Senior Spotlight: How to Find a Good Home Health Aide

No matter how much we love our elderly or infirm loved ones, there often comes a time when we need help. In the case of a debilitating stroke, often the care needed is above and beyond what most folks can handle alone. Sometimes we need to call in reinforcements in the form of Home Health Aides.

It's not a matter of finding a Home Health Aide, but rather, a matter of finding a good Home Health Aide. People will research kennel services steadfastly because they don't want to leave their pets with just anyone when they can't be with them. That kind of diligence (times a million) should go into your search for who will: 1. work in the family home unsupervised, most often without supervision and 2.have primary care for the health of our loved one.

John B. and his brother Allen faced this decision. They knew their brother Darren could no longer live alone. A prolonged illness, coupled with less severe but lifetime illness, had left Darren immobile much of the time.
Darren has good days. During one stretch, John treated his brother to a day trip to Atlantic City. While he had days of fair health, for the most part, nowadays, Darren's brothers were taking shifts caring for him. Eventually it was wearing on all of them, including Darren. He had a lot of guilt for things he could no longer do. His brothers no longer visited like brothers. They had turned into caregivers.

Eventually, the brothers decided something had to give or they would. Besides, they wanted their relationship with their brother back. They went in search of a Home Health Aide.

If you get caught in a similar situation, whether it be permanent or short term, keep these tips in mind when looking for a Home Health Aide:

Look to friends and family. Look at your friends who are probably about your age. They may be facing the same issues. Perhaps they've already gone through this. That's your first stop. You want someone to help you get through the initial hoops, even if you just get emotional support out of it.

Friends of friends. You may hear that a friend's relative, etc. is looking for work and would be ideal for the job. Resist the urge. You will fill an immediate need, but you may create a huge problem. The person will come with little or no training, not even the limited amount you have acquired just in caring for your loved one as a relative. As you may be dealing with acute or chronic illness, you must have someone who will know how to deal with it.

Moreover, if something goes wrong and you have to let the person go, you will have serious hard feelings between you and your friend. This isn't like losing a job as a customer service rep. at the mall. The person may take it very personally that you are letting him go, as will your friend. It's not worth the intangible task.

It takes a village. Look to your local Department of Aging for information. They work to help seniors live independently for as long as possible. Ask the social worker or caseworker to make references. Don't just look at agencies to hire someone. Look at those who work independently of an agency as well.

Get help for your helper. While you may need round-the-clock help, know there are free services available through the community to supplement your needs. You want your Home Health Aide to be able to concentrate on giving quality care to your loved one. Make use of any free or low-cost services (i.e. meal delivery, transportation) friends and your local agency on aging point out.

This extra help may also come in the form of a specialized nurse. If your loved one has an ailment that requires special care, you can't expect the Home Health Aide who functions more like a caregiver to provide that level of skill. Leave the high-level skills to the person with the specialty, so your regular Home Health Aide is free to care for your loved one.

Check them out. Find out what sort of background checks are done on workers provided by an agency. Is there standard licensure? Is the person trained in CPR and other health needs your family requires. Your agency on aging may maintain a list of qualified and pre-screened independent workers as well as businesses that provide Home Health Aides.

If you choose an individual, that person may become an integral part of your family, allowing for a stronger bond with your frail loved one. That said, if the person is sick or has an emergency of his own, you will be left without a replacement, often at short notice. When you hire an individual, you will have to think about paying employer taxes, as well as liability insurance. That person will be on your property, most likely lifting and hauling items for the patient and/or the physical care of the loved one. If the person is injured, you are liable.

An agency will find you a fill in if your Home Health Aide is ill, etc. In terms of insurance, an agency maintains insurance on its employees, but check to be sure.

Resources
If you are having problems locating your local agency on aging, call Eldercare Locator at 800-677-1116. They will put you in touch with an appropriate resource agency in your geographic location.