EP #3: Who Makes a Great CAREGiver?

Speaker 1:

Hello and welcome to the Home Care Pod, your local resource when considering care. Now, introducing the home care ladies, Laura Gillian and Audra Bidwell, at your service.

Laura Gillian:

Hello listeners, and welcome back to the Home Care Pod. We are your home care ladies. I’m Laura.

Audra Bidwell:

And, I’m Audra.

Laura Gillian:

Thank you everyone for tuning in again and Audra, how you been this week?

Audra Bidwell:

I’ve been pretty good. The weather down here has been awesome.

Laura Gillian:

I know.

Audra Bidwell:

It’s been so nice. We’ve had such a great time just being outside. I know it’s short-lived. Southwest Florida you get a blip of cool weather every year, and then after that, it’s back to the heat again. I’m taking all of this in for sure.

Laura Gillian:

Yeah. It’s been pretty great, and so you should come to Southwest Florida. If you’re not here, you should be here.

Audra Bidwell:

You should be here.

Laura Gillian:

Anyway, today we’re talking about who would make a good caregiver and who is a caregiver. Audra, I know that you do a lot of phone screening and interview a lot of candidates. Tell me in your own words who makes a good caregiver?

Audra Bidwell:

that’s a really great question. It’s really funny because so many people that I meet just every day in everyday life, you see them and you’re like, “Wow, that person would make a great caregiver.” And, I think that around here, we kind of talk amongst ourselves and say, “You’re already a caregiver. You just don’t know it yet.” And, so a lot of that kind of pours into when we screen and when we talk to people.

Who I think makes for a great caregiver is really someone who is able to share their heart and their heart for caring for another human being. And, that’s such a big deal, and we always say around here as well, that we can train you for all the tasks that you need to do in order to execute the job. But, the heart to care for someone else is really something that you’re innate with, and it’s just something that is kind of a part of you.

And, so that’s a lot of what we look for when we bring in people to interview for a new caregiver positions. People who are relational, they have the ability to communicate well. They can talk to people, start conversations. They smile. They laugh. They’re generally happy. Have good eye contact. That’s always a big one for me in an interview setting in general. But, I think just overall, it forms that connection. People that share empathy. They’re empathetic towards other people and they have compassion and general caring. I think those are all really great things to look for when you’re finding the next caregiver.

Laura Gillian:

Yeah, I totally agree. I’ve done this a really long time, and we have had all sorts of people come in to interview for positions. And, I think that you hit it on the head. We ask that question, would you trust them to take care of your own family? And, we also want to know do they have the heart do this? Or, are they just looking for a job?

Speaking of that, lady. If you were to hire a caregiver to take care of your parents or your grandparents, what type of person would you want to hire?

Audra Bidwell:

That’s funny that you say it that way, because that’s exactly what I think of every time I interview someone or talk to someone is as we’re going about the interview and the conversation and learning more about them, and they’re learning more about us. I just keep thinking to myself, is this someone that I would want to be in the home with my grandma? And, I have a 92 year old grandma and a 96 year old grandma.

And, I think about the two of them, and they’re completely different. And, so as I talk to these people, I keep thinking, do they have what it takes to be with either one of these people and be relational and would I trust them with my grandmas? And, so that sometimes is a determining factor for us is we ask ourselves, at the end of the day, would we trust this person with Grandma? And, if the answer’s no, then we know right away.

But, that is a great question, and I know that you also interview and talk to caregivers. What do you look for someone that would take care of maybe one of your family members?

Laura Gillian:

It would be my parents, and a few years back Home Instead kind of did this push out where they talked about what’s called the 40, 70 rule. Basically, when you’re 40 years old, your parents are probably 70 and you should really start that conversation of what the wishes are for longterm. And, I turned 40 this year. My mom turned 70. We are right in that age bracket.

Audra Bidwell:

Poster children.

Laura Gillian:

If I was looking for help for my parents, one thing that would be super important would be the ability to sit and talk. They’re very relational. They want to get to know you, build relationship. Someone that would want to play cards. We literally play cards after every single meal, and it’s just what we’ve done my whole life. And, most importantly, someone that would prepare the meals, because my dad really, really loves to eat. And, it better be good food, because my mom is an amazing cook.

Audra Bidwell:

Yes. She is.

Laura Gillian:

Really, it’s just someone that would love them and care for them in a way that shows them dignity and respect, because they deserve that. The rest would just be icing on the cake, and we better make sure it’s a delicious cake.

Audra Bidwell:

That’s right. No, that’s really good, and I appreciate you sharing that with everyone. Maybe you’re listening to this podcast and something that we said piqued your interest and maybe you’ve been thinking about what’s next for you. And, you’ve cared for someone in the past and enjoyed it a great experience there. If that’s you, we would love to talk to you a little bit more and see if maybe work or a career as a caregiver would be a good fit for you.

Laura Gillian:

Yeah, absolutely. We want to talk to you and there’s many ways you can apply, but one easy way is to text the word care to 239-596-2050. And, doing that will send you a link to learn more about job opportunities, as well as a link to our applications. We hope that you do that. We hope to hear from you really soon, and again, we thank you for tuning in this week to the Home Pare pod. And, we’ll talk to you soon.

Audra Bidwell:

Bye-bye.

Speaker 1:

Thanks again for listening to the Home Care Pod with Laura and Audra, your home care ladies. To learn more about home care or a career as a caregiver, please visit our website at www.homeinsteadswfl.com or call us at 239-226-0007.