We understand that many families assume our services are only beneficial if the family member needing care receives care in an alternate location. This is not always the case. Home care can also work for families in which a caregiver works out of the home. For example, if you work out of the home and your parent needs assistance, and you have scheduled video calls, you can absolutely utilize our home care services.
Many people may think caregiving and working from home are the same; however, there are a lot of differences. Being in the same house as your parent is not the same as being available to assist them.
There are many things throughout the day where you may not be able to leave to assist your parent. If your parent needs to make a meal and you are on a work call that cannot be put on hold, what do you do? What if you need to work on a presentation but your parent needs to leave to do something that will only take a couple of minutes? You obviously can’t put your work on hold.
There are a lot of things going on during the day that pull your attention in a lot of different directions. The burden of needing to be in more than one place at the same time can definitely cause an increase in stress and anxiety. The real issue is the need to be in a lot of places at the same time and not being able to leave your job to assist your parent.
While caregiving throughout the day may not be an issue for a family member, caregiving during the workday can be challenging. Many caregivers can handle caregiving duties at the beginning and end of the day but may find it especially difficult to caregive between those times.
Scheduled home care services can help during that time.
The purpose is not to replace you. It is to determine the times of the day when you cannot leave to go to work and are therefore not available to your parent.
To determine Coverage Windows
Begin with your work schedule and then consider your parent’s schedule.
Fill in your work schedule with the meetings and tasks that require you to be unavailable to your parent and therefore unable to provide care.
Identify when your parent needs and wants assistance.
You may discover your parent needs and wants the most support during your work-related peaks.
You may realize your parent prefers to have support during the middle of the day when your work is least disruptive.
You may realize household and caregiving activities disrupt your work and support the most during the middle of the day and the least before and after work.
You may need support during the workweek and may need a caregiving plan during that time.
While your experience may vary, I don't think it's likely that someone would need to support your parent throughout their entire work day. In a different household, longer periods of coverage may be more appropriate to accommodate more frequent interruptions throughout the day.
I would also include the older adult in these discussions.
Support workers should be facilitating the older adult to make decisions about the activities they need and want help with. For a support worker to make decisions for an older adult about what activities to assist with constitutes a support worker making decisions for an older adult, which is generally unacceptable.
One on one support is required for the activities and times that the older adult has determined they need and want support for.
How can you minimize disruptions for the older adult?
You cannot expect the older adult to not disrupt their day for support, and you cannot expect them to not be available to provide support, especially if you are going to be in a work from home situation for a significant amount of time.
It may help to redefine what you consider your work time, to support the older adult to engage in other activities. Many times, this may help you to gain more control of your time and engage more fully in your work when you take a break from your work to support the older adult.
If each break becomes an opportunity to check something off your to-do list, mealtimes will soon be just another task. Take turns with your siblings to run errands so that you have the opportunity to spend quality time with your parent as your son or daughter.
Respite care lets the regular caregiver leave the house to have a break and still gives the family member the support they need.
Not leaving the house does not mean support is worthless.
The main question here is if support would allow you to work and your parent would have the care they need and support they are entitled to.
When does a "Work From Home" Scenario Become Untenable?
The main thing to look out for is if your parent is OK with the current situation.
Sometimes support needs are easy to meet for a short while and then become hard to meet. The support may become hard to meet even if nothing drastic has happened.
Some of the signs that may mean support is no longer adequate may include the following:
- Your parent often needs assistance to perform basic tasks.
- You are no longer able to attend work meetings because you need to assist your parent.
- Your parent is able to perform basic tasks but has to wait because you are not available to assist.
- You are no longer able to work because you have to concentrate on your parent's welfare and what tasks they are performing.
- You work, and your parent assumes that means you can’t also be providing support.
Supporting you parent may mean finding new ways to address support during the day when they need the most help.
You should determine if your parent’s circumstances have changed.
If your parent has a new medical issue, or their old medical issue has gotten worse, leading to changes in their ability to function and move around, support may not be enough and a medical professional may need to be involved.
It is also possible that your parent’s needs may have changed beyond what non-medical home care is able to provide.
In general, the best situation is when the line between what a Care Pro can provide, and what a member of the family needs to provide is as clear as possible.
It is best for Care Pros in Gainesville to assume that your employer is not going to change what they expect of you, and work from home as much as possible. It is reasonable for families to believe that care pro support means that you are able to work from home and your parent is able to remain in the house without needing to rely on support to manage what is on your computer screen.
Do I need to use your care services for the entire length of my workday?
Probably not. You should first identify the parts of your workday when caregiving and working overlap the most. There may be times when you need care for just a few hours in the evening, or you may need caregiving throughout the day.
Am I allowed to provide care for my parent myself when a Care Pro is in the home?
Definitely. Parents do not lose their caregiving rights just because professional care is provided. You can keep caregiving in areas that are most important to you and where you are most comfortable, and let the Care Plan take care of the other aspects of caregiving.
What if my parent is not open to having a Care Pro in the home all day long?
You should try discussing home care for just a few hours a day. They may be receptive to this idea because it allows them to be in control of the rest of their day.
Is the care provided by Home Instead similar to home health and/or skilled nursing care?
Home Instead care is different from care provided by home health agencies and nursing agencies. Home Instead care is provided by aides and home caregivers, while home health and skilled nursing care is provided by licensed professionals. If your parent needs assessments, treatments or care provided by a nurse or therapist, you should contact the appropriate home health agency.
What hours do I add to a Care Plan?
Look at your work schedule and your parent’s daily schedule. Identify routine activities that occur at similar times each day. Look for repeated scheduling conflicts. For example, find out what meetings cause schedule conflicts with what meals. Identify when your parent needs companionship.
What should I do if my parent needs more and more assistance?
Evaluate the Care Plan to see if changes need to be made. If the new issues are related to your parent’s health and wellness, contact the person on your parent’s Care Team for guidance.
You might feel like you are doing two full time jobs, especially if you are working from home. Look at your schedule. What times of the day are the most frustrating? The Home Instead team serving Gainesville can help create a Care Plan for your parent and help you find times during the day where you can focus on your work.
About the Author
Matt Cohn has spent more than 25 years helping older adults and their families find the right support to remain safe and comfortable at home. He owns Home Instead locations serving Gainesville and other communities in Georgia and Louisiana, and has worked closely with families, caregivers, and care professionals through many of the decisions that come with in-home care.
