Arlene: ‘Senior Care Is Where I Think God Wants Me to Be’
Decades after Arlene Seenaught postponed her dream of attending college to take care of her grandparents, Arlene has continued on her compassionate path of helping seniors. Since joining Home Instead® of Clearwater in August 2019, Arlene has been honored twice as the Florida franchise’s Care Professional of the Month (May 2020 and February 2023).
Arlene explains her life’s journey this way: “I love helping people. This is where I think God wants me to be.”
A 76-year-old dementia client has virtually no one else to help her except Arlene and three other Care Pros at owner Julie Castle’s award-winning franchise. “One common saying at Home Instead that describes our Care Pro-client relationships is ‘we’re just like family’ to the client. In reality with this client, we are her family. I’ve assisted her for about 2½ years. She lives alone and has no children. There is a cousin in Tampa who comes to see her about once a month, and she has a friend who comes by on occasion and takes my client out for lunch. Her POA (Power of Attorney) is a good person who lives out of state,” Arlene explained.
Doctors diagnosed the client’s dementia four years ago. Arlene said she works with a grateful client. “She is a very kindhearted person and good-natured. She thanks us Care Pros sometimes. She will say, ‘I’m glad you are here to help me.’ ” Arlene added, “She asks questions from time to time. She recognizes us Care Pros but does not remember our names. Not all of her memory has been lost. A little more than a year ago, her dog passed away, and it took about two weeks or so for that sad reality to set in. Now my client realizes her dear pet is gone.”
Dogs are one reason Arlene can get her client to go outside for walks. The other attraction is children. Arlene said: “She loves dogs and children. I mention to her that we can see both, dogs and children, if we walk by the park. She’s usually ready to go when I say that. Since she is mobile, going for walks is something good to do. She is active with little or no arthritis.”
Arlene added: “She used to shower on her own but now we are a shower assist by telling her what to do, step by step. We assist her in other ways because she might not do things correctly. I try to get her to wake up by 8:15 by turning the TV on. When she hears the voices, she thinks people are talking and gets up. Otherwise, she’d be in bed until 8:30 or later.”
Home Instead tries to keep the same Care Pros with the client, which helps cut down on the client’s confusion and promotes a feeling of safety, trust and comfort. The Care Pros take their turns staying with the client on holidays. ‘I will be with her on Thanksgiving. One of us is with her on all holidays, including Christmas,” Arlene said.
For most of the past 33 years, Arlene has been working in professional senior care or areas of medical care as a CNA. She still sounds invigorated by her career choice, which can be stressful at times.
“My energy level is good. There is very little family caregiving because Mom and Dad are doing so well. Mom is 81; Dad is 82. They were high school sweethearts. You can’t tell their ages by looking at them. They look like they are in their early 70s. Dad still visits the family body shop in St. Petersburg that’s run by my two brothers. One brother lives in St. Pete, and the other lives in Seminole, where I live. Two of my four sisters visited from New York for Easter. They brought their daughters – my three nieces – and several of their friends,” Arlene said.
Family is everything to Arlene. Her heart for caregiving was evident many years ago in East Berbice-Corentyne, Guyana, when she cared for her grandparents for three years after her high school graduation. They lived across the street from the house where she grew up. “My grandmother was having problems,” Arlene recalled. “Back home, that is the culture. You take care of elderly relatives. We are a very close family anyway.”
Arlene’s immediate family is in the U.S., including her parents who live in St. Petersburg. After Arlene left her native country on South America’s North Atlantic coast, she began working as a CNA in New York City in 1990. “I worked with an agency and as a private-duty caregiver. I moved to Florida in 2004,” said Arlene, who joined Home Instead in August 2019.
When talking about the days ahead, Arlene said: “It breaks my heart when I lose a primary client. Sometimes I wonder if I’m in the wrong field because my heart can break so easily. I love my job. As I’ve said previously, where you are in life, that’s where God wants you.” Arlene said.
All Home Instead Care Professionals are screened, trained and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (727) 799-1400 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
