What are Care Needs?

Care needs are the specific areas that you’re looking for caregiver support with. They could be more general, like companionship, or more specific, like assistance with bathing or showering. 

Selecting your care needs enables you to tailor your Herewith caregiver search to reflect the types of care you need right now. If your needs or preferences change, you can always edit these preferences in the “Care Needs” section at any time to update your caregiver search. We know that your needs may change over time—this is just our way of helping you get started.

The 6 types of Care Needs

In general, in-home senior care covers non-medical support with personal care needs, but each care recipient will have their own unique situation, especially regarding things like mobility and or use of specialized equipment. 

Herewith has created six easy categories for a broad variety of care needs, so you can select the ones that are applicable to your situation, helping you get the best caregiver matches to choose from. The categories for care needs are: 

1. Help around the home

2. Companion care

3. Personal care

4. Transportation

5. Mobility support

6. Specialized support

Let’s take a closer look at these categories. Remember, if you’re not sure what kind of care you need or would like complimentary assistance finding caregiver matches, you can call our Herewith Experts anytime, at 415-506-9776, or visit our complete guide to hiring in-home care.   

Help around the home

On the Herewith platform, this category includes basic household tasks, such as tidying and light cleaning, laundry, changing bed linens, meal preparation, pet care, and performing errands on behalf of the care recipient, such as grocery shopping or going to the post office. 

Once you have hired your caregiver, you can assign specific tasks related to this and other  categories. For example, you may task your caregiver with doing laundry on Tuesdays, meal prep at 4 pm daily, taking the care recipient for a walk three times per week, etc. Your caregiver can then check off each task as it’s completed. 

Companion care

Companion care often goes hand-in-hand with help around the home, as caregivers provide company and conversation while performing household tasks. In addition, caregivers can help plan and/or accompany care recipients to social activities, as well as simply spending time together in conversation or doing the care recipient’s preferred activities. In the case that the care recipient’s loved ones are far away, companion care can be an important factor in preventing or reducing the risk of isolation, anxiety, and depression. 

Personal care

On the Herewith platform, personal care includes support related to hygiene (for example, showering or bathing), dressing, toileting, brief changes, and eating/drinking. These areas can be some of the toughest for family members and older adults to face together, as emotions of frustration, embarrassment, fear, guilt, or deep-rooted family dynamics can make it hard to ask for help—or, in some cases, to set boundaries of what the family caregiver is able to provide. It can be beneficial to bring in a professional caregiver with experience in this kind of support, reducing stress and risk of injury. 

Transportation

Caregivers can provide essential support connecting care recipients with resources in their community, outside the home. Most commonly, caregivers do errands on behalf of the care recipient, such as grocery shopping, post office runs, or going to the drugstore. Caregivers can accompany care recipients to appointments, but may not assist with medical decisions. 

Mobility support

For older adults with limited mobility, a caregiver experienced with mobility support can be very helpful. Such caregivers are familiar with the correct way to transfer a care recipient between the bed and wheelchair or other seating arrangements. Support and supervision with movement can help prevent injuries and accidents for those who are at high risk for falling, those who use a scooter, wheelchair, or walking aid, or those who require sitting to standing assistance. In addition, caregivers can help maintain a safe environment, keeping the living space free from clutter and tripping hazards. 

Specialized support

In some cases, it might be necessary for a caregiver to have experience with a particular kind of care or special equipment. Some types of specialized support include memory care (Dementia or Alzheimer’s), hospice care, bedbound care, post-stroke care, support with limited range of motion, and familiarity with proper usage of a gait belt or lifting device to support mobility and transferring. In-home caregivers with these skills provide a valuable service in offering family members respite and covering gaps in home medical services. 

How to select your care needs

We’re here to make your path to care as easy as possible. To select your care needs, you’ll start a free caregiver search on our online portal or mobile application.

First, you’ll need to provide the zip code where care is being received (ex, your loved one’s zip code if they will be receiving care at their home) so we can locate caregivers in that area. Next, you’ll select your care needs and other preferences. Finally, you can start browsing your list of caregiver matches. You can further refine your options at any time by changing your preferences, budget, and scheduling needs. 

Looking for a little more hands-on assistance or want to talk to a caregiver ASAP? Reach out directly to our Herewith Experts at 415-506-9776.