What to expect when you start receiving home care

Starting home care is a big step in anyone’s life. You’ll soon reap the benefits of the extra care and support you’ll receive.

People seek home care for a number of different reasons. They may be elderly, disabled, have medical needs or have mental health problems.

When you start receiving home care, life will be a little different.

Once you have had your care needs assessment and have decided on your budget, the home care team or agency will discuss with you what times of the day you’d like support and any adjustments to your home that may be needed to enable care workers to help you.

Home adaptations

Your needs assessment may highlight that you would benefit from adaptations to your home that will help you to be safer and have more independence. These adaptations could include handrails, a stairlift, a walk-in shower or even installing a lift.

You can find out more about home adaptations here and about how they are funded here.

Key safes

When you start home care, carers will need to be able to get in and out of your home securely. To do so, care workers often use a key safe. This is a small safe attached to the wall outside your front door, which requires a four-digit code to open.

A copy of your key will be kept in there so that care workers can come in without leaving the door unlocked all day, and in case of emergencies. These cost about £15 and someone can fit it to your wall for you fairly quickly. Just make sure the screws are in brick rather than mortar, or it may fall off.

Notes and paperwork

The layout of your home may change slightly to accommodate your home care. Care workers may keep written notes at your home. This is so that each care worker knows what has been done and what they need to do. These notes are checked regularly by management to ensure that you are receiving the best possible care.

They will keep these notes, along with your care plan and MAR sheet (where they record administering your medication), in a designated spot that everybody can find, such as a kitchen table or on top of a chest of drawers. It is important that you do not move these so that care workers can find them easily. You can decide where the designated notes spot is.

Some home care companies use digital notes, rather than paper.

Storage for medication and equipment

Care workers will also have a regular place for any equipment used for your care. These might be hoists and your medicine box. Medicine will usually be kept in a locked medicine box.

Living space for a live-in carer

If you have live-in care, you will need a bedroom specially for your care worker. They will discuss any changes they want to make with you, such as moving furniture or adding decoration.

As part of your household, they will probably have some of their things around your home too. They might put their wash things in the bathroom and their food in the fridge. You might assign them storage space, like a kitchen cupboard, a shelf in the fridge and their own laundry basket.

A busier home

Depending on the type of care you choose, you may have different people coming and going from your home throughout the day. This can be strange to get used to when you first start home care, but many people enjoy the bustle of a busy household and the regular company. Because you’ll know exactly what times to expect them, you don’t need to worry about privacy.

Rota of care workers

Each week you will be sent a rota of which care worker is coming when. A copy may also be sent to a loved one who is involved in your care. This rota may change week to week when people are on holiday or off sick, but most of the time you’ll have a regular routine of care workers who you can really get to know and bond with.

New care workers

You will always be notified if a new care worker that you haven’t seen before is going to come to your home. They will have a badge or ID card when they arrive so that you know they’re the right person.

When a new care worker is training, they often shadow a staff member for a few days. The office staff will always ask your permission before setting anyone to shadow.

Changes to your routine

In order to manage your care effectively, home care teams need to be organised and tidy. Home care is designed to fit around your life but you will get used to a regular routine. You may be receiving support to wash and dress at the same time every day and eating meals at regular times.

For getting out and about, you may have more opportunities for hobbies and socialising as care workers can drive you where you want to go and support you when there if you wish. They will usually need to know where you want to go and when, so that they can organise their other duties accordingly.

A tidier home

Many people choose to have support with housework as part of their care plan. This might include cooking, cleaning and laundry. Even if this is not part of your package, care workers will always tidy up after themselves.

Adherence to health and safety also means that care workers will make sure that floors are clear and accessible and that work surfaces and bathrooms are sanitary. If you receive personal care, they will have an area of your home where they keep a supply of disposable plastic gloves and hand sanitiser.

Care workers will also be happy to help you with arranging for maintenance work, such as calling a plumber for you, but will never handle payment without express permission and recording it in your notes. If a loved one handles your money, your care workers will always run transactions past them.

Find out the signs that an older person needs home care.