It’s typical to feel anxious on your first day of work. If you’re providing care to others, it can be particularly stressful. In essence, you are entering a stranger’s home, which may hold a variety of surprises.
Use these professional pointers to make the most of your first day as a caregiver for seniors. Please bare in mind that caregivers are advised to get caregivers insurance. This provides you with a layer of protection. To learn more, click here.
1. Get to know them beforehand
Learn what your clients need assistance with, whether they prefer personal care or more companion care, what their expectations are, and what attributes they are seeking in a caregiver.
Before beginning to engage with a new senior, the most effective caregivers perform a complete examination of their clients and relay this information to them.
Ask the client and/or their family members questions before your first day on the job so you have a complete understanding of their needs before you start, and these give you advantages as a home health care provider.
2. Come with the proper mindset
Being present, listening to the client and any interested family members, and arriving with a fresh viewpoint are the best ways to start a new elder caregiving position.
The best caretakers enter the situation with a “student” mentality and behave like sponges: they sit down and listen. As a professional, you need to leave your own worries at the door and be full and present at the moment.
It’s also crucial to remember that you’re not just there to assist with the client’s physical or emotional requirements. In addition to assisting with daily duties, you should also consider how you might enhance your client’s overall quality of life, which includes diet and well-being.
Recognize that your clients have full lives to live and that you are there to assist them through this stage of their lives.
Even though you may have had a wide range of clients, keep in mind that this may be the family’s first time having a caregiver in their house. Approach the scenario as if you were a guest in their home because so many of your clients are going through this for the first time.
3. Consider the dynamics of the family
Keep an eye on interactions between the patient’s family and the person you are providing care for. Each home has a particular dynamic. You may frequently enter a home with one healthy partner and one sick spouse.
Pay attention to the interplay between the two spouses if you are working with a married person. Frequently, the healthy spouse is the one who needs your support the most, and it’s not unusual for the sick spouse to be refractory to assistance.
It’s helpful to express that you’re available to support the spouse who isn’t feeling well in that situation.
You might also get to know the client’s grown children. If you maintain an open and sincere discourse, rapport will develop over time.
4. Maintain an open dialogue
If you have a lot of experience providing care, you can have a gift for knowing instinctively what to do in any particular circumstance.
However, making the assumption that you are aware of a senior’s or their family’s needs can lead to issues, particularly if there is a mismatch between their expectations and what you believe they require.
Posing the following opening queries:
- Do you have any other relatives close by?
- What is your everyday schedule and routine?
- What support can I provide?
- How can I improve your life or make it better in any way?
- What activities do you enjoy? What are your interests? What do you enjoy?
5. Request feedback
As the day comes to an end, take a moment to check in with your client or their family to obtain their opinion of how the first day went. Then, determine whether their assessment agrees with your own.
It could be as simple as asking: “Is there anything else I can accomplish before I go today?”
Don’t worry if your first day didn’t go as well as you’d hoped. Rapport won’t develop right away. But if you keep having frank and open discussions, it grows with time.
