A WAY TO STAY Home Care Yardley Newtown PA

JUST CLICK ON THE CARD TO ENLARGE IT!

One of our great joys is to create cards that celebrate caregiving.   We want the reader to smile and connect for a moment with the notion of how Devon and I see what a Home Care agency does.  Devon is a punster and came up with the title of this card!  The caregivers we work with, and the clients and families we work for, are so full of love.  

We use the “occasion” of the card to make a donation to a non-profit we think is the Bomb.  For Valentine’s Day our donation is to the Alzheimer’s Association of the Delaware Valley. They do such important work and are so encouraging to our team. Among many other things the Association helps us direct our dementia clients to resources in the local area as well as having a 24-hour helpline 800.272.3900.

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley

Once you’ve decided that you need help, and your mother has agreed, how do you find the best caregiver? Aides are a unique breed.  Not only do they need training and experience but they also possess qualities that enable them to compassionately perform their job and meet a client’s needs.  There are many options in hiring help at home. Many hire privately, that is, pay out-of-pocket for help on an “as-needed” basis. We hear stories from aides and families about people hiring privately about: 

• Aides who want cash under the table. It could be because they are working illegally in the U.S., have a criminal record, are working under an alias or are hiding income from Unemployment or the I.R.S.
• Aides who to take over the client’s life until the client relies on them utterly and completely.  We’ve seen adult children try to negotiate with caregivers who are in control of their parent. It’s a terrible situation.

 As the owner of a licensed homecare agency, I come down on the side of hiring through a reputable agency because we are “experts” at finding aides.  Our  extensive screening process helps us select the “gold nuggets” from our many applicants.  

 What do we look for in a caregiver?

 1.       A cheerful, positive, mentally-stable person. No one wants an argumentative nervous personality.

2.       Good work history and wide range of experience. Has worked with a wide range of elders, has experience with Alzheimer’s and other chronic diseases AND gets rave reviews when we talk to former clients.

3.      Communicates effectively and speaks English.  Must be able to communicate on the phone, in writing and in-person so the family, other care team members and our supervisors know what’s going on in the home.

4.       Goes above and beyond all their duties. Someone who is self-directed, is ready to go the extra mile and is always there to help solve problems before they happen.

5.       Trustworthy. Passes a national, state and county criminal background check, drug test and our caregiver quality assessment that evaluates caregivers for dependability, integrity and hostility.

6.       Attentiveness to client’s right to dignity and respect. It’s the client’s agenda, not the aide’s agenda; must be highly sensitive to non-verbal communication and be an active listener. Must be able to “hear” the client’s needs to effectively support them.

7.       Team player. We seek quiet competence not know-it-alls. Care team members who find goodness in others will find and nurture the goodness in their clients.

8.       Maintains personal boundaries. Sensitive to personal & family dynamics and maintains professional boundaries. What goes on in your home stays in your home!

9.       Is confident about her ability to provide exceptional care.  Someone who knows she gives good care in a range of circumstances– “It’s what she does” – and she wants to work with other quality caregivers like herself.

Aides who don’t meet these criteria don’t get through our screening.  

 Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley.

One of the biggest fears of children and aging adults about starting in-home care service is who will be coming into their home. Are they honest? Are they trustworthy? Are they skilled and experienced in providing care? Will they get along with my mom and with the family?   Blogging about our caregivers is a great way for readers to get a sense of the kind of people we employ in our home care business.

Devon and I first met Cece while we were doing clinicals for our CNAs. She worked as a CNA in a well-regarded nursing center of a local CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community). She had been there for years and was helpful to newbies like Devon and I. Her calmness and confidence were a big boost; her smile, big hug and good advice made her a favorite of ours and residents. Almost all the residents needed total care and didn’t have much in the way of verbal communication skills. Cece carefully worked her way from one to the next always greeting each one with a bright smile, a kind word and a sense of what each resident wanted even though they couldn’t speak clearly about their needs.

It’s not often that you get a chance to hire someone you’ve worked with but we were lucky enough to hire Cece. She epitomizes what we are looking for in an employee. Cece is a team player who knows all about ailing older adults and has managed to retain an amazing sense of humor. Not only is Cece beloved by our clients (and their families) but our 12-year old Hannah has had her as a sometime sitter. She passed all Hannah’s pre-teen tests (surely more challenging the dealing with a sick elder) and is welcome here 24/7. Cece is a modern day Mary Poppins – she loves what she does and it shows. Her clients look forward to her visits and their families feel confident that their aging parents are competently and compassionately cared for.

Cece has a full and complete life. Three grown daughters and a bright and charming grandson, Jonathan, who (if he were older) might sweep our Hannah off her feet someday. Tonight Cece is visiting her 90-year old neighbor who is now at a rehabilitation facility; Cece walks the walk, and talks the talk. We are lucky to have her and are careful to place her with clients who appreciate her special attributes

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs. A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley-Newtown, PA

JUST CLICK ON THE CARD TO ENLARGE IT!

