Three Important Questions When Choosing a Caregiver

Whether you are planning on admitting your loved one to an assisted living center or a nursing home, it is critical that you thoroughly research the caregivers in these facilities. These individuals have an immense responsibility to provide the care your family member needs, and to provide it in a way that maintains your loved one’s dignity and respect. Below, our Tampa nursing home abuse lawyer outlines three important questions that can help you determine if a caregiver is suitable for your loved one’s needs.

What are Your Qualifications? 

After you have determined the level of care your loved one needs, you should ask about the qualifications of any staff member that will contribute to your loved one’s care. This is important to ask so you can understand if they have the necessary experience with your family member’s conditions. For example, if your loved one suffers from Alzheimer’s, you want a caregiver that has extensive experience and specialized training to care for the disease. If your loved one requires medication that is administered through an IV or injection, you should also ask if they have experience administering medication in this manner.

How Do You Approach Caretaking? 

This is an important question because it will help you determine if a caretaker genuinely cares about their patients, or if they are only doing their job. You can ask many questions when trying to determine a staff member’s approach to caretaking, including:

• Why did you become a professional caregiver?
• What is most valuable to you when you are providing care?
• Do you use a general care plan, or do you customize each plan to the individual patient?
• Are you committed to maintaining dignity and encouraging independence?

The way any staff member answers these questions can provide insight about whether a caretaker will vigilantly take care of your family member.

What is Your Communication Policy? 

The way any caretaker communicates with you and your loved one is very important. It is important that the caretaker can communicate with your loved one in a patient manner when they are faced with conflicts and challenges.

Additionally, as a loved one, you likely want to be involved with the care your family member receives. Your loved one’s caretaker should make sure you are updated about the daily challenges your family member faces, and they should also inform you of any changes in your loved one’s condition. If any caretaker seems annoyed with your questions, or gives very short answers, they probably do not communicate in an effective manner.

Our Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer in Tampa Can Help Your Family 

While asking any caretaker about their qualifications and approach to care can help you determine if they can provide quality care, abuse and neglect still sadly happens. At Kohn Law, our Tampa nursing home abuse lawyer can help you put a stop to it and file a claim against the facility so your loved one obtains the full settlement they deserve. Call us today at 813-428-8504 or chat with us online to schedule a consultation and to get more information.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0400-0499/0400/0400.html