Elderlink Companion Care - When home is where you want to be.

Services Provided by Elderlink:

Elderlink is a referral agency. Our goal is to match qualified companions with people in need of in-home care. Elderlink provides continuous monitoring of the situation to ensure uninterrupted quality care and to minimize problems for the client and family. Because we recognize that a change of companions can be disruptive for clients, Elderlink makes every effort to keep compatible companions consistently assigned to each client. We serve our clients five ways:

Screening of Companions

We locate and select competent persons who wish to provide this type of care.
We do criminal background investigations and driving record checks on all applicants listed with our agency since 1996.
We conduct thorough reference checks and interviews

Initial Placement of Companions and Ongoing Monitoring of the Situation

Understand the needs of each new client by using information given to us by a responsible party for the client. This is done either by a home visit or a phone consultation.
Match client's needs, preferences, and personality with available companions.
Arrange interviews for the client and/or family with potential companions when time permits.
Coordinate with the companions so the client has the schedule of care they requested.
Provide a replacement companion to the best of our ability in the event an illness or emergency requires the assigned companion to be absent.
Adjust the companion schedule to the changing needs of the client.
Represent clients or family if situations arise which they find difficult to negotiate with a companion.
We make every effort to place companions that the client feels are competent and compatible. The client's satisfaction and safety are our primary concern. If a placement is not meeting the expectations of the client or of family members, changes are made promptly.

Keeping Responsible Parties Informed

Communicate regularly with concerned family members by phone, mail, e-mail or fax..

Support to the Companion

Because the companions are usually quite isolated from people other than their client, they need support, counsel and a willing ear from time to time in order to continue to do their job well. As your agent, Elderlink offers this support to the companions both through home visits and by phone. We facilitate communication between companions, making for a smoother transition when change of personnel occurs.

Nurse Visits

Elderlink is able to schedule and coordinate visits with a registered nurse at your request. Our registered nurse is able to do things such as draw blood, monitor and set-up medications, care for open wounds, coordinate and attend doctor appointments and provide information and feed-back to family members. Nurse visits cost $45 for the first hour. Additional time is billed in 15 minute increments at a rate of $40 per hour. Our nurse has almost 30 years of experience and works extensively with seniors.

Services Provided By the Companion:

The companions perform the appropriate services with instructions from the client or the client's family. Companions endeavor to perform their duties with sensitivity and respect in the hopes of enriching the lives of their client.

Personal Care - assistance with bathing, dressing, oral hygiene, toileting and grooming.
Transfer Assistance - help getting up or down, in and out of bed,etc.
Light Housekeeping - keeping the kitchen and bathrooms clean, laundry, ironing, changing bed linens, sweeping and dusting. Companions strive to maintain a clean, safe and orderly living environment. Companions are not expected to do heavy housework such as cleaning windows, stoves, refrigerators, or other household chores that have accumulated prior to placement. Companions are not expected to do yard work such as mowing, raking leaves or shoveling snow.
Meal Planning and Preparation - companions will plan and prepare meals paying attention to the client's dietary needs and preferences.
Medication Reminders - medications must be set up by a nurse or family member in a pill box. Our companions are not allowed to dispense medication out of a pharmaceutical container.
Transportation and Errands - companions can provide transportation to doctor appointments, hair appointments and/or recreational activities. They can also do errands such as grocery shopping or picking up medications.
Social Support and Companionship - includes respect for the client's interests, honoring their need for privacy, a willingness to listen and sensitivity to the client's feelings and concerns. Companions will provide social interaction and encouragement to participate in appropriate activities and exercise.
Additional tasks may be performed by the companion when arrangements are made and agreed to by both parties

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