Choose a Professional Home Care Agency for Ease of Care

When you are looking for in home care for elderly loved ones, there are many available possibilities, and deciding where to turn can be overwhelming. For example, should you work with a professional home care agency, a privately hired caregiver, or use a caregiving registry? And how can you figure out which home care option is optimal for your loved one’s specific requirements? There are advantages and disadvantages with most choices, but when it comes to in-home care, the solution is clear: hiring a professional elder care agency like Home & Hearth Caregivers is the ideal choice for the highest quality care for a multitude of reasons:

• There’s no need to perform a search for a safe, knowledgeable caregiver. A trusted senior care agency not only checks references and performs thorough background and driving record checks, but also handles the task of finding the perfect caregiver match for each person, taking into account personality, hobbies and common interests as well as desired schedule and geographic locality.
• Home care agency caregivers are well trained, experienced, and monitored. An in-home care agency typically provides ongoing caregiver training as well as introductory orientation. Continual supervision also assures that any necessary changes or assistance can be recognized and addressed.
• Tax obligations are taken care of by the agency – not the senior or his/her family. If someone decides to hire a home caregiver through a registry or individual hire (such as through answering a “help wanted” ad), the client is liable for all of the caregiver’s required taxes (which often is not divulged). On the other hand, because all caregivers from a professional home care agency are employees of that agency, all payroll taxes, workers’ compensation, liability insurance, and more are paid for by the agency.
• Caregiver sickness and vacation time off are taken care of. It’s expected that at some point each one of us, including caregivers, will become ill or need time off for a vacation or attend to other personal needs. An agency provides a back-up caregiver whenever a senior’s main caregiver is sick or on vacation. Furthermore, an agency deals with all employee discipline, to address and correct scenarios such as showing up late to work.
• Leave the supervision to the agency. A home care agency supervises all caregivers by a qualified individual. With a privately hired caregiver or one acquired through a registry, there is no care oversight, opening a client up to the prospect of financial, emotional or physical abuse.

We’re aware that, even when selecting a highly qualified professional home care agency in the Chicagoland area, your family has options from which to choose. At Home & Hearth Caregivers, we believe our in home care for the elderly is the best in the Chicagoland area, resulting from the high quality of our management team, the training we provide, and our professional caregivers themselves. We would love to speak with you to answer any questions you may have about our home care services, to provide you with some resources particular to your loved one’s needs, or to arrange for a free in-home assessment. Contact us any time at 708-352-4663.