It’s been said that trust is the bedrock of any healthy relationship. Trust can’t be established without honest and open communication. This holds true for individuals, and it holds true for you and your home care agency. Open communication between you and your home care agency will help your loved one receive the best care possible. Your needs will be known, allowing them to be met. Here are some suggestions to help you with properly connecting with your home care agency.

When To Establish Open Communication

The best time to establish open communication in a relationship is at the beginning. For you and your home care agency, this would be during the initial consultation. This is a very important conversation where the home care agency can find out about you and your loved one’s needs, and where you can learn how the home care agency can meet those needs.

The agency’s answers to your questions will be indicative of how they respond to their client’s needs. Their answers should seem entirely transparent and honest, and you should be honest with them about any concerns or questions you have. This is how the foundation of trust is established.

How to Establish Open Communication

All relationships require effort, and the communication you have with your home care agency is vital since it concerns your loved one’s well-being. Here are some suggestions for you to build a strong relationship with your agency.

  1. Be forthcoming with concerns. Your agency can’t provide you with the best care possible if they don’t know about concerns you have about the care being provided. If your caregiver is supposed to be there at 8 am so you can go to work, and they are continually late, you need to let the agency know that this is causing you distress. This is the only way the agency can address the issue and rectify it to your satisfaction.
  2. Ask probing questions. When you communicate with the agency, ask questions in a way that won’t enable them to be answered “Yes” or “No.” For example, instead of asking, “Do your caretakers spend time getting to know the person they’re caring for?” you should ask, “How do your caregivers spend time getting to know the person they’re caring for?” Questioning this way lends itself to better dialogue and more open communication.
  3. Be patient. Though you want to do your best to establish open communication at the beginning of your relationship with the agency, it doesn’t always happen. Sometimes it takes people a bit of time to feel comfortable with each other and be open in their communication. If you find it challenging to communicate openly with your agency at the beginning, that’s okay. Though you may feel reluctant, a reputable home care agency wants to hear from you to ensure your satisfaction.
  4. Don’t hold back on the praise. When nobody tells them they’re doing well, people may feel as if they’re not doing a good job and may stop. If your caregiver is doing a great job with meal preparation, don’t hesitate to tell them. That way, they can continue with the routine they’ve established and continue to do the best job possible for you.

Why It’s Worth the Effort

You have probably gone to great lengths to select the right home care agency to meet your needs. You’ve invested valuable time to find the right organization to carefully and skillfully attend to your loved one. And that’s your primary objective: getting them the best care possible.

It’s worth your time and effort to establish open communication with your home care agency for you to meet that objective. You both need to be able to talk openly about your loved one and the care they need, as well as that which they’re receiving. Open communication is vital because it’s critical that your loved one be cared for in the best manner possible. The right home care agency for you will exemplify open communication from the start.

We try to do our best to communicate effectively and openly with all of those that rely on us. Our family trusted in-home services include personal care, respite care, companion care, transportation, and even 24-hour care. And all of our home care amenities can be individually combined into an affordable package that will put your mind at ease.

We’d love to have an open dialogue with you about your needs and how we can help. To schedule a FREE initial consultation with an Adultcare Assistance Homecare case manager for your senior today, please visit www.adultcareassistance.com.