Health Care in Canada: What To Look For When Hiring a Live-in Caregiver

Do you need to hire a caregiver for a loved one? Wondering what the first steps should be? We have tips on how to narrow the search and find the best care available.

What to Look for When Hiring a Live-in Caregiver

Social workers, nurses and childcare professionals could all agree: providing senior care or childcare is rewarding and self-affirming. It is also a demanding full-time job, and if you have reached a point in your life when you are considering hiring a live-in caregiver for your children, an aging parent or relative, only the best will do. With these tips, you can rest assured that your loved ones are in the best possible hands.

Determining caregiving needs

Your child, parent or relative’s needs will dictate the care required. For someone who is elderly or injured, get a formal assessment from their physician. It should outline the care details, including:

Specific care requirements, such as dressing, baths, meals or physical rehabilitation exercises, and if any services such as taking blood or administering medication should be performed only by a registered nurse.
Whether they recommend 24-hour care, or a “check in” every few days.
How long the care should last – whether there is an end-date in sight, or if it is for the length of a defined recovery period.

If your child has special needs, look for someone who is experienced and trained to work with special needs children. Talk to your child’s pediatrician about their development – is it more important that they have one-on-one care, or are they at a stage where they need to interact with other children in a licensed daycare?

Finding the right person for the job

Having visited the doctor’s office for an assessment, you can ask for a referral to an agency or caregiver. Ask your child’s pediatrician, who may be able to refer you to someone who has taken formal childcare training, and can perform pediatric first aid, or who is licensed in early childhood education (ECE).

If you post an employment ad in your newspaper, you may receive many responses. (This is where your detailed needs assessment is especially useful in weeding out applicants.) You can also contact Human Resources and Social Development Canada/Service Canada, who will assist you in hiring someone, or a private agency in your area that helps to make these arrangements.

You may also consider the Live-In Caregiver Program, sponsored by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, which enables a temporary foreign worker to work and live with you, after which they can apply for permanent residency. If you plan to do this, you must have enough income to pay the caregiver, have good accommodation for them and offer a job with caregiving as the main focus. Visit www.cic.gc.ca for more information on the program.

Finding the right fit

You should introduce any incumbent to their charge, ideally more than once, to see if there is a good fit, and debrief with your child or relative to make sure they are comfortable with the person and their manner.

When interviewing someone to care for your child, try a quick trip to your local playground, or keep it informal and play at home. See if your child is comfortable with the caregiver – do they enjoy playing together? Is the caregiver being impatient or harsh, and are they concerned for the child’s safety?

It can take time to find the “right” caregiver, but the payoff when you do will be truly rewarding. And knowing that your loved ones are spending their time in the company of an experienced, trained professional – one with whom they may build strength, self-confidence and a personal relationship – is best kind of reassurance you can find.

This article is supplied by Ron Ciotola, an Investment Advisor with RBC Dominion Securities Inc. Member CIPF. This article is for information purposes only. Please consult with a professional advisor before taking any action based on information in this article.

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