When I meet with clients and their families prior to starting services, I can often feel the nervous hesitation to “committing” to my home care team. We live in a world where sales and marketing tactics have become so strong, that it is hard to know what to believe. All of us have been in situations where we were overpromised on a service or product but it in the end, they underdelivered.
One thing I try to reinforce is that when you sign a service agreement with True North Home Care, you are not “stuck” with us. We believe we have to earn your trust and your business each day we serve you. If you sign a service agreement with me today and I disappoint you tomorow and you want to terminate services, you are 100% allowed to do that. That being said, in my 19 months of doing business, I am yet to have that happen, and for one simple reason.
Stephanie (our scheduling specialist) and I treat scheduling a bit like dating. We don’t expect to find your perfect match on the first time every time. We often do, because our staff are vetted, well-trained, and we get to know their personalities before they meet you so we have a pretty good idea of what personalities will go well with yours. However, sometimes its a bad match. Sometimes it’s the caregiver’s fault. Sometimes it’s the client’s fault (yes…sometimes client’s can be difficult…), and sometimes it’s neither parties fault, and its just not a good fit. Instead of wasting your time (and mine), we simply try someone else. We have very rarely had to go through more than 2 people to get the right fit, but even if it takes us 4 people to find your Goldilocks Caregiver, we will keep trying.
If you don’t like your caregiver, please….PLEASE say something. Call me (or your whichever care company you are using), and tell us what’s going on. I have heard so many seniors tell me they didn’t complain when the red flags started because they were afraid of retaliation, didn’t want the caregiver to get fired, or didn’t want to appear difficult. Let me assure you, if you felt like it wasn’t a good fit, 9 times out of 10, the caregiver picked up that signal and knows its not a good fit. We know how to let a caregiver down gently and help them find a different assignment if that is what is appropriate. We never tell a caregiver what was said about them, we simply correct any behavior that needs to be corrected and remove them from that client. Sometimes it is severe enough that we know they aren’t a fit for the agency anymore, and that’s okay. We appreciate the client’s who give us honest feedback to help our caregivers and our agency grow professionally.
At the end of the day, you are paying for a service that is so personal and intimate. You deserve to have a caregiver you like . You deserve a to feel safe and comfortable with the caregiver in your home. As your home care agency, we will continue to work hard to earn your trust and satisfaction.
-Kayla Nelson, RN, CEO
True North Home Care
