August CAREGiver of the Month - Liza

August CAREGiver of the Month - Liza

1. Why did yo decide to be a caregiver with Home Instead Senior Care?

Because I believe in Home Instead Senior Care, they will pursue my career in CAREGiving for they don't just treat me as employee but a family member

2. What is the most memorable or happiest moment with the client?

Whenever we talk or chat in terms of family and experiences in life, I always learn a lot from them since they are older than me. For they always share they're thought and as I say their experiences on how to be happy though, and be a better person

3. Do you have a word of advice for our new caregivers?

Not all individuals are given the privilege of being with the people you love. Just bare in mind that whatever it is they're doing, do it with all of their hearts in it. Cause when you love what you're doing everything good follows

September Caregiver of the Month - Jeff

Congratulations to our September CAREGiver of the Month Jeff! Jeff is a dedicated Home Instead CAREGiver who brings his calm and re-assuring nature to his clients allowing them to feel confident in his care. Jeff is known to build extraodinary relationships with his clients and their families leaving forever a lasting friendship.Thank you for your hard work and dedication to Home Instead and your Clients Jeff!

We asked Jeff some questions, here are his answers;

1.    Why did you decide to become a CAREGiver

Because i want to help others who needs my help especially the seniors.

2.    What is your most memorable or happiest moment(s) with your clients?

The most memorable moments with my client is that when you see them smiling at you and saying thank you for all i have done to them.

3.    What advice do you have for any new CAREGivers?

Be patience always,stay humble and we should give the best care that we can give to     our client.

4.    What do you enjoy doing on your days off? Hobbies you have or groups that you belong to?

I enjoyed having a quality time with my wife by going to the mall, eat what we want, watching movies and going to parks

Blessie - August CAREGiver of the Month

AUGUST CAREGiver of the Month Blessie

Blessie has been an extraordinary CAREGiver who brings her positive energy and spirit to every client she sees. She is a CAREGiver that can adapt to any situation and is always available to help out the office in a pinch.

We asked Blessie some questions about what being a CAREGiver meant to her and here are her answers. 

11.      Why did you decide to become a CAREGiver?

I choose to become a caregiver because I really love to serve mankind and I feel happiness in giving care to people, I feel proud of myself.

22.     What is your most memorable or happiest moment(s) with your clients?

My most memorable moments with clients when I make them to feel comfortable and smile all the time during my shifts with them

33.    What advice do you have for any new CAREGivers?

I think all the caregivers are professional so they do not need any advice they know how to work, but I should say that we are like family so everyone is playing an important role in our family of Home Instead

44.      What do you enjoy doing on your days off? Hobbies you have or groups that you belong to?

I really enjoyed my holiday days with my family I like to spend more time with them and also like to explore new place and also love to cook different cuisine for them. 

Thank you Blessie for your dedication to Home Instead and your clients

Randy - July CAREGiver of the Month

Randy - July CAREGiver of the Month

 

We are delighted to announce our CAREGiver of the Month is Randy. Since Randy first started with us he has been an invaluable member of the Home Instead team. He is always looking for new ways to connect with his clients and always willing to lend his expertise to help find innovative ways to help make his clients lives better. Each of his clients enjoy Randy because of his positive attitude, willingness to help in anyway possible and enjoy so much his companionship.

Congratulations Randy! You truly represent the core values:

 Build Trust; Take the Lead, Share your Heart

 

We asked Randy some questions about what CAREGiving means to him, here are his answers;

 

1. Why did you decide to become a Caregiver?

• In my profession I love to work with different patients. And now i choose to work with elders.

2. What is your most memorable or happiest moments with your clients?

• Every time they are telling their different stories and experiences in life. Also sharing a lot of ideas with them, because they are more older than me i also learn a lot of things from them.

3. What advice do you have for any new Caregivers?

• Always Love your work no matter what it is.
• During my Day off i enjoyed being with my wife and with my daughter, Staying at home and spent quality time with them.

June CAREGiver of the Month - John V

John has been a remarkable CAREGiver with Home Instead Senior Care from day one. His ability to share his heart with his clients brings joy into their lives with his great sense of humour. John has found many ways to build strong relationships with every client he has provided care to including sharing his artistic gifts. We are so proud to have John on our team and look forward to many more touching stories from his clients.

1.    Why did you decide to become a CAREGiver?

        I decided to become a CAREGiver because I want to pursue my Nursing career here in Canada and being a caregiver is one of the steps in achieving my professional goal. I also am passionate in caring for people and looking after them.

