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Why Understanding Your Patient’s Personality is Vital in Home Care

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Wouldn’t it be great if all clients and caretakers were calm, patient, and understanding? Unfortunately, that is not the case. Different personality types can make caregiver placement for in-home care difficult. Therefore, a great deal of time, effort, and money are being spent trying to understand personalities. Do opposites attract? Or do people prefer someone more like themselves? In our business, the latter is usually true. 

As the home care provider, our goal is to evaluate each client and caregiver to find the best match for patient care. Above all, we want our clients to feel safe and comfortable. Let’s take a look at the definitions of the components of the personality types.

Personality Type Components

Neuroticism – Located somewhere on the neurotic scale from emotional stability to emotional chaos. Individuals with very high levels of neuroticism have been shown to be unstable. Therefore, they can cause prolonged and pervasive misery to themselves and those close to them.

Extraversion – A personality type that draws its energy from being a part of a large group. Measures how energetic, friendly, and comfortable in social settings a person is.

Openness – Appreciation of esthetic experiences, imagination, creativity, and curiosity. Frequently have hobbies and crafts. These people like to seek out new experiences.

Agreeableness – The ability to put other people’s needs ahead of their own.

Conscientiousness – The inclination to be goal-oriented, plan things step by step, and expect the same from others. 

The following four commonly recognized groups are used to define most personalities. To provide the best patient-centered care for your client, consider these types:

Personality Types

1. Average

Defined as high in neuroticism and extraversion, low in openness.  

This person can be calm and easygoing one minute and then blow up over something small the next minute. If this is the client, the caregiver should be aware of the situation. Therefore, it’s best to assign a very calm, slow-to-anger caregiver to this client for in home care. Also, be careful with assignments given to a caregiver of this type.

2. Self-Centered

High in extraversion, below average in openness, agreeability, and conscientiousness.

A self-centered person likes being the center of attention. They enjoy being in groups, and do not like to be alone. Therefore, a self-centered client requires a great deal of attention. Additionally, they can be very needy, demanding, and hard to please. This client will be very talkative and wants a caregiver that communicates back. Consequently, a friendly, talkative caregiver is best for this patient’s care.

3. Role Model

Defined as low in neuroticism and high in all other traits.

A role model is a well-adjusted, easy-to-get-along-with person. As a result, they can do well with almost any caregiver you assign them. Likewise, they are patient and understanding and do not cause unnecessary problems. For these reasons, these caregivers do well with most any client.

4. Reserved

Not extrovert or neurotic, above average in agreeableness and conscientiousness.

These clients are low-key, usually quieter people. Therefore, they do not like a caregiver coming into their home and talking non-stop. Most of the time they have a plan for the day and expect it to be followed. They also do not tolerate being late or inconvenienced. Above all, a very reliable and schedule-focused caregiver is best for their in home care.

You make better placements by using these protocols to assess each caregiver and client. Clients can become frustrated if you have trouble finding a good match. Similarly, you can easily lose that client as their faith in your ability to find the right person for them wanes. Also, do not discount the effects that the family members have on this dynamic regarding patient care. 

At A Better Solution for Home Care, we work alongside our franchisees to help them make the best match for patient-centered care the first time. We offer extensive training, your own coach, and a support team. In short, we want to make the best care available for all clients. Contact us at (877) 585-9011 for more information.

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