Stay Independent at Home

Before contacting Qualicare, my Dad was living with the difficulties associated with Alzheimer’s disease and because he had recently lost his wife, he could not stay at home, on his own. Retirement homes wouldn’t suffice because Dad needed extra care and attention after the great trauma and changes in his life. My two siblings and I could not be there for him all day because of our busy work schedules and family commitments so we decided to find Dad a personal caregiver to maximize his quality of life.

We didn’t know where to start and were wary of unreliable newspaper ads and of simply asking around for recommendations. In order to hire someone reliable and professional, we chose Qualicare to help us. We arranged a meeting very quickly and were asked excellent questions by their RN Case Manager that immediately made us feel at ease. We knew Dad would prefer a male caregiver over a female one, even though a male caregiver can be harder to find.

Within five days, Qualicare had come up with three excellent candidates to choose from. We interviewed them with the support and expert counsel of our Qualicare Case Manager who prepared important questions for us to ask, reviewed the candidate’s resumes with us, and provided insightful information about the abilities of each caregiver.

With this guidance, we chose an exceptional caregiver who has been with Dad for over four months now. Before he started, Dad was falling apart. He simply could not function properly as he was challenged with simple daily activities such as eating, dressing and going to the washroom.

Once the caregiver, Michael, began working with him, Dad’s improvements have been phenomenal. He can now eat on his own, participates actively in his dressing, and can go to the washroom independently. Dad is very happy because Michael provides great companionship and really cares about him. They play Nintendo Wii together, go for walks and take the bus to the mall. He provides Dad with entertainment, support, laughter and much needed attention.

In addition, Qualicare takes care of the tedious monthly payments for Michael that we have no time to do. This gives us the freedom to spend quality time with Dad, which has relieved a lot of our tension and stress.

Through this experience, we have learned, first hand, that when faced with a parents’ chronic illness; getting help is imperative. There is nothing better than seeing the quality and dignity of your parent’s life improve because they have someone devoted to them who they relate to and trust. They deserve that care and attention. In fact, Qualicare is unbelievable. They are, for certain, on the top of my list of supports. They are professional, efficient, reliable, honest, and trustworthy. They helped us with anything we needed and answered all of our questions. They are the experts in this area and I would recommend them to anyone.