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Finding the right live-in carer is crucial, as you must feel comfortable living with them at home. When you’re looking for a live-in care provider, research is essential as there are several key factors to consider.
Does the care provider meet your needs?
A live-in carer means you will have specialist care and support exactly when you need it, rather than having to depend on short scheduled visits throughout the day. Our live-in care service provides approximately 8 hours of care over a 24 hour timeframe.
If your individual needs mean you require more care, we can provide additional experienced live-in carers who can support you through the whole day as well as overnight, providing a continuous level of care, 24 hours per day and 7 days per week.
With a live-in carer you can stay in your familiar home surroundings, enabling you to live-independently whilst benefiting from support, stability and companionship.
How long will a carer’s placement last?
We understand that familiarity is a must, particularly in dementia care. Building a relationship with your carer is important, so we guarantee our carers will commit to a placement of between 2 and 12 weeks. This provides important continuity and ensures you have the flexibility to plan ahead for social events and appointments, knowing your care needs are covered.
Is care guaranteed?
It’s essential that your care needs are covered, so if your carer is ill or on holiday your live-in care provider should ensure a replacement carer with equivalent skills and experience is available.
Our fast response care service ensures your live-in care needs are always covered, even at short notice, with our highly qualified team of carers on call 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
How are carers selected?
It’s crucial for a live-in carer to be able to communicate clearly, with a high standard of spoken and written English. Pre-employment screening such as a DBS check should also be carried out and references should be available on request.
We guarantee all our carers pass our rigorous recruitment process, which includes:
- Training to test their care skills
- Driving skills check
- English language check
- Extensive background checks
Our live-in carers are also trained to work alongside other care providers such as physiotherapists, occupational therapist and speech therapists to ensure a complete level of care in the home.
How are carers matched to individuals?
When matching you with a live-in carer, a care provider should determine your personality and interests, as well as your care and support needs. It’s crucial that your emotional needs are met as well as you physical needs such as bathing and dressing.
When we are matching you with a carer, we’ll ask you questions including:
- Does your carer require any specific experience?
- Does your carer need to have a specialism?
- Would you prefer a male or female carer?
- Does your carer need to be able to drive?
- Would you prefer your carer to share your interests and hobbies?
This will ensure you are matched with a carer you will feel comfortable with and who meets your needs and understands your choices in life.
Is a live-in carer a good idea?
The benefits of live-in care are immeasurable. Finding a live-in carer enables you to stay in your own home, which can be paramount for your wellbeing and happiness. Many people assume that a live-in carer simply supports their client’s personal care, but there is so much more that they can do.
They receive specialist training, and as opposed to a residential home, this expertise is centred solely on you. Live-in carers can allow couples to stay together who might have been otherwise separated. They will also provide you with companionship, and those who care about you will be able to relax — safe in the knowledge that you have support.
How is private live-in care arranged?
Firstly, you need to think about the best care option for you. Talk it through with family or close friends who know you well.
You can then find out whether you qualify for any funding towards your care. You can arrange a care assessment from the NHS or your local authority. Local authorities provide a care needs assessment when you can tell them about your wishes for live-in care. They will then carry out a means test to see how much you can afford to pay.
If you have significant healthcare needs, your GP or a healthcare professional at your hospital can complete an NHS Continuing Healthcare checklist to see if you are eligible for ongoing NHS-funded support.
After the assessment, you will know your budget, allowing you to arrange care with your chosen care company and find a live-in carer who meets your needs.
It can be a daunting process to arrange live-in care, so ENA offers a live-in care trial for a minimum of two weeks (and up to four weeks) so that you can see the benefits first hand.
Who can help you arrange live-in care?
Your live-in care can be arranged through a number of different channels. If your care needs assessment concludes that you qualify for help, the local council has a legal duty to organise the live-in care. Alternatively, a family member might want to arrange live-in care for you, perhaps taking on the role of carer themselves — but this is risky if they are not qualified or experienced. It can also put a strain on your relationship if things don’t work out.
For complete control, you can find a live-in carer privately. If you are to receive funding from your local council, they can pay this money directly to you. ENA is able to help you arrange live-in care with highly trained live-in carers. Some of our head office team are also qualified healthcare professionals, so we can provide you with professional and medical guidance.
For further information on how we can support you with live-in care, get in touch with our specialist team, who will be more than happy to talk you through our specialist care services.
