Tips for Hiring a Caregiver through an Agency
1. Ask your physician, therapists, family and friends for recommendations on agencies.
2. Interview several different agencies before deciding on one. These questions may help in the decision making process:
- How long have you been in business?
- How many employees do you have in this area?
- Is it possible to train more than one person for the position? For some people this will not be an issue; however for some this will be huge. In our case my mother required assistance transferring and also had challenges speaking. It wasn’t easy for a new, untrained person to handle her daily responsibilities. With two or three people trained, I was more prepared when someone called in sick.
- Are you bonded & insured?
- Do you perform background checks? If so how detailed is the check? Is it a credit and driving record? Does it include a criminal check? In just your state or nationwide?
- Does the agency handle payroll and taxes?
- How often do you bill and on what days? Make sure this fits into your budget schedule; if not, ask if there is an option to adjust to your schedule.
- Keep detailed notes with your likes and dislikes as it may be necessary to change agencies. I have found that an agency’s salesperson may not reflect the actual quality of the caregiver.
