Venture House Info Soft

Senior caregivers working with seniors in their homes and in nursing and assisted living communities may be required to have certifications prior to being employed.

The cost of home health care warrants proactive planning and should be weighed against your budget and other anticipated expenses. For a home health aide to visit just 3 times a week to provide in home care, you may have to pay nearly $18,000 a year. It is wise then, to fully understand what is involved in contracting home health services and how it impacts your finances.

To get a full picture of what to expect when engaging a home health care provider, determine the cost your home health services, the public programs for which you are eligible, what payments these programs cover and what private funding options are available. This will greatly simplify identifying what option best meets your budget and in home care needs.

According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, in 2008, the average cost of hiring a home health care provider in United States is $29 an hour. The cost may vary depending upon where you live, however. Those in Los Angeles, may have to pay $29/hour for a home health aide, but those in San Jose, may need to pay $50/hour for the same in home care.

The table below shows average hourly rates of home healthcare services state-wise.
Average state hourly home health aide rates in USD ($)
(Source: 2008 Cost of Care Survey, Genworth Financial, March 2008 )
Alabama 46.00
Alaska 49.00
Arizona 29.00
Arkansas 21.00
California 36.00
Colorado 27.00
Connecticut 25.00
Delaware 31.00
District of Columbia 20.00
Florida 20.00
Georgia 42.00
Hawaii 32.00
Idaho 25.00
Illinois 30.00
Indiana 21.00
Iowa 28.00
Kansas 22.00
Kentucky 16.00
Louisiana 41.00
Maine 38.00
Massachusetts 28.00
Michigan 26.00
Minnesota 26.00
Mississippi 44.00
Missouri 25.00
Montana 23.00
Nebraska 23.00
Nevada 37.00
New Hampshire 32.00
New Jersey 26.00
New Mexico 23.00
New York 25.00
North Carolina 28.00
North Dakota 24.00
Oklahoma 29.00
Oregon 33.00
Pennsylvania 24.00
Rhode Island 22.00
South Carolina 29.00
South Dakota 20.00
Tennessee 30.00
Texas 28.00
Utah 24.00
Vermont 24.00
Virginia 25.00
Washington 45.00
West Virginia 32.00
Wisconsin 25.00
Wyoming 24.00

What you should know before hiring a caregiver:

o Medicare does not pay for personal care or custodial care only. It only pays for part time or intermittent skilled nursing care prescribed by a doctor and provided by a Medicare-certified home health agency.
o Medicaid pays for home healthcare, but some states may limit certain services.
o Private insurance may or may not cover home health care.

To meet your requirements for in home care while remaining mindful of your finances, be sure to understand all options first.

Taking care of the everyday needs of a loved one who is mentally or physically disabled is very stressful. Many people in this position decide to try to do it all themselves but end up relying on other family members to fill in the gaps. Over time, family caregivers very often reach a point where they know they must find outside help.

Should you contact a local home care agency? Or, should you hire a home health aide privately? Many people are reluctant to use a home care agency because they think the cost is higher than hiring someone on their own.

This article will focus on many of the important factors you should consider when choosing whether to use an agency or hire privately. Your decision may have unintended consequences. There is really a lot more at stake than just how much it will cost.

Legal Issues

If you hire someone, they are your employee. You must comply with laws dealing with immigration and naturalization, income tax, Social Security and Medicare tax, unemployment tax, and workers compensation insurance. A home care agency has procedures in place for these matters.

Medical Supervision

Home health aides complete a six to eight week certification program. Dealing with medical and health issues requires much more training than could possibly be offered in these programs. Having a nurse from a home care agency supervise the home health aide can be critical to insuring proper care.

Continuing Education

Once a home health aide has completed a certification program, there is no requirement for ongoing training. When a home health aide works for a home care agency, there are mandatory classes in such areas as infection control, recognizing potential problems and patient safety.

Background Checks

The personal history of someone applying for a job as a home health aide is very important. What is their previous experience? What do their references say about them? Is there any criminal record in this person’s past? Home care agencies have trained human resources personal to deal with these questions.

Health Screening

Are you prepared to have someone go for a pre-employment physical examination to be sure they are able to perform the work? How will you do yearly TB testing? Drug testing? For a home care agency these are ordinary processes.

Replacements

No one can work every single day without fail. What happens when the home health aide calls out sick? Wants a day off or vacation? Pregnancy leave? What if the home health aide just quits? What if there are personality conflicts? A home care agency can insure continuous, uninterrupted service.

Insurance

What if household items are damaged or missing? (Bonding) What happens if the home health aide hurts someone? (Liability) Gets hurt on the job? (Workers Compensation) Gets sick? (Health Care) A home care agency is set up to handle all of these issues.

Whatever decision you make, make an informed decision. Try to weigh what you see as the cost against each of the above factors. What would it cost to be involved in a workers compensation problem? What would happen if there was a time delay in getting a replacement for a caregiver? What if you unknowingly hired someone with a criminal background?

Before I became an elder law and estate planning attorney, I was a physical therapist for many years. During those years as a physical therapist, many of them were spent in the home care field. I have a great deal of experience in this area. So, if you or someone you know needs help deciding weather to hire a home health aide privately or through a home care agency call me at my office (203) 488-5586.

Senior caregiving provides fulfilling work for individuals who are compassionate and dependable. Many opportunities exist as seniors often need just part-time care when family members are not able to check in during the week or when recovering from an illness or surgery. Some caregiving positions require certification as a nursing aide or home health aide and other positions simply require a caring personality. Senior home care agencies typically train caregivers for each assignment. Nursing homes and assisted living communities offer positions as activities director and nursing aides.

What questions should you ask to make sure the individual will be trustworthy and caring? Here is a list of suggested questions which are typically used by professional senior home care agencies when interviewing caregivers to join their care team.

What attracted you to entering the profession of senior caregiver? Please share a story about an interaction you have had with a senior in your life, as a relative, friend, or caregiver. Please walk me through your employment history and tell me what you liked the most and the least about each job. What are your short-term and long-term goals for employment? Based on your experiences with the elderly, what do you like most about spending time with seniors? What do you think are a seniors greatest fears and concerns? What do you think are the characteristics of a good caregiver? Which of those characteristics do you feel you posses? What skills do you feel you would need to improve upon or develop as a senior caregiver? Do you have experience in providing personal assistance (bathing, toileting, feeding)? How would you handle a situation where the senior does not want to cooperate? Example: the senior does not want to take their medications at the scheduled time. How would you handle or behave in an emergency situation? How would you begin to develop a friendly relationship with a new client on your first day? Please let me know what medical conditions you have personal or professional experience in working with: Alzheimer’s Disease/Memory Loss, Parkinson’s disease, hip replacement, stroke, diabetes, cancer, M.S., others?

These questions have been developed by human resource professionals with years of experience and will achieve the goal of finding out the caregiver applicant’s interest in performing care as an employee and their skills and dependability.

It is also important to perform background checks on potential caregivers.

Beware of any background check service that is offered for free or in tandem with a subscription service as a good background check will cost at least $15.00 for a one-time purchase by an individual.

This is because courts do require an entry fee, similar to how a nightclub charges, and it is important to also have computer records verified by a person in counties that do not keep their criminal databases updated daily.

Most background checks that are given for “free” are simply a name and social security number match. When hiring a caregiver, you may want to learn about the background check laws in your state. The best way to make sure you have all the necessary insurance protections and active management for a caregiver is to hire a professional senior home care agency which will provide worker’s compensation insurance, professional liability insurance and a training and performance reviews for the caregiver.