Image by Rollz International on Unsplash
In my last piece, I looked at the benefits of live-in care from the client’s perspective.
Most carers can expect to work either in residential care or supply care to clients in their own homes. Both scenarios have their plus points, but what about those who choose the live-in route? What are some of the positives of this role?
Benefits to long term assignments
Live-in care contracts give the assurance of a long-term assignment and with that comes an element of job security. Most assignments are around 8 – 12 weeks long with two assigned carers taking it in turns to care for their client in rotation.
Living with the client helps carer and client to get to know each other, build trust and communicate more easily and openly with family members.
Being resident and ‘on the job’ is convenient and removes the added cost of running a car and paying for petrol that non-live-in carers must budget for.
Help is at hand
Carers and clients are usually ‘best matched’ in relation to cultural or language preferences, as well as mutual interests or hobbies. This is reassuring for the carer too because they know they will be caring for and living with someone with whom they can relate and build a good, positive relationship.
Living with the client means that help is instantly available should illness or mishap occur; this helps the carer when managing potentially tricky situations.
Variable work
Live-in carers expect to work between 10 – 12 hours a day, but not necessarily consecutively which allows for flexibility, and this doesn’t include care through the night. The second carer may well be on duty for the night hours.
The care and support given usually covers cooking, cleaning, shopping, medication management, personal care as well as social and companionship duties.
Living in situ also means they are available to support their client at external important family and social occasions which otherwise might not be possible if the client was receiving care from a daily visiting team.
Comfort and privacy
Live-in carers have their own room in the client’s house, giving them privacy whilst allowing the client time to themselves as well, allowing them a sense of independence in their own home.
Expected income
With wages from anything between £110 – £160 per day, depending on experience, care complexity and any additional skills needed, live-in care assignments provide financial security for the carer and help them to budget and manage their money more effectively because they know how much they will be earning over a set period.
Experienced carers with added nursing skills could potentially earn more, particularly if they are privately employed, rather than through an agency.
Choice of providers
With demand for live-in care staying steady, a carer can choose where they want to work and with whom.
Some go through an established, regulated provider such as Plymouth based, Inspiring On who have teams of care staff trained and ready to go as the packages come in, or they opt for the private route and work directly for the client as a private carer.
Care providers like Inspiring On thoroughly train and support their care staff. That offers reassurance to both carer and client seeking the best outcome for live-in care and support.
Open-ended care packages
Carers may stay with the same client or couple for months or even years assuming there are no major changes to the clients’ health which demand specialist intervention or greater nursing care.
This is obviously ideal for both parties, especially for the carer as any long-term care helps him/her to know the client well and in some cases, as close as any family member.
First-hand knowledge
Knowing the client’s likes/dislikes and idiosyncrasies is a plus because they can be alert to any changes which may show illness or some other issue.
Living with their client over an extended period also helps the carer review their client’s overall health and demeanour.
They see their client day in, day out and can easily spot any deterioration in physical, mental or emotion health. This proximity is a comfort for the client and their family but more particularly for the carer who is tasked with the big responsibility of ensuring their client’s overall well-being.
End of life
Carers who support their client long-term sometimes see them right through to the end of their life.
Naturally, this is not every carer’s choice of package but for those who excel in caring long-term for individuals needing palliative care, this is a rewarding role, even being a privilege and a joy, caring for their client to the last.
It’s for this reason, that carers who enjoy one on one care packages in the shape of live-in care will choose this kind of role and as a result they do an amazing job.
