What Are the Benefits of Home Care for Caregivers?

Posted by HelpFindCare on November 7th, 2013

Being a professional, as either a Personal Assistant, Certified Nurse Assistant, Licensed Vocation Nurse or Registered Nurse, in the senior healthcare industry provides you with a lot of opportunities to work in your chosen field. Some caregivers with a specialty in senior care may choose to work in an assisted living facility (ALF) or at a nursing home. Others may choose to apply to become a private pay In Home Care Agency caregiver or work in at a Home Health Agency. As the tools to hire private pay caregivers become more plentiful and the ability to be hired by a family becomes more prevalent, many families are choosing in home care instead of a nursing home or assisted living facility due in a large part to the huge cost savings.

In addition, these same people do not want to hire a private pay caregiver from an agency since they want to be able to control who, how much, and when a caregiver works. With this in mind, the becoming a private pay caregiver allows the caregiver or nurse to be in control of determining their own earning potential, formulating their own schedule and their choosing their own patients or clients.

More Earning Opportunities

With the rising costs of nursing home care, more and more families are turning to in home care for their loved ones. As private pay home care professionals such as Registered Nurses (RNs), Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs) and Personal Assistants work directly for their geriatric clients, the healthcare professionals can negotiate their own pay rate, which is usually 20% to 30% higher than if they were working for an agency. They can also work as many hours as they want each week and work for multiple clients. This increases earning potential for caregivers far beyond what they could earn working for an agency or assisted living facility.

In addition, you can caregivers can increase their per hour earning power by also becoming training is medical specialties like phlebotomy (drawing blood), medication management, and dementia management. When people looking for in home care are requesting a special service or skill set, this allows you to make $1, $2 or ever $5 more per hour.

Independence

If you are a professional who loves to work independently and can manage your own affairs without the scrutiny of superiors, then working as a personal in home caregiver could be the perfect option for you. As an independent caregiver for your geriatric patients, you are only accountable to them and possibly their family. This means you are your own boss, and you have the freedom to choose which patients you work with and which ones you do not. You can choose to work with multiple clients or just one. So long as you are delivering reliable, dependable, high quality care and meeting your patients’ needs, you are in charge of your own caregiving business.

Flexible Working Hours

While in home agency caregivers may be required to work eight hours a day, five days a week, if there are clients; private pay caregivers can set their hours and determine their own schedules. If you prefer working in the afternoons and evenings, you may be able to arrange a different schedule for your patient. Or if you prefer to work on Saturdays and have Mondays off, again the choice is yours. If you want to work 60 hours a week instead of just 40, then you have the flexibility to do so. Being able to set your own schedule and the amount of hours you work are huge benefits to working as a private in home caregiver that is not afforded to nurses and caregivers working for agencies or at other facilities.

Of course, working independently is not for everyone. Though it offers a lot of freedom, it also means more responsibility and having the ability to manage yourself. Caregivers must be able to find seniors who are in need of their services in order to work. Fortunately, today there are many established resources online like HelpFindCare.com that match caregivers and nurses with seniors who are looking for quality care in their area. Be your own boss and start your private pay caregiving operation today.

About Author:

Help Find Care gives both caregivers and those who need care the tools to manage their in-home care online. Caregivers, registered nurses and geriatric care managers can use the website to search for caregiving jobs, set their wages and weekly schedule, receive weekly payment, and build their resume and portfolio with real experience. Care seekers, or family members looking for someone to help care for their parents or loved ones, can use the website to search for qualified caregivers, post jobs that outline their specific care needs, monitor their caregivers’ schedules, and make payment online and receive personal support.