Choosing the right home care agency.

5 Questions to Ask Your Home Care Agency

Home care is deeply personal. The most obvious reason is because you’re letting someone new into your home to help organize your life and assist with functions like showering and mobility. But it’s more than that. No two people are the same, which means no two home care plans are the same. It’s important to find an agency you can trust that will give you the best care possible.

You have the right to live safely and comfortably in your home and enjoy a wonderful quality of life. That’s why it’s so important to choose an agency that will treat you like their own family, who will tailor the care you receive to suit your individual circumstances, and who will be able to have a laugh or two with you along the way. Choosing the right home care agency is a big decision, so here are some questions you should ask to make sure you get the support you need.

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1.      What Home Care Services Do You Provide?

Every home care agency is different and they all offer different types of services. It’s important to carefully read through the list of services they provide to ensure they will meet your needs.

Here at WellSpring Home Health, we offer a mixture of skilled and unskilled services. You can find out exactly that’s included here, but the simplest explanation is this:

  • Skilled: This means working with a multi-disciplinary team of health care professionals, including registered nurses, physical therapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and certified nurse assistants. They work with your primary care physician to deliver seamless care that ensure you will receive care tailored to your medical requirements.
  • Unskilled: This means non-medical care. These are the personal care services that will make your life safer, more comfortable, and more enjoyable. It includes things such as meal preparation and feeding assistance, housekeeping and running errands, mobility assistance and transportation, bowel and bladder care, bathing and showing care, and more.

Some home care agencies will also specialize in a particular type of care, for example, elder care or disability care. Our services, for example, include pediatric and veteran home care services.

Pediatric Home Care Services

Pediatric home care services provide holistic treatment for children with complex medical issues or developmental disabilities. Typically, children who fall into this category experience frequent and/or prolonged hospitalizations and they may be required to enter long-term care. Our goal is to optimize your child’s care and minimize interventions. We’re here to help your family thrive.

(Please note this service is currently only available in Tacoma, Washington.)

Veteran Home Care Services

We are honored to provide home care services to the veterans that bravely protect our freedom and our way of life. As a veteran home care agency, we provide veterans and surviving spouses the care they need to live with honor and dignity while staying in their homes as long as they wish. These services are provided to veterans living a long way from their nearest VA facility and can include both skills and unskilled services. Please call our office to discuss your circumstances.

2.      Is Your Home Care Agency Based in My Area?

There are two main reasons why it’s very important to choose a local home care agency.

First, they’ll be based in your area which means they’ll be able to quickly respond when you require assistance. Second, they’ll have a much better understanding of who you are and where you come from, which will increase your chance of finding a provider you can get along with. As we said right at the start, choosing a home care agency is a big decision. It’s important to find a provider that “gets you,” because this will ensure you received the standard of care you deserve. It also makes the whole process a whole lot more fun for everyone involved.

We don’t need to tell you that Alaskans are a pretty unique bunch. If you’re looking for home care services in Anchorage, you should consider WellSpring Home Health in either Anchorage or Wasilla. We employ local people who go through an extensive screening process to ensure they share our commitment to the highest standards of ethics, honesty, and integrity. This includes compliance with all local, state, and federal laws and regulations regarding patient care. We also have a third center based at Tacoma, Washington, that serves people living all over Pierce County.

3.      Do You Accept My Insurance for Home Care?

Insurance is really important when it comes to home care services. Different insurers will have different requirements around things like preferred providers, referrals, and qualifying criteria. It’s important to read your policy carefully to make sure you choose a compatible home care agency.

Each insurance company will also set out different rules around things like co-pays and deductibles. If you have any questions about this, or you need to clarify anything, it’s worth calling your provider before you contact us to schedule an assessment. That will ensure we’re all on the same page.

4.      What Values Guide Your Home Care Agency?

This might sound like a strange question, but bear with us a moment. Once you’ve found a home care agency that provides the services you need, is based in your local area, and accepts your insurance, you might think your search is complete. However, culture is equally important.

Think about it this way: you’re letting someone into your home so they can take care of you and improve your quality of life. Trust is critical. On top of this, since you’ll be spending a lot of time with your providers, shouldn’t you pick a home care agency you actually like?

That’s where values come into play. WellSpring Home Health provides an unsurpassed level of service while maintaining the highest standards. We have two core values:

  • Compassion: We care for our clients like we would our own loved ones. We’re passionate about providing elderly and disabled members of our community the personalized care you need with the courtesy and respect you deserve.
  • Knowledge: Our employees are our greatest resource. We only hire professionals who have a proven track record for providing high-quality, dependable care to help people live safely, comfortably, and independently at home.

5.      Do You Have Any Home Care Reviews I can See?

Reviews are a great way to get a feel for a home care agency before you make an inquiry. These should be transparent and readily available both on their website and via Google reviews. It will give you a quick overview of what kinds of issues the agency helps people with, what the staff members are like, what its standing is within the community, and any red flags you should consider.

This is an essential part of the modern business landscape. If you’re struggling to find reviews, or the reviews are bad, you should broaden your search and consider another home care agency in your local area. This is important, so make sure you take the time you need to get it right.

Finally, How Do I Sign Up for Home Care Services?

If you’re looking for skilled home care services, the first steps are to get a referral from your primary care physician and then contact our team to schedule an assessment. Once that’s done, we can work with your doctor to develop a home care plan that will suit your clinical requirements.

If you’re looking for unskilled home care services, however, you can either get a referral or go ahead and call our office directly to discuss your needs. We would be honored to work with you.

Sound like a plan? Contact our professional team to get started.