2.    What is your most memorable or happiest moment(s) with your clients?

        The happiest moment in me being a CAREGiver is when I drew a portrait of my client. Seeing his reaction and how he appreciated it really is worth it. He and his wife even wanted to put my sketch in a frame and they did. They even showed it to all the members of the family and they too liked it. That was the most memorable moment I had with my client and I will treasure them for the rest of my life. (Attached is the portrait I drew) 

3.    What advice do you have for any new CAREGivers? 

        I only have one advice for the new CAREGivers and that is to treat your every client like they were part of your family.

4.    What do you enjoy doing on your days off? Hobbies you have or groups that you belong to?

        On my days off I go out and hang out with my wife and son, maybe go to a mall or see a movie. My hobbies are listening to music, watching movies and play my guitar. I always wanted to be a part of a band because I was once in one when I was back in my home country, we played every gig like it were our last. 

May CAREGiver of the Month - Dolores

May CAREGiver of the Month - Dolores

Dolores has been with Home Instead for 2 years and touched the lives of many clients and their families. She brings her big smile and open heart to every shift and is always looking for ways to enhance their lives. Dolores is always a go-to CAREGiver when we need a last minute visit filled and is adaptable to any situation she is faced with. Thank you Dolores for your dedication to Home Instead and our Clients and their families

We asked Dolores a couple questions here are her answers:

Why did you decide to become a caregiver? 

I enjoy and love helping and serving people. 

My advice to the new comers:

I should say nobody is perfect. Hardly but trying to be one. Let us always keep in mind, everyone is unique and has sacred value. We serve as eyes when they cannot see and their feet when they cannot walk. Like us they need dignity and rights. Let us enjoy while we are given a chance to serve them.

 What do you do on your time off?

During my day off, I am always in the church and helping with church activities.

February CAREGiver of the Month

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!

December CAREGiver of the month

Laura has been with us since fall of last year. She makes an impression on everyone that she visits and is often requested to come back to clients. 

"I worked as a caregiver in the UK and Ireland for many years and chose to stop working to help care for my grandparents. It was a very challenging time in my life but so rewarding to be giving back to them. I enjoy helping people live fulfilling, happy and independent lives and this is the biggest joy of being a caregiver for me.

My happiest moments are when I arrive at a client’s home and they open the door with a big smile on their face. They may not have had a visitor all week and it's just like visiting a good friend.

My only advice to new CAREGivers would be to be yourself. If you are genuinely caring, compassionate and honest then you will love being a caregiver. It can be so rewarding if you make the effort.

Being new to Winnipeg I spend my free time checking out different places here such as the malls, museums and events with my daughter. If it's not too cold we head to the park with the dogs."  

We are so lucky that Laura moved to Winnipeg and has become a part of the Home Instead CAREGiver family. Thank you Laura!

November CAREGiver of the month

Jeannette is our CAREGiver of the month for November. Jeannette has been working for Home Instead Senior Care since February 2012. 

Jeannette is a perfect caregiver in as much as she REALLY cares for people! She truly enjoys being with her clients and chatting with them. She loves hearing their stories and according to her; for the most part working with her clients doesn't seem like work at all. "For example what other job would allow their staff to drive to the Conservatory on a Sunday morning, sniff the beautiful flowers & plants, accompanied by a client who is absolutely delighted to be there, and also get paid?”

Why did you decide to become a CAREGiver?  It was my friend Sylvia who suggested I look into CAREGiving. I had recently left full-time employment to focus on starting my own business. It was early days for the business so I had a lot of time available to do other things. One day I was saying to Sylvia I was looking for a flexible work position preferably working with seniors as I had really enjoyed working with this age group in my previous position. With an overwhelming amount of enthusiasm she said, "You've got to call Julie!" I did and the rest is a happy history.  

What is your most memorable or happiest moment(s) with your clients?  There are so many it is difficult to identify just one though last Halloween I dressed one of my 90ish year old clients up as a witch (a very gorgeous looking witch) feather boa, orange & black stripped stockings, a great hat and a stuffed black cat. We then went for a stroll around the hospital handing out candy....she was tickled pink with all the complements especially from the folks waiting in the E.R.  

What advice do you have for any new CAREGivers?  Ask your client about their life. The stories are fascinating.

What do you enjoy doing on your days off? Hobbies you have or groups that you belong to?   I work very part time with Home Instead so when I am not off visiting or running a client to an appointment I work on growing my own business, being with family and friends, volunteering at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, the Children's Book Mart/Sell and on a variety of other projects. When the weather turns cold & snowy I like to curl up under a blanket and read.