100-year old client birthday celebration is example of strong client-caregiving bond
Shasta was a young student when she started working at Help at Home as a caregiver. Fast forward to 2022, she is a recruiting specialist in the company’s Winchester, Indiana branch. Her job now is hiring caregivers. Although she misses her relationships with clients, she loves her current job because she has the opportunity to recruit caregivers who are interested in a career of caring.
There was one former client that she paid a surprise visit to – complete with balloons and flowers – to celebrate her client Evelyn’s 100th birthday. “Think about it,” said Shasta. “Someone who has been on the earth for 100 years and all the things she has experienced!”
The visit also gave Shasta a moment to reflect on the importance of the work she does every day. “It definitely was a reminder for everyone about why we do what we do,” she said. “Home care is not just one particular job or position… it takes all of us as a team.”
The goal for all of them is to make life easier for clients like Evelyn!
Help at Home Offered a Rewarding Career
Even though her role as a young student caregiver did not include clinical care, that experience provided a good opportunity for Shasta to better understand if she enjoyed taking care of someone as a profession. Caregivers need patience, compassion and great observation skills – skills that are similar to those in nursing and other health care careers.
Shasta become a certified nursing assistant and then a licensed nurse. With these new credentials, she moved on in her career and worked in hospitals, as well as behavioral therapy. But eventually, she decided that she really loved Help At Home and wanted to return to the company.
She then returned to Help at Home as a scheduler. Now, she is a recruiting specialist. She said her experience as a caregiver has helped her to better explain the caregiver role to candidates and recruits who are interested.
In-home Care Comes From the Heart
Shasta has worked in caregiving roles in a lot of different places, including a large hospital. But she said that in-home caregiving is a special role.
It takes a certain kind of person to be willing to understand a person’s unique situation and needs – whether it’s help with the dishes, vacuuming the floor, or helping them go for a walk in the neighborhood. The work is not for everyone.
“It’s a little different, you are taking care of another person, you are walking into their home. You need to have the right mindset,” she said. “It has to come from the heart. You have to really put your all into it.”