Just because you’ve been discharged from the hospital doesn’t mean your need for care has ended. Like many people across Ontario, you may require at-home care following an accident, surgical procedure, or diagnosis.
A healthcare professional who visits you in the comfort of your own home is much more convenient than travelling to a clinic or hospital for outpatient care. But it can be hard letting someone into your personal space. Your home can feel like the only thing you can control when you’re sick or injured, so it’s important you like and can trust the person administering your care. You need that Caregiver to be dependable, available, and flexible.
After all, they might visit your multiple times a day or provide live-in care. With so much riding on your treatment, it’s important you find a Toronto home care agency that provides compassionate care you can trust.
Here are three questions that can help you narrow in on the best home care services Toronto has to offer. But don’t worry — these questions can help you find the right care, wherever you live.
Question #1: Where Are You Located?
This may seem like an obvious one when your calling places that offer home health services. But it can be misleading when you conduct an online search. Some agencies that come up for your location are nationwide companies.
Even though they’ll send local RNs, RPNs, and PSWs, these professionals may have to travel across Southern Ontario to get to you.
There’s also a good chance you must speak to a central dispatching department halfway across the country. Making these arrangements for yourself or loved ones is hard enough without dealing with this red tape.
It can also feel impersonal whenever you need to adapt your level of care, as you won’t be speaking with someone who knows your local health care professionals by name and face.
For a more personal, compassionate approach, focus on a local agency that has its headquarters in your city. To do that, you might have to change the way you search online for agencies. For example, if you call Toronto home, you can type this into your search: private home care services Toronto.
Question #2: What Home Health Care Services Do You Provide?
When looking for a home healthcare agency, you need to make sure it has professionals who can assist you with your exact medical needs today.
But don’t forget about the future; you should expect an agency to provide a wide range of services, so it can scale its care to reflect your ongoing needs — whether you need less or more help at home.
The top at-home agencies should provide the following services:
- Personal Support Services
- General Nursing Services
- Massage therapy
- Physiotherapy
- Palliative care
- Dementia Care
- Wound care
Question #3: What Are Your Credentials and Experience?
Lastly, this question is perhaps the most important one to ask. An agency should be ready to prove its staff is the right fit for you, sharing credentials with transparency.
After all, you want to make sure your nurse or PSW knows what they’re doing when they come to administer care. You should also expect an agency to provide ongoing training and education sessions for its staff to ensure its healthcare professionals are up to date with the latest treatment plans and medical news.
Asking the Right Questions to Find the Right Care
It can be uncomfortable letting someone into your space if they aren’t the right person for the job. But after asking these three questions, you’ll find a knowledgeable, experienced, and compassionate professional you can feel good about welcoming into your home.
