My DH aunt, 94, has an aide 3 hours in the morning and then she comes back for one hour in the evening just to give her a snack, change her and get her in bed. During the day she has a CNA through Hospice (previously through HH) who comes in to shower and change her bed if needed. Home Health/Hospice is paid for by original Medicare. Your mom would most likely qualify if she is unable to change herself. The visits are not often enough to provide all her changes but are a big help. I’m not sure if it’s you who is 78 or your mom. In aunts area, the rates for a CNA through an agency or around $30 for one hour and down to $18 for three or more hours. DH aunt, barely tolerates the three times a day she is changed, much less 12 times. I’m sure that will change in the future as she becomes less able to move. Her skin is in excellent condition at present. she is still able to get up, do therapy, etc. The good thing about having HH or hospice is you have a nurse helping you assess your moms condition on an ongoing basis. Of course, hospice provides the products. You don’t mention your moms medical conditions besides the obvious incontinence.
You do not need a nurse to change her. (Unless you are talking about wound dressings) Any caregiver can change a brief. And I think you are underestimating the time and how often. Realistically a person should be changed or checked at least every 2 hours. This is done for at least 2 reasons. The moving to change is also changing positions and that should be done every 2 hours to minimize the risk of pressure sores (aka "bed sores") By checking a brief (pull up or tab type) you are also monitoring urine for color, and how often the person is going. If a brief is "just a little wet" the next time there may be a major leak that could have been prevented if the change had been done. And yes there are times when no change is needed, but you can almost bet in the next 15 minutes it will be wet. It is more likely that you could get someone to come in early to get her up, shower and get her ready for the day and to come in in the evening to change her, get her ready for bed than you would have luck getting someone to come in 3 or 4 times a day to change her. (No way should you plan on changing mom 2 times a day)
Obviously, it all depends where you live and who you hire. Here in western Washington state, going with an 'agency', runs about $45-60/hour (no, the individual providing the service doesn't get all that..the agency has to have their cut).
I am sure you could find an individual to help you, but here I caution - when you hire through an agency, a quality agency, they do thorough background checks and criminal checks. The providers are also licensed and bonded and insured. Very important when you start having strangers in your home helping a senior. Everything from stealing things and money (covered by the agency); possible abuse and misuse. What if the individual providing services causes harm to the senior - whether intentional or not intentional....with an agency, those things are covered. What if the provider accidentally causes damage to your home or in your home - forgets the water is running, doesn't turn off cooktop..... once again, agency will cover that. Versus an individual - you might be saving money initially but it might cost more later.
Not saying that individual providers are 'bad' - it's just that it is a much different world today than it was 20, 40 years ago, and one has to exercise a lot more caution when employing such individuals.
An individual from an agency will typically require a certain time commitment -usually 2-4 hours per visit.
I would go on Nextdoor.com and put out a request to people who are actually your neighbors. You may find someone within close proximity who wouldn't mind picking up a few bucks to change your mom. For my 99-yr old aunt in FL we have a neighbor 2 doors down who is a trained caregiver and she comes 2x a week for 30 minutes each time to give my aunt a shower for $15 each time. An agency would never do that, and even most private hires would want a minimum. We also use an aid from an agency for care help and pay $22 p/hr.
Otherwise have you contacted social services to have your mom assessed to see if she qualifies for some in-home care, like what you're seeking? Light housekeeping, light meal prep, light hygiene, etc. Or contact your area's Agency on Aging for resources.
The homecare agencies we dealt with charged about $20 an hour and had a minimum number of hours requirement. That was 2 years ago. You can call agencies in your area and ask for information.
Several years back, I paid around $21 an hour to have someone come to the house for my loved one. This was for non-medical companionship. They were not allowed to give meds, but I think they were allowed to minimally assist with personal hygiene. It was more the type of stuff that a neighbor would do for someone. I would assume that a nurse to do a diaper change and cleanup would cost even more than the $21/hr we were paying but that depends on the cost of living in your area.
