How to Choose a Home Care Agency in Broomfield, CO: Questions to Ask

Six questions, asked properly

Ask what the rate is and what the minimum is, and get both in writing. A minimum is not a rounding detail. A two-hour minimum and a four-hour minimum are the difference between a weekly visit that costs one hundred dollars and one that costs two hundred, and agencies lead with the hourly number because the hourly number is the smaller one.

Ask who will actually be in the home. Any agency that matches a caregiver by shift rather than by person is telling you the same person may change. Ask how a caregiver is chosen, what training they have, and how the agency handles the first visit, which is the visit that matters most.

Ask what happens when the caregiver cannot come. Backup coverage is the question that separates an agency from a person with a phone. Get the answer, not the adjective. Then ask about cancellation, because most cancellations in home care happen for good reasons: a hospitalization, a family trip, a bad week.

Ask what is not included. Home care that sounds comprehensive can quietly exclude companionship, driving, laundry, or help with a transfer. Ask for the list of what the rate does not cover, and ask whether extra services carry extra charges.

Ask how complaints are handled and who to call. If the answer is a name and a direct line, that is a good sign. If the answer is a general phone number and the word should, ask who is actually supervising the caregivers in your mother's home.

One more question, asked plainly: what does not fit your parent's situation. An agency should be willing to say that home care is the wrong tool when it is, or that a family needs a few hours a week rather than a daily schedule. The agencies worth calling treat the first conversation as a fit assessment on both sides, not a sale.

The part that should be on paper

Ask for the price in writing and the terms in writing: the hourly rate, the minimum per visit, how live-in care is priced, what a holiday visit costs, how far ahead a schedule may be changed, and what a cancellation costs. None of that is rude to ask. An agency that will not put the rate and the minimum on one page is telling you how a later invoice will go.

Then ask about continuity. Who comes when the regular caregiver is sick for a week, does the schedule shrink or does somebody fill it, and how does a family reach an actual person when something changes at seven in the morning. The answers should be specific enough to write down. Adjectives are not coverage.

Ask how the first visit is handled and how a caregiver is matched, because the first visit is the one that tells you whether the match was real. If a parent has memory changes, ask what training the caregiver has for it and whether the same person can keep coming. Families caring for someone with dementia tend to need the same face more, not less.

Does the agency know Broomfield

An agency that serves Broomfield should know the local system as well as you do. Ask them which agency is the Area Agency on Aging for Broomfield, which is DRCOG, on 303-480-6700, and what DRCOG funds for people living in the city. If the answer is vague, keep asking, because that agency is the one that knows what is free before you pay for it.

Ask which city programs the caregiver can work alongside rather than duplicate. Broomfield became a consolidated city and county on November 15, 2001, founded in 1877 and incorporated in 1961, so senior services, benefits counseling and human services all run out of the same city-county departments. Broomfield Senior Services' main line is 303-464-5526, and the Senior Services Community Resources Coordinator at 303-464-5529 gives free, confidential information and referrals about what is available.

Ask whether home care is even the right service for your parent. Some families need a program instead of hourly visits. InnovAge PACE, at 303-970-8410, provides all-inclusive health care and support for eligible adults 55 and older with significant care needs, and a good agency will say so when a family would be better served by a program.

Outside opinions, at no cost

You do not have to take a salesman's word for anything. Senior Resources of Broomfield is a nonprofit that advocates for older adults in Broomfield, at 303-416-6073, and it funds the city's Senior Services financial assistance, so it has a plain interest in families getting the help they need. DRCOG, as the Area Agency on Aging, connects older adults, adults with disabilities and caregivers with the services that support independent living, and its Resource Specialists help families make informed choices.

If your parent is in or considering a nursing home or an assisted living community, the Long-Term Care Ombudsman through DRCOG, at 303-480-6734, provides free advocacy for residents. Ombudsmen are independent of the facilities themselves.

And if something goes wrong in a home, Broomfield Adult Protective Services has a local hotline at 720-887-2271 for reports of suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation of at-risk adults. Keep that number where you can find it before you need it.

What the local ground looks like

Small details about a city tell you whether an agency has worked there. Broomfield keeps more than 281 miles of trails and over 700 acres of developed parks with 45 playgrounds, and the city's parks and park shelters cover recognizable areas including Broadlands West, Willow Run, Willow Park, Country Estates, Quail Creek, Northmoor, Highland Park and Broomfield County Commons. When an agency describes a day with your mother, listen for whether they know the difference between a visit at home and a trip to a park nearby.

The same goes for the practical questions. An agency that has done home care in Broomfield in January knows what a driveway looks like after 65 inches of snow, and what a bus ride to a doctor looks like when the person cannot stand for a full trip. Ask how caregivers handle the walk to the car, the wait at the stop, and the trip home.

Finally, ask for one thing you want to see. A reference from another family in Broomfield, a sample caregiver profile, or a sample schedule. An agency that cannot produce a document on request is telling you something about how it will handle a medication reminder or a missed visit.

Local resources in Broomfield

• The Area Agency on Aging for Broomfield is DRCOG, phone 303-480-6700, which connects older adults, adults with disabilities and caregivers with services supporting independent living. Source
• DRCOG's Long-Term Care Ombudsman program, 303-480-6734, gives free advocacy for residents of nursing homes and assisted living communities. Source
• Broomfield Adult Protective Services' local hotline is 720-887-2271, for reports of suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation of at-risk adults. Source
• Senior Resources of Broomfield (SRB), a nonprofit that advocates for older adults in Broomfield, is at 303-416-6073 and funds the city's Senior Services financial assistance. Source
• The Senior Services Community Resources Coordinator gives free, confidential information and referrals at 303-464-5529. Source
• Broomfield Senior Services' main line is 303-464-5526. Source
• Broomfield became a City and County on November 15, 2001; it was founded in 1877 and incorporated in 1961. Source
• Broomfield has over 281 miles of trails, more than 700 acres of developed parks and 45 playgrounds, and its city park names identify recognizable areas including Broadlands West, Willow Run, Willow Park, Country Estates, Quail Creek, Northmoor, Highland Park and Broomfield County Commons. Source
• InnovAge PACE provides all-inclusive health care and support for eligible adults 55+ with significant care needs; phone 303-970-8410. Source

More resources for Broomfield families

• Dementia Care at Home in Broomfield, CO
• Respite Care for Family Caregivers in Broomfield, CO
• Home Care After a Hospital Stay in Broomfield, CO
• Paying for Home Care in Broomfield, CO: Costs and Options