Partnering with a home care agency is a great way to help a family caregiver find balance between work and care duties.
It is a delicate balancing act. On the one hand, you have your work, which supplies you with fulfillment, purpose, and obviously, a paycheck. On the other hand, you’re providing care for someone you love. Trying to give 100% to both of these vitally important roles can leave you physically and mentally drained, with little if any time for self-care.
You are not alone. Approximately 6 out of 10 family care providers over age 50 are also working outside the home. How do they maintain a good work-life balance? There are several options, including partnering with a home care agency.
How to Manage Caregiving With a Career
- Review your employee handbook. It may have been years since you cracked open the handbook you received upon employment. And at the time you were hired, your personal circumstances may have looked very different from the way they look now. Go back and read the policies again related to family emergencies or medical needs, flexibility in working hours, and FMLA (the Family Medical Leave Act). If the company you are working for employs a minimum of 50 people, and you have worked there for at least one year (for not less than 1,250 hours during those 12 months), you’re entitled to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave without concern about losing your job.
- Contact HR. If you’ve made a decision to explore a modified working arrangement or to take some extended time away from work, schedule a time to speak with your HR representative. Explain the situation and the solution you would like to look into. You may also wish to see if there’s the choice to work at home, either part or full time, even if just temporarily. The sooner you have this talk, the better. You don’t want to wait until you are in crisis mode to try and reach a resolution.
- Consider respite care. Whether you choose to modify your working arrangements to better support your caregiving tasks, or you opt to continue to dedicate yourself fully to your career, partnering with a home care agency is a lifesaver. A professional caregiver can fill in any holes in care, from just a couple of hours each week up to and including full-time, around-the-clock care. This enables you the freedom to choose to:
- Work from home with caregiving support at your side, letting you give attention to your work while still being present with your loved one
- Work full-time while knowing a professional caregiver is at home assisting with personal care, preparing meals, offering transportation and companionship, providing light housekeeping, etc. so that you can come home and just enjoy time with your loved one
- Find any combination of the two that best meets your needs, with a fully trained and experienced caregiver filling in the gaps accordingly for seamless care
At Morning Glory Home Care, serving Edwardsville, Alton, Collinsville and nearby communities, we partner with family caregivers in whatever way works best for them and the person they love. Let us help you enjoy a better balance between your career and caregiving with award-winning respite care services. Contact us at 618-667-8400 to learn more!