Hiring someone to come into your home and assist you with personnel things you need done is different from hiring someone to fix something in your home. You are going to want to make sure you take the time to list what exactly you need done and how often. Here are a few tips to get you started.
- Interview several potential applicants in person. You can initially go to a public place or in your own home. You want to make sure you feel comfortable with this person to assure a good fit.
- Have a list of things you want done so there is no confusion down the road about your expectations. Ask this person open-ended questions to see how they respond, it will give you an idea of their experience.
- If you are hiring an independent provider it will be best to have a contract written up with the tasks outlined, how they will be paid and the termination policy.
- If you are using a company you will need to review their contract to see exactly the types of things they will cover. There may be added fees for different jobs. You should also review their employees for a good fit.
- Check references thoroughly on individuals and companies. For individuals check several references and inquire if there are frequent job changes or breaks in employment. For companies look them up at the better business bureau or medicare.gov for their ratings.
- If the person or agency do not appear to be working out then do not hesitate to find another. You can try talking things out at first to see if you can resolve the problem but do not be afraid to move on.
- Should you use an individual or an agency? When considering getting help for yourself or a loved one you need to decide if you can comfortably find someone on your own. If not than using an agency that can do some of the work for you might be the better choice.
- An agency usually costs more but that is because they do a lot of the foot work for you. They do the background check and check references. The agency will be paying the caregiver and dealing with the taxes. An agency can be checked to see if they are bonded so you do not need to worry about theft. If your caregiver becomes ill or quits it is the agencies responsibility to replace them not yours.
- Individual providers are cheaper but then a lot of the foot work is left up to you. You will need to be familiar with the tax laws and social security requirements because they will be your employee. You will need to have a back up plan for when they are sick or need time off.
Hope these tips make the decision for choosing a home care provider a little easier.
Lynn K Hoyle
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