Even with the $21/hr, I still had a minimum number of hours that they would come at a time. They would not just stop by for an hour or two. I think the minimum was 4 hours at a time, but that could vary.
Hope this helps. I found that people make it sound so simple to have a caregiver/nurse stop by, but it adds up fast when paying out of pocket and no one discusses that aspect of it so I'm glad you are asking this.
I don't know if your mom's insurance would cover any portion of that type of care. If they do cover it, do ask how many visits they cover and for how long.
The problem in my area is that no one wants to come to the house for less than a three to five hour shift. So, I would be really lucky to find someone to charge $100 per visit.
Everything is negotiable, so maybe you could find an individual to drop in for one hour or less for $50 if it works well with their schedule and commute.
During the day she has a CNA through Hospice (previously through HH) who comes in to shower and change her bed if needed. Home Health/Hospice is paid for by original Medicare. Your mom would most likely qualify if she is unable to change herself. The visits are not often enough to provide all her changes but are a big help. I’m not sure if it’s you who is 78 or your mom.
In aunts area, the rates for a CNA through an agency or around $30 for one hour and down to $18 for three or more hours.
DH aunt, barely tolerates the three times a day she is changed, much less 12 times. I’m sure that will change in the future as she becomes less able to move. Her skin is in excellent condition at present. she is still able to get up, do therapy, etc. The good thing about having HH or hospice is you have a nurse helping you assess your moms condition on an ongoing basis. Of course, hospice provides the products. You don’t mention your moms medical conditions besides the obvious incontinence.
Any caregiver can change a brief.
And I think you are underestimating the time and how often.
Realistically a person should be changed or checked at least every 2 hours.
This is done for at least 2 reasons.
The moving to change is also changing positions and that should be done every 2 hours to minimize the risk of pressure sores (aka "bed sores")
By checking a brief (pull up or tab type) you are also monitoring urine for color, and how often the person is going. If a brief is "just a little wet" the next time there may be a major leak that could have been prevented if the change had been done.
And yes there are times when no change is needed, but you can almost bet in the next 15 minutes it will be wet.
It is more likely that you could get someone to come in early to get her up, shower and get her ready for the day and to come in in the evening to change her, get her ready for bed than you would have luck getting someone to come in 3 or 4 times a day to change her. (No way should you plan on changing mom 2 times a day)
I am sure you could find an individual to help you, but here I caution - when you hire through an agency, a quality agency, they do thorough background checks and criminal checks. The providers are also licensed and bonded and insured. Very important when you start having strangers in your home helping a senior. Everything from stealing things and money (covered by the agency); possible abuse and misuse. What if the individual providing services causes harm to the senior - whether intentional or not intentional....with an agency, those things are covered. What if the provider accidentally causes damage to your home or in your home - forgets the water is running, doesn't turn off cooktop..... once again, agency will cover that. Versus an individual - you might be saving money initially but it might cost more later.
Not saying that individual providers are 'bad' - it's just that it is a much different world today than it was 20, 40 years ago, and one has to exercise a lot more caution when employing such individuals.
An individual from an agency will typically require a certain time commitment -usually 2-4 hours per visit.
Otherwise have you contacted social services to have your mom assessed to see if she qualifies for some in-home care, like what you're seeking? Light housekeeping, light meal prep, light hygiene, etc. Or contact your area's Agency on Aging for resources.
Even with the $21/hr, I still had a minimum number of hours that they would come at a time. They would not just stop by for an hour or two. I think the minimum was 4 hours at a time, but that could vary.
Hope this helps. I found that people make it sound so simple to have a caregiver/nurse stop by, but it adds up fast when paying out of pocket and no one discusses that aspect of it so I'm glad you are asking this.
I don't know if your mom's insurance would cover any portion of that type of care. If they do cover it, do ask how many visits they cover and for how long.
The problem in my area is that no one wants to come to the house for less than a three to five hour shift. So, I would be really lucky to find someone to charge $100 per visit.
Everything is negotiable, so maybe you could find an individual to drop in for one hour or less for $50 if it works well with their schedule and commute.