When you realise that a parent, aunt or uncle might need a little help around the house, with meals, with personal care or in other ways, you probably have lots of questions you want to ask of Home Care Providers.
Home care can include specialised care from nurses or therapists, it can involve personal care or it can mean that someone visits to do some cleaning and cooking and provide companionship. It can be different for every client hence it is tailored for each client. Home care helps people to continue living independently in their own homes and enjoying the companionship of their own communities.
1. How do we decide on the frequency and duration of home care visits?
A Client Care Manager (formerly trained as a nurse or in social care) will visit for an assessment. We also work closely with the HSE, public nurses, hospital staff in necessary, and general practitioners. The frequency and duration of home care visits, along with the provision of care, will be decided in consultation with you. A Client Care Manager will hold an assessment meeting every 3 months and changes are implemented as they are required.
Home care starts at half an hour a day and the number of days per week will be decided in consultation with you. We offer home care seven days a week, 365 days a year.
2. How do we know we can trust the home carer?
All of our carers are garda vetted and undergo various training such as attending an induction day, Moving and Handling care, Dementia care and Personal care. Continued education and training is provided regularly. We also monitor all carers. Each carer has to log in and out and fill out a report on each visit. So, our telemonitoring system means that office staff can see instantly if anything is awry.
3. How do we fund the home care?
Home care does have a financial cost. It is met by HSE funding and the client or family’s contributions. It is important to note that personal contributions can avail of 41% tax relief. We can explain this in more detail when we know your individual circumstances.
4. What procedures are in place if his/her carer is ill or suddenly unavailable?
We have a total of nine branches around the country and a large number of carers in each location. A replacement carer will arrive (who he/she may be familiar with for occasional visits from covering holidays in any case, they will be able to see from the report what care is provided) and there will be little or no disruption to the quality of care. We also have a 24 hour on call service to support carers and clients.
5. Why should I choose Comfort Keepers to provide home care for my parent?
Comfort Keepers is the first Home Care organisation to be awarded the prestigious Q Mark for excellence in all the services we provide. We are a member of the HCCI (Home and Community Care Ireland) and we also have achieved ISO certification. Comfort Keepers is the HSE preferred provider in each of the locations where we provide home care services.
We ensure that our Client Care Managers communicate regularly with all carers. Carers meet frequently for coffee mornings and other social activities which gives them the opportunity to get to know each other better too as well as seeing our managers regularly.
6. What if the care needs change?
We provide tailored care for so many different needs: Dementia care, Alzheimer’s care, Palliative care, Disability Care, Adult Respite Care as well as providing companionship to those living on their own. It often happens that a person’s care needs will change over time and we will advise accordingly.
7. I live too far away to call in on my father frequently. What is provided with companionship care and homemaking services?
A carer will visit to provide friendship, chat and companionship, listen to stories, talk about the news, fill in a crossword together, play cards, whatever the client wants to do. Meals can be prepared, medication reminders provided, collect the post, answer the phone, drive client to appointments, run errands, do grocery shopping and some light housekeeping.
So if you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Connect with us
To begin starting care for your loved one, you can click here.
To join our incredible award-winning team, you can apply now by clicking here or emailing your CV to recruitment@comfortkeepers.ie
