Understanding what is important
After living and working in Albany all her life, Susan wanted to deal with a provider that understood what she was looking for to get her feeling supported in the community.
Susan knew she needed help to remain living independently at home, and when she was approved for a home care package she wanted to go with someone she could trust and called Clarence Estate Home Care to arrange an appointment for the next day.
When Cheryl arrived in her home the next day to discuss home care, Susan was pleased that the person who she spoke to on the phone was also the person that came to her home. This mattered to her. She wanted to deal with people that knew and loved her community, not someone who was based in Perth or Sydney. She did not want to keep repeating her story to different people each time.
Susan told Cheryl that she wanted a little bit of help to do the things that she wanted to do. For example. she explained that needed assistance to walk with a walker, but she was more than happy to get by on her own as much as possible. She only really wanted someone to take her along to her events and activities to keep her connected to her friends, and did not want to have things done for her.
As she valued her privacy, Susan asked for as few visits to her home as possible each week, and if Cheryl could combine services where possible. It was not that Susan felt she could do everything on her own, but that she was quite private and did not want strangers stopping by each day. She was worried that she would be stuck at home waiting for people to come by each day.
Instead, Susan wanted help from us to get outside and do more activities with other people.
On the basis of this understanding, Cheryl confirmed that Susan's goals were to maintain her independence and increase her involvement in activities outside the home, and suggested ways of getting her the help that supported this.
Susan was pleased with this approach, and that Cheryl understood what she wanted.
Here is what they planned together:
- Rather than have someone come to help her with cleaning each week, Cheryl suggested having someone come once a month for a deep clean and allow her to manage in between visits with basic tasks.
- Cheryl arranged a bulk delivery of meals each on a day when she already had someone coming to her home, rather than throughout the week
- Susan signed up for group activities twice a week both at Clarence Estate and another local aged care service, with a carer to drive her there and back and get her groceries on the way home each week.
Susan has now been a client for a long time, and feels as though we understand was is important for her.