Every agency says the same things
Compassionate. Trusted. Like family. Every home care website says it, including ours, which makes the words nearly useless for comparison.
What actually differentiates agencies are the operational answers: who is in your home, how they were screened, what happens when someone calls in sick, and what you are billed for. Ask these directly.
About the caregivers
- Are caregivers your employees, or independent contractors?
- What does your screening process include?
- What training is required before a caregiver's first assignment?
- Will we have the same caregiver consistently?
- What happens when our regular caregiver is sick or on holiday?
- Can we request a different caregiver if the match is not right?
About licensing and insurance
- Are you licensed to provide home care in Illinois?
- Are you bonded and insured, and what does that cover?
- Who is liable if a caregiver is injured in our home?
- How do you supervise caregivers once care has started?
About cost and scheduling
- What exactly does the hourly rate include?
- Is there a minimum visit length or minimum weekly hours?
- How are overnight, live-in and holiday hours billed?
- Are there assessment, setup or registration fees?
- How much notice do we need to give to change or cancel a shift?
- How and when are we invoiced?
The answer that matters most
Ask what happens when something goes wrong — a caregiver does not turn up, a family is unhappy, a need changes suddenly. Every agency has a good answer for the smooth path. Far fewer have a clear, specific answer for the difficult one.
Listen also for honesty about limits. An agency that tells you plainly what it does not do is generally more reliable than one that says yes to everything.
