Good Questions to Ask
Is there a list of questions you use when you’re hiring an aide? I want to be sure that the aide can handle all of the different elder care challenges.
I use the Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) listed below to interview an aide so we’re both clear about the elder’s needs. This way, both the aide and I are in agreement as to what activities and tasks will need to be performed. Once hired, I also ask the aide to write in a daily log or use this list as a check-off so it’s clear what was accomplished each and every day.
Go over all details with the aide to ensure that he/she knows how to assist with every task listed below. Note that they’re listed alphabetically, not in order of importance, and that additional tasks may be needed for your elder.
Personal Care
Assist with bath: in bed or in a shower or tub
Assist to bathroom and with toileting: bedpan, commode, and urinal
Assist with dressing, putting on or laying out clothes
Encourage the consumption of fluids per doctor’s recommendation
Feeding assistance, including the use of adapted equipment and self feeding
Foot care assistance, including training in podiatry
Hair care, including beauty products, brushing, and the beauty parlor/barber
Incontinence care
Nail care
Oral care/denture care
Shaving assistance
Skincare assistance
Activities
Assist with ambulation
Assist with range of motion, only with the advice of doctor or therapist
Assist with transfer in and out of chair
Attention to bed rails, which should be up at all times that elder is in bed
Commitment to providing recreation, both in the home, and the community
Homemaking Assignments
Clean bathrooms, bedrooms, and kitchens
Grocery shop
Laundry
Light housekeeping such as making and changing bed
Prepare meals
A senior’s needs may change on a daily basis, so the aide needs to clearly understand what’s expected of him/her. You also must know if the aide has the training, education, and expertise to carry out these ADLs.
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