This New Year’s 2011 card came to life during a brainstorming session in a parking lot at Ann’s Choice.  Devon and I were attending a seminar on Hospice and it made us think about one of our clients whose caregiving for her mother went above- and-beyond the call of duty. Her mom died in early December.  This card celebrates that daughter and other sons, daughters and spouses who do amazing things – often to their own determinant – to care for their loved ones.   

The visual image of recharging the battery of one of our cars by jump starting it was a great metaphor for the renewal of the caregiving spirit. If only it were so easy for human beings to recharge themselves.

We made a donation to the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving because of the work they do to sustain and enrich caregivers everywhere.  They create evidenced-based programs to help caregivers maintain balance in their lives so they can continue to care for their loved ones instead of burning out.  An interesting factoid is that most sons, daughters and spouses don’t think of themselves as caregivers – they think what they do is what their loved one would do for them if they switched places.

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley

Sometime this Spring  an 82-year old client, Mrs. Z., gave me a stomach-churning account of what it’s like to be talked down to by an 80-year old delivery man. She finds him patronizing and condescending and feels that he treats her like a child because she’s elderly.  I dull-wittedly questioned how an 80-year old guy could be ageist – after all he’s 80 – and Mrs. Z. told me that he’s in denial about his age. She tolerates him because she needs his service.

Last week I took Mrs. Z to a local branch of a big Philly hospital. We walked up to the receptionist and my client identified herself as”Mrs. Z.” It was like watching a slow motion car crash; as the intake person completed the paperwork necessary for her visit, Mrs. Z was addressed as “Honey” several times.  Mrs. Z had introduced herself as “Mrs. Z” and the intake person totally missed her gentle reminder of how she wished to be addressed; she was on auto-pilot and was completely unaware of how disrespectful she was to my client under the guise of being warm and fuzzy.  Mrs. Z knows that if she corrects her and says she wants to be addressed as “Mrs. Z” she risks alienating her.  Mrs. Z relies on the “kindness of strangers” to give her good care and can’t afford to be “pushy.”

This name-calling habit which seems too common in the health profession is called “elderspeak.”  I found a great article in the New York Times, “In ‘Sweetie’ and ‘Dear,’ A Hurt for the Elderly” which explains the impact of elderspeak.   The author, John Leland, describes it as “the sweetly belittling form of address that has always rankled older people: the doctor who talks to their child rather than to them about their health; the store clerk who assumes that an older person does not know how to work a computer, or needs to be addressed slowly or in a loud voice. There are those who address any elderly person as “dear.””

Devon and I grew up in a household that trained us to always address our elders by Mr. or Mrs. or Miss so we innately understood the disrespect engendered by this name-calling habit.  After reading about these studies we weren’t surprised to find out that elderspeak isn’t just annoying or disrespectful — it can have an adverse effect on an elder’s views toward aging, relationships with caregivers, health, and even longevity. Our caregivers are trained to address clients by Mr. or Mrs. or Miss. When we are invited be on a first name basis we say “no” and use it as an opportunity to explain our philosophy and the science that backs us up!

UPDATE – July 25, 2011

NEWS FLASH… I just spoke with Mrs. Z and the 80-year old delivery man who made her squirm by talking down  to her quit his job!!

Mrs. Z is thrilled –“Thank God, I couldn’t take it anymore. The woman who took his place is lovely, respectfully and calls me, Mrs. Z.” 

I bet that drug store has lots of happy customers who feel the same way Mrs. Z does!  

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley

Yesterday Devon and I interviewed four amazing people to join our team of caregivers. These candidates were invited to our office because they passed our phone screen after completing an extensive application and psychological test.    

On paper they had the skills to be A WAY TO STAY caregivers; each had years of experience taking care of older adults in nursing homes or retirement communities in addition to the drive to become C.N.A.s,  BUT did they have the “heart”  for our Work?  We take care of vulnerable individuals who need assistance caring for themselves because of old age, chronic illness or disability. Caregiving is intimate work and caregivers with “heart” can empathize with the suffering of the frail and suss out an elder’s non-verbal needs.  We hire caregivers who can face the evolving and unexpected changes in their client’s life with gentleness and courage.

 Our search for “heart” is one aspect of what we are looking for in our employees .  A caregiver with “heart” takes care of clients not just physically but emotionally and spiritually.  Our most successful caregivers do more than tasks for a client; their ability to watch and listen with sensitivity to a senior’s non-verbal needs allow them to proactively problem solve daily situations confronting their client.   Like most of us, they must work for a living but amazingly they have connected with a job that sustains and energizes them. Their “Work” provides something more than money.  Devon and I know that “heart” for this Work is priceless and no amount of money can buy it.  Home Care is an environment where “heart” can be fully appreciated because a caregiver works 1:1 with a client instead of 1:12 or more in facilities.

Looking for “heart” is just one step in our process of hiring.  We work hard to ensure we hire only professional, ethical and dependable caregivers. Our employment process involves pre-screenings, psychological assessments, applications, interviews, reference verifications, abuse registry checks, certification checks, motor vehicle record reviews, criminal background checks and drug screenings.

Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley

Alzheimer's Association Ad

 Home care counselors at A WAY TO STAY Home Care are available to talk with you about your needs.  A WAY TO STAY is a home care agency providing In-Home Care in Yardley