully documenting what tasks the Clients is paying for and what each costs;
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No surprises for Clients by having detailed terms and conditions including all relevant company policies;
Elder Family Matters is proud of our reputation, our Wellington region-only focus, the quality of our Carers, our ability to remunerate Carers at the top of the industry and retain them, and our ability to meet the needs of Clients.
If you live in the wider Wellington region (including Wellington city, Hutt Valley, Kapiti coast, Wairarapa, Porirua basin) and you are looking for personalised quality home care, nursing, housework, home maintenance, cleaning, or personal cares to reduce the burden of daily chores then call Elder Family Matters on 0800 321 789 or email on
efm@elderfamilymatters.co.nz
