Home health care agencies provide personal care, live-in or companion help, and may assist with light housework or transportation. House cleaning services perform basic cleaning services, which may include laundry, vacuuming, and washing windows. Private individuals may provide both housekeeping tasks and personal care. Hiring in-home help through an agency can save you time and paperwork.
Agencies provide supervision and check references of their employees.
They may also provide a backup person if your primary helper is ill or on vacation. Hiring in-home help yourself may save you money, but may be more time consuming. One way to decide what type of in-home help would work best for you is to assess the needs of yourself and the person you are caring for. Record what tasks need to be done, and how often. Ask yourself what tasks you or other family members are able to do, and what tasks you need to hire help for.