Susan
is our CAREGiver of the month for February! She has been a caregiver with us
since September, 2012. Susan has a fantastic sense of humour. She’s personable
and caring; a wonderful caregiver and a real pleasure to be around.
We asked
her why she decided to become a caregiver, her most memorable moments, advice
for new caregivers and what she likes to do when she’s not working.
“I decided to become a CAREGiver because I felt that Home
Instead offered me the best opportunity to provide quality care to seniors. I
have worked in hospitals, care homes and other home care companies and have
always felt uneasy with the almost "production line" quality of care
provided to the patients. With Home Instead, it is clear that our clients are
truly valued, and I am given an opportunity to provide a level of care that I
can be proud of.
An amazing project that I have been working on with my
current client over the past year or so is helping her to record her life
story. I can't even begin to describe the privilege of hearing of her awesome
journey, and helping her preserve her story for the generations to come.
Honestly, the wisdom (not to mention the university level history lessons!) I
am gleaning from this project is so beneficial to me. The biggest perk of my
job is that I have been blessed with a dear friend that I otherwise would not
have met. My client and I share the same sort of humor and nothing beats
sharing a laugh or two with a friend for a couple of hours!
My advice to any new CAREGivers would be to really get to
know their clients. Pay attention and notice the little things that make them
smile, or more relaxed, and do what you can to make your time with them the
highlight of their day. Maybe what is required to brighten their day isn't on
the care plan, but if you go that one step further to make your client happy,
you won't regret it. To quote one of my kids’ favourite movies, "See a
need, fill a need!"
My husband, our four kids (and the cat and dog, too) and all
their activities keep me pretty busy when I am not at work. To be honest, my
time at work feels more like a day off then my time at home! On weekends I can
be seen cheering my girls on in basketball or not seen at all because I have
been buried by mountain of laundry. If I find my way out of the laundry room
unscathed, then I help out with children's ministries on Sundays. My guilty pleasures are tea, chocolate,
gardening, Pinterest and running marathons on Netflix.”
Thanks so much, Susan. We appreciate having you as one of our caring CAREGivers!
