What a Live-In Care Worker Needs When Moving Into Your Loved One’s Home
Choosing live-in care is an excellent way to ensure that your loved one receives personalised, round-the-clock support while remaining in the comfort of their own home. Not only do they benefit from one-to-one care and companionship within their familiar surroundings, it also enables them to remain close to friends and family, and ensures minimal disruption to their regular routines.
However, when a live-in care worker moves into your loved one’s home, it’s important to ensure that certain requirements are met in order to create a harmonious and effective living and working environment for your care worker.
What Is a Live-In Carer?
A live-in carer is a professional caregiver who lives with your loved one to provide consistent and continuous care and support. With live-in care, your loved one receives assistance tailored to their needs. This could include help engaging in their daily activities, mobility support, medication management, meal preparation, personal care and companionship.
When you choose live-in care, a professional, highly trained care worker is matched to your loved one based on their needs, hobbies and interests. Care workers receive specialist training to ensure they can provide the right level of care and are assisted by a local team who provide regular check-ins and assistance when required.
What does a live-in carer need?
Before a live-in care worker can move in and support your loved one, it’s important to ensure that you have the necessary facilities and accommodation available for them. Below, we have compiled a list of everything your live-in carer needs.
- 1. Private Room
A private room is essential for a live-in care worker. This space should be comfortable and equipped with basic furniture such as a bed, wardrobe, and a bedside table. A private room is more than just a place to sleep, it’s vital for your care worker’s wellbeing, ensuring they have a personal space where they can organise their possessions and relax.
We will not be able to provide your loved one with live-in care if a private bedroom isn’t available for your care worker.
- 2. Access to Bathroom Facilities
It’s important to ensure your care worker has easy access to bathroom facilities. While some may choose to provide their live-in care worker with a separate bathroom, this is not essential and they can share this facility with your loved one if required.
When considering bathroom facilities, you should also consider the preferences of your loved one. If they have a condition such as dementia, they may prefer their surroundings to remain consistent, without the addition of your care worker’s belongings. In this instance, a separate room may be required.
- 3. Kitchen Access
It’s very common for our live-in care workers to prepare and cook the meals for those they support. Whether they eat with your loved one, or separately, they will require access to a kitchen and have utensils, cookware and basic food supplies to hand.
Your live-in carer will have a food allowance and so will also need a place to store their food in your home. Whether they share meals with your loved one, or have storage for their own food and eat separately is entirely up to you, and is discussed when arranging live-in care.
- 4. Internet and Communication
In most instances, reliable internet access is crucial for maintaining communication with our care teams. Your live-in carer will access our online app to provide real time updates on your loved one’s care which can be accessed any time by our office team and any family members you give access to.
Access to the internet can also be important for live-in carers to maintain contact with their own family and for personal use during breaks.
- 5. Housekeeping Facilities
Your loved one’s live-in care worker can also support with housekeeping, including laundry and cleaning. They will take the pressure off of your loved one by making sure that their home remains hygienic and inviting.
For your care worker to do this correctly, it’s important to ensure they have access to laundry and ironing facilities, a vacuum, and cleaning products.
When inviting a care worker to live with your loved one, it’s important that they feel welcomed and at ease in their surroundings. Having a space of their own where they can display their possessions and relax will help them feel safe and calm in the home, allowing them to focus on providing high-quality care and support to your loved one.
Breaks and Downtime for Live-In Care Workers
Providing round-the-clock care can be demanding, so it’s crucial that live-in care workers have regular breaks and downtime to rest and recuperate. In addition to having their own bedroom and access to bathroom and cooking and cleaning facilities, your live-in care worker is also entitled to regular breaks and overnight rest.
- Breaks
Typically, your carer will be entitled to 14 hours of breaks per week. When these breaks occur will be discussed with you when building the package of care. If required, additional care support can be arranged as cover. Our home care service is used by many of our clients when their regular live-in care worker is on their break; ensuring continuity of care and an easy to set up process.
- Overnight
Care workers generally have a set number of hours for overnight support. At Agincare, we allow up to one wake up call per night, after which time an additional waking nights’ care service will be required.
In most instances, live-in care workers should not be disturbed unless there is an emergency. This rest period is crucial for the caregiver to be well-rested and alert during their working hours.
Conclusion
A live-in care worker plays a vital role in providing personalised, round-the-clock care to people in their own homes. For them to perform their duties effectively, certain facilities and accommodations are essential.
A private room, access to bathroom and kitchen facilities, reliable internet, laundry access, and storage space are all critical for the carer’s well-being and ability to provide high-quality care. Additionally, regular breaks, overnight rest, and time off are crucial for maintaining their health and effectiveness.
By understanding and providing these necessities, clients and their families can ensure a positive and supportive environment for their live-in care worker, leading to a more effective and harmonious care experience. If you’re considering live-in care, ensuring that these provisions are in place will help attract and retain dedicated, professional care workers who can provide the best possible care.
If you have any questions about what a live in carer needs, or want to arrange care, talk to our team today.