WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A HOME CARE AGENCY

When you are considering home care services the following guidelines will help you to successfully locate and hire a fully qualified, caring agency who will provide you or your loved one with personal care and services.

Questions to ask:

Who owns the agency?
Are they professionally qualified, what is the background of the owner, are they experienced in providing appropriate services to seniors.

Experience
Does the agency staff have experience providing care to senior's in their own homes?

Insurance
Does the agency carry liability insurance?
Who with and how much?

Staff Qualifications
Are the caregivers qualified in the area of care they will be providing?
Does the agency complete criminal background checks? How?
Does the agency confirm employment eligibility of its staff with the Social Security Administration?
Does the agency check driving safety with DMV records?
Does the agency check all references provided?

Human Resource Questions
Does the agency provide orientation and training for newly hired caregivers? How long are the orientations?
Do they provide ongoing in-service for caregivers? How often and what subjects are covered?
Does the agency have policy and procedures for care givers to use?

Are the caregivers employees of the agency?
Are payroll deductions taken from each caregiver's payroll?
Are the caregivers covered under workers compensation insurance?
Are the caregivers insured, bonded? Who with and how much?

How are the caregivers supervised?
Does the agency perform non-scheduled supervisory visits to your home?
Do you have access to agency office staff at all times?