Are At-Home Senior Care Services Safe and Secure?
A common question asked about at-home senior care services is whether or not they are safe. It is easily recognized that seniors who require at-home senior care services may feel vulnerable to those entering their homes whom they are not familiar with. Through carefully screened caregivers, home safety checks, and greater protection against viruses, families can rest assured that their seniors are safe receiving at-home care in their homes, often more so than staying at a facility.
#1: Carefully Screened Caregivers
While care facilities often require background checks for their primary staff, your senior is still exposed to a wide range of unverified people, from cleaning crews to maintenance personnel to visitors of other seniors. While facilities do their best to ensure the safety of their patrons, we’ve all heard the stories of theft and abuse. At-home senior care services go to far greater lengths to secure the health and safety of their seniors.
The first step to ensuring the safety of your senior, their home, and the family is that care service agencies ensure that the staff they hire is thoroughly reviewed. After a candidate completes the employment application, there is typically a multi-step interview process plus a drug screening and background check prior to joining the team. Upon hire, a team member will receive on-the-job training starting with orientation to learn all about how to care for an aging adult and their family.
In addition to their initial screening, caregivers are reviewed regularly on their performance. Even if they provide immaculate care to the client, it is understandable that sometimes a caregiver may not be the right fit for a senior; not everyone gets along. If a caregiver doesn’t quite click with the client, another caregiver will be assigned to them. You never have to worry about your senior being uncomfortable with their caregiver or random people coming into contact with them.
#2: Home Safety Checks & Maintenance
A home can be a dangerous place if left unmaintained. From smoke alarms with dead batteries to sharp edges on tables to slick carpet stairs, a home can be a walking battlefield for the elderly. Unfortunately, it can be challenging for them and their family to recognize potential hazards, seeing as how they have lived there for so long.
Therefore, at-home senior care services will review a residence carefully upon hire and suggest various actions that can be taken to make the home a safer place for their client. Depending on the recommended task, the caregivers may complete the task as a part of their service. Throughout their care services, caregivers will continue to supply various suggestions on home maintenance, repair, or safety and security recommendations to increase safety should they be needed.
#3: Greater Protection from Viruses
Viruses of all types can be detrimental to the elderly due to their often decreased immune systems. While pandemics like COVID-19 are an extreme example, even something like the flu or the common cold going around can have a sweeping effect on a nursing home or assisted living facility. With dozens or hundreds of elderly residents living in close quarters, a virus can spread quickly.
When this happens, seniors will either get sick or be isolated to prevent getting sick. In addition, the facility usually closes down visitations to prevent further contamination to others. Unfortunately, these issues can take weeks or months to subside, leaving your seniors feeling lonely, even if they didn’t get sick, since it is unlikely they will be able to leave the facility or have loved ones come to visit.
With at-home senior care service, your seniors receive excellent protection from viruses. Not only do they have less contact with potentially sick people, but caregivers are extremely careful in virus prevention. If your senior does get sick, they will be treated in the comfort of their home rather than being isolated to a single room, like in a facility.
Home Instead At-Home Senior Care Services
At Home Instead, we believe in providing seniors with the dignity of living their lives happily and safely within the pleasures of their own homes. To ensure the safety of our clients, all of our caregivers undergo rigorous background and drug screening. As part of the hiring process, all team members at Home Instead, Kennewick, WA, undergo CAREGiver Orientation to learn about caring for seniors and their families.
In addition to orientation, all staff receive training in and must demonstrate mastery of, providing care for our aging loved ones. This includes the aging process, the safety of caregivers and clients, specialized training for specific health requirements, and how to build a relationship with clients. You can rest assured that your loved ones are kept safe in the capable hands of our care team. To learn more about how we can help your senior, schedule an in-home care consultation.
