Blog #3: In-Home Care

1.    Describe what (if anything) you know/think of when you hear “in-home care” as an option for your senior.  I think of professionals such as nurses visiting homes, it can also be people who provide other services such as cleaning, meals and washing services. 

What do you perceive as potential positives of “in-home care” – what might it do better than other options? The individual can remain in the comfort of their own home and everything is brought to them, they don't have to venture out.

Anything “in home care” might not do as well as other options or that limit its role for your senior? They may not have the mobile equipment/facilities that is available in a hospital or in a care home.

2.    Have you heard of Home Instead as a provider of “in-home care”?  I have not heard of this company.

Explain any knowledge & perceptions (positive/negative) you have & where they came from. As I have not heard of them I have no existing knowledge or perceptions.

3.    Please go to the Home Instead website at: UK: https://www.homeinstead.co.uk/Index.do  

a)    First, what is your “gut reaction” to Home Instead as you look around? It looks professional, organised and seems to come highly recommended.

b)    How would you describe what Home Instead offers in just a sentence or two? They are specialists in non-medical care of elderly people in their own homes. They are a leading home care company that cares for people by showing respect and dignity to others.

c)    How is their approach different from other options?  Is this important to you?

They appear to have a local office and appear to be highly rated/recommended by their users. This is extremely important to me as I always read other users reviews. You can't beat a personal recommendation of a service.

d)    What specifically did you notice & connect with – these could be offerings, descriptions, images, words, etc.  Describe why?

I picked up on the 2017 Top ten awards which is current and wouldn't have been easy to achieve. 

I also picked up on the 96% of clients recommend - This is a very high percentage so it indicates that they must be doing well and doing things right.

e)    Anything that did not connect with you?  Please be specific & describe why? I have to say that there is nothing that I didn't connect with, I like the sound of the whole offering. 

3.    Thinking about your senior parent/loved one’s wants/needs:

a)    To what degree does Home Instead seem like a good fit for your senior vs. other senior options?  What specifically makes you say that?  How well does it deliver on your/your senior’s wishes from Blog #2?

It seems to fit perfectly on both counts as they are very very very keen to stay in their own home and not go into any type of residential home

b)    Is there anything that makes you nervous or would hold you back from trying Home Instead?    What could they do/offer to address this?

The only minor point might be that they seem to be a large corporate company and we might feel that we are a small fish in a large pond/just a small number in the grand scheme of things. To address this, they need to make sure that they offer a personal/tailored service to my Mum and make her feel special/that her care matters.

c)    Detail when & how (if at all) you see Home Instead potentially fitting into your future plans?  

Any time now as she is already receiving daily services from the NHS. 

Do you see it as a short-term option, a long-term option or both – why?  

I would see this as a long-term option as it is needed, my Mum has a terminal illness so she isn't going to get any better.

Is there a point where “in-home care” seems non-optimal?  If so, what else could Home Instead do to extend its ability to meet your needs? I wouldn't say so as a person always needs some some of support even when it is classed as end of life care. 

4.    Choose an image (e.g.: Google) of the person/home that best depicts who would use Home Instead & explain why?  How is this person different from a person who may choose another option?  Which do you/your senior relate to more & why? 

This is a picture of my Mum/home on her 70th birthday in the good old days, she would definitely be a target for Home Instead as she really really wants to stay at home. I guess she is very different to a person who is happy to move into a residential home. We relate to the fact that this is in-home services and my Mum will be able to remain as comfortable and as happy as she can be in the negative circumstances.

5.    Finally, based on your Home Instead impressions, create an ad that would convince someone in a similar situation to check out Home Instead as an option. You may use a combo of words, images & even your own drawings.

Combo Of Words - Professional, organised, caring, respectful, world leading, local and unique.

Images - Home Instead would allow my Mum to stay at home and spend time with her granddaughters - they can even have fun sharing my Mum's wigs which means a lot to her.

She can have her hair/wig styled in the comfort of her own home.

My Mum can be visited by her 2 sisters more easily at home.