Gas Mileage or Higher Hourly Wages: Which has the Greatest benefit?

With tax season upon us, Compassionate Home Care has received several inquiries regarding mileage reimbursement, and we thought it was necessary to provide some clarification about this issue.

It is first important to assure caregivers and staff that when Compassionate Home Care began hiring its first employees, the question about wages and mileage reimbursement definitely came to the forefront of the decision-making process. Ultimately, Compassionate Home Care rationalized that providing higher wages would benefit the employees more than reimbursing for mileage, and it would be a lot easier in the number-crunching area, too. Let’s do some math to see if this is truly the case.

5 Movies about Caregiving (Published By Beth Lueders on June 15, 2017 , Right at Home)

Movies about caring for a loved one stir a special empathy and connection, often inviting us to chuckle and tear up with the films’ characters. Here, we list five top caregiving movies that highlight the strength and love that flourish when life takes an unexpected turn.

MARCH Highlights

(Keep them Coming)

Compassioante Home Care, we have had some BIG things going on in February!

• Vicki has been filling in like crazy as she waits patiently for her ILS clients to return to her caseload. She has been revisiting her days of full-time homemaking/companion care, and her clients love her amazing organizational skills and her eye for detail. She has even had the chance to visit a few of her old homemaking clients who missed her dearly.

• Nessa has been working her magic for her clients as she helps to bring a little organization to their lives. She has been advocating for her clients and keeping the agency on top of her clients' needs as she helps them to bring some order to their chaos of stuff. In addition, she has been striving to somehow give her shower a client in a very limited amount of hotwater before the water turns ice cold.

• EVERYONE is busy shopping and picking up the various items that our clients need. You all take such great care of your clients!

• Amy has been beginning to go out and do in-home client visits. She is doing an observation/interview with the clients to see how the clients are feeling about their goals.

• Tracy has been working hard to help her client gain a sense of independence while being there for her needs. In fact, she was able to help her client get out to attend a funeral which she really wanted to attend. 

• Paula has been picking up some new clients and immediately making them feel less stressed and anxious. Additionally, she has had the opportunity to fill in for a few of her former clients who have greatly missed seeing her. 

• Lori spent hours combing through her client's hair to get a monster of a knot out of her hair. The client would not take off her hood, and when Lori pressed her to take it off, Lori quickly knew this knot was no match for her patience and determination. 

• Lisa was diligently planning for her clients' needs as she planned her trip to Hawaii. She talked them into receiving care from subs, and she even took the time to write up a little bit of a description of each client to help the substitute caregivers to feel more comfortable and serve the clients' needs more efficiently. 

• Compassionate Home Care Team was able to get a certain client and her famiy to DO THEIR OWN DISHES! #win

• Christine learned what # means besides "number." #please

Welcome New Employees in March!

• Ellie Blaeser
• Lisa Bee
• Caitlyn Naffziger
• Mary Schmidt
• Crystal Peterson

Read more about our newest teammembers below!

Lisa Bee

Mary Schmidt

Crystal Peterson

Homemaking/Companion Care Staff:

Cassie Ziebarth

Cassie has been working with Compassionate Home Care since July 2017, and she quickly made an impact to the care team. Cassie has a passion for American Sign Language (ASL), and on the same day that she came to interview for the position, Compassionate Home Care received a referral for a client who needed an ASL interpreter. We definitely felt that God had orchestrated this union. Cassie quickly filled in her schedule and became an anticipated part of her clients’ day as she has a bubbly personality and a sweet smile. Cassie has learned a lot about maintaining a clean and safe environment since she began, and she continues to learn and grow in her role as a homemaker/companion all of the time. Cassie truly cares about her clients and their needs, and she has been willing to try numerous caregiving situations with new clients. Her flexibility and willingness to learn has been a blessing to Compassionate Home Care. Finally, Cassie is an extremely reliable employee as she is ALWAYS on time for her scheduled appointments, and she has missed only a small handful of scheduled client meetings. Cassie is also willing to drive quite a distance to care for her clients, and Compassionate Home Care appreciates her willingness to see a need and meet that need with a compassionate and caring attitude.

ICLS/Direct Caregiver:

Samantha Plohocky

Compassionate Home Care wants Sam to know how much of an impact she has had on this agency. Before Sam was a part of the organization, the client relations team and her client’s caregivers spent a numerous hours stressing about and making phone calls regarding her client’s welfare. Since Sam joined the team, the careteam has been able to breathe a collective sigh of relief as we are assured that her client is receiving the best care possible. Sam has been able to work together with other caregivers to make sure that her client’s needs are efficiently met, and her client is safe at all times. Sam has also been excellent at communicating her needs to the agency while still assuring that her client receives the best care possible. Sam is a team player and demonstrates flexibility and loyalty as she has also been willing to change her schedule around to help the agency to utilize her client’s other caregivers in other situations. Sam continually goes above and beyond to ensure that her client’s needs are met and her client is able to live comfortably at home.

<img height="22" src="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/5e9922_3509e29d40d24b53b9ea6064d03de5c0.png_256" width="22">March Birthdays<img height="22" src="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/5e9922_3509e29d40d24b53b9ea6064d03de5c0.png_256" width="22">

• Lori O’Connor – March 5th
• Caitlyn Naffziger – March 10th

<img height="22" src="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/5e9922_3509e29d40d24b53b9ea6064d03de5c0.png_256" width="22">April Birthdays<img height="22" src="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/5e9922_3509e29d40d24b53b9ea6064d03de5c0.png_256" width="22">

• Cindy Stockdill – April 8th 
• Paula Peterson-Michael – April 16th
• Teri Ningen – April 30th 

Vacuum and Cleaning Supplies

It has come to my attention that many clients are running out of cleaning supplies. Remember that when your client is out of something you need to provide care, make a list for the client so that he or she can remember to purchase the supplies for you. When the client is not using the products him or herself, he or she may not be checking to see if the products are gone.

In addition, it is important to check the vacuum cleaner  bag/canister and empty it every couple of weeks. Vacuums will work more efficiently and effectively when the bag/canister is emptied on a regular basis.

Receipts and

Accusations of Theft

This is a reminder that as you are helping your clients by purchasing items for them whether it is a prescription or a food item, please be having your client sign the receipt after he or she receives his or her items, and then you sign the receipt, too. Then, take a photo of the receipt and send it to me for records. This is for your own protection as many of our clients have memory concerns and may not be able to remember receiving their items. The physical part of requiring them to sign might engage a part of their brain that allows them to recall receiving their items.

In addition, spring is here and you might find yourself doing some spring cleaning and spring clean-out projects for your clients. It is important that if your client is wanting to donate items or throw items away that you make a list of the items that will be donated and/or thrown away, and then you should have the client sign off on that list; you sign off on that list, too. It is also important to take a picture of the list as well as the items that will be thrown away and/or donated; again, this will provide a record that will protect the caregiver should the client forget that he or she wanted to get rid of the items.