My father is 80 and needs 24 hour care. He lives in a house in Old Saybrook, CT. I have tried without success to find a good live-in helper who will care for him (he has incontinence issues), cook and do light cleaning. The house is comfortable and has a nice spare bedroom. Can anyone recommend a caregiver? Or an agency? Thank you!!
It can be done but both your parents have to be accepting of strangers coming into the home -
And as was previously mentioned, in-home help is very expensive. But I have to disagree about the poop factor. A professional deals with poop all the time. Nurses deal with poop all the time. Dr.'s deal with poop all the time. Poop is not a deal-breaker in the healthcare profession.
With an Agency, the Agency is usually licensed, insured, bonded, and have workman's comp for their employees. Plus have updated TB testing, etc. And if one of the caregivers cannot make his/her shift, the Agency is real good on finding a replacement. I have been using Home Instead for almost a year now and have been extremely pleased. There are other really good Agencies out there.
Just curious why would your Dad need a caregiver just for incontinence? Or are there other medical issues such as mobility or memory issues which complicate the incontinence?
Even though a live-in caregiver would be nice, there is no way one person can work 3 full time shifts per day. Everyone needs to have a good night sleep without any interruptions.