5 Things to Ask When Choosing Senior a Home Care Agency in Wichita
Hiring a senior home health care agency is a great way to ensure the well-being of your loved ones. These agencies can help seniors with personal care, hygiene, and more.
While senior care services can be great, you may have concerns about who is going into your home, especially since seniors are vulnerable people who require trustworthy caregivers.
In this article, we will cover 5 things to consider when looking into home care services for seniors.
1. How does the senior home care agency conduct employee screenings?
Having a trustworthy caregiver is crucial for senior home care services to work. Here is why:
- Caregivers have complete access to the senior’s home including any valuable goods and personal information.
- Seniors are vulnerable people. In most cases, they are hiring home care services because they live alone.
- Caregivers will be in charge of administering medication.
How do you find a trustworthy caregiver?
Look into agencies who run thorough screenings on their employees. Ask the agency about the hiring and screening process.
If possible, ask the agency for references for their services. For example, ask for a list of healthcare workers who have collaborated with the agency.
Last, ask the agency if you can meet potential caregivers ahead of time. You can ask them a few questions about their experience with seniors. Through this brief meeting, you’ll know if the caregiver is the right fit for your family.
2. Do senior care caregivers count with credentials?
Most times, seniors only need assistance with hygiene or housekeeping. However, there are cases when they also need health aid.
To ensure your loved ones are in good hands, ask the agency about the caregiver’s credentials. If a caregiver claims to have credentials, you can verify it with the licensing body. To find out more about the aide, visit the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) website. Also, if possible, ask the caregiver to provide references from former employers.
3. How much does it cost?
This question is a no brainer. The cost of home caregiving services varies depending on your loved one’s needs. Therefore, to avoid future misunderstandings, ask about all costs associated with the home care services.
4. Can the fees be covered through insurance?
Depending on your agency, there are different payment options:
- Private pay
- Public programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, only offer coverage to agencies that provide healthcare services
- Commercial policies, such as Medigap, long-term insurance, or veteran’s benefits
Unfortunately, coverage assistance for home care services is unusual. In most cases, assistance only covers a part of the fee.
We recommend asking about any criteria to pay through public programs or insurance. For example, for Medicare, the agency might require patients to be homebound.
5. Does the agency provide quality services?
This is the most important question, but also the hardest to measure. Here are some questions to help you determine the quality of an agency’s services:
- When was the agency’s last inspection? What were the inspection rates?
- Does the agency provide ongoing training for their staff? How do they motivate their employees to improve in their field?
- How are the client’s complaints handled?
- Does the staff provide updates about seniors to their families? How often do they communicate with family members?
- How many years has the agency been in the senior care business?
- Does the agency provide a custom plan of care for each client? Is this plan established in a contract? Where can families review the plan?
Are you looking for senior care in Wichita? A Better Solution in Home Care can help! Reach out to us at 1–877–585–9011. We will gladly address all of your questions.
