Frequently asked questions

Speak to a care coordinator, have a home assessment, and receive your free care plan. Schedule care when you are ready to start. Call our 24/7 care line at (613) 907-3191.

All of our caregivers are registered PSWs (Personal Support Worker). All have additional training in dementia care (the Gentle Persuasive Approach). Additionally, many have additional certification as DSWs (Developmental Services Worker) or other medical certificates.

Our nurses are available 24/7 to answer any questions and supervise all care.

As well, all our caregivers are screened and bonded.

We use a comprehensive matching system, looking at language, culture, personality, needs, and experiences to ensure your loved one is comfortable.

Additionally, when we hire staff, we look for people we would want to send to our own families. All our caregivers are caring and compassionate.

This is a common issue faced by children of seniors as they try to keep them safe at home. Seniors might be hesitant to get care because they fear a loss of independence, control, privacy , or finances. They used to take care of things like housekeeping, bathing, or groceries on their own, and asking for help is a hard transition.

Our Nurse Care Coordinators have worked with 100s of families just like yours, and we understand these family dynamics.

Offering our homecare services on a limited, trial basis is often helpful to these seniors. Virtually every time, our clients feel so at home with our caregivers that they continue on with them after the initial trial periods. Many families begin with some casual services like housekeeping and expand to other care as they grow comfortable with the caregivers.

As your loved one’s needs change, we adapt to your needs. Our Nurse Care Managers constantly monitors reports from our caregivers, often on a shift-by-shift basis. If our care monitoring detects any significant change in condition, we respond by revising the care plan, contacting family members as necessary, and with the family’s permission, collaborate with other medical professionals to ensure we work as a team to attend to every need. We pay close attention to how your loved one is doing so we are always sure they are getting the care they need to be safe at home.

Wherever our clients call home, we’re there for them. In addition, if your facility already provides care, we work with their Director of Care to complement and supplement their services to make sure you pay for only what you desire.

Yes. In fact, that is one of our specialties. All of our caregivers have extra training in dementia care (Gentle Persuasive Approach). This training also means they are skilled at helping people with Acquired Brain Injury or other cognitive conditions.

We specialize in Complex Care (multiple diagnoses). With our nursing supervision, our caregivers have access to the specialized medical knowledge to make sure your loved one is safe at home.

Yes. We have a contract with Veterans Affairs to provide homecare for veterans.

As a person’s life draws to an end, their medical needs often increase, while they also have a strong need to connect with family in familiar surroundings. We can provide around-the-clock help so your loved one is comfortable and you can focus on quality with them.

Absolutely. In fact, it is better to establish care routines before a crisis. Many families find it decreases their stress to add a caregiver team to the overall plan, especially in the early days of a diagnosis. Then families have a chance to get used to the caregivers, and as they need more care, we can increase services.

We understand how stressful it is when you loved one is discharged from hospital. There can be complicated medical instructions, and they usually still need quite a bit of care when they come home. We can help. We can coordinate their care with the hospital staff, make sure their home is ready for them, pick them up from the hospital if needed, and take care of them when they come home. You can log in to our family web portal to see caregiver schedules and notes on their visits. Even from a distance, you can help your loved one be safe at home.

Public homecare is provided free of charge by the government, but care is usually shorter, has less services, and there can be a lengthy waitlist.

Private homecare is paid by you, and is designed to augment any other care you are already receiving from the government.

Many people choose private home care when they face a lengthy waitlist to get care from the government. Some clients report 2-year-long waitlist to receive Alzheimer’s care. At Choice Homecare, you can start care right away.

Public home care has some limitations; they are not able to offer pet care, something that is essential to many people being able to remain in their own home. As well, their caregiver shifts tend to be shorter (45 min to an hour) versus a minimum shift length of 3 hours at Choice Homecare.

Choice Homecare provides private homecare.

We have another division, Choice Healthcare, that provides public-paid homecare.

Clients receiving public-paid services have the same caregivers and level of care as private-paid, except that some services are limited.

Using our homecare will not cause you to get any less service from the government. Instead, there are actually two benefits.

First, if you are already qualified to receive government-paid home care services, you do not have to pay HST on services you get from us. We will provide you with an exemption form.

Secondly, we can connect with your government Case Manager to coordinate our services so that you can benefit from the best of both worlds.

If your insurance company covers nursing, personal support, and attendant care services, we can help you verify your coverage and budget with the insurer. If the services are covered, then you can decide whether you pay us and get reimbursed by the insurance company or, if the insurance company agrees to the arrangement, we can invoice the insurance company directly. The insurance company may want to approve the care plan in advance and require that you validate our services with each invoice.

While Choice Homecare is private-pay, i.e. our clients pay for care or have their it paid for by insurance or Veterans Affairs, we collaborate with Ontario Health to ensure our clients maximize their eligible care from the government before they pay for care out of their own pocket. We will provide to you contact information for Ontario Health homecare services so that you can establish your eligibility for care.

Using our homecare will not cause you to get any less service from the government. Actually, it has two benefits. First, government home services recipients do not have to pay HST by verifying your status using an exemption form we provide. Secondly, we will try to connect with your government Case Manager to coordinate our services so that you can benefit from the best of both worlds.

If your insurance company covers nursing, personal support, and attendant care services, we can help you verify your coverage and budget with the insurer. If the services are covered, then you can decide whether you pay us and get reimbursed by the insurance company or, if the insurance company agrees to the arrangement, we can invoice the insurance company directly. The insurance company may want to approve the care plan in advance and require that you validate our services with each invoice.

While Choice Homecare is private-pay, i.e. our clients pay for care or have it paid for by insurance or Veterans Affairs, we collaborate with Ontario Health to ensure our clients maximize their eligible care from the government before they pay for care out of their own pocket. We will provide to you contact information for Ontario Health homecare services so that you can establish your eligibility for care.

Wherever our clients call home, we’re there for them. In addition, if your facility already provides care, we work with their Director of Care to complement and supplement their services to make sure you pay for only what you desire.

This is a common issue facing children of seniors who need homecare to help them with activities of daily living (ADL) that they customarily do for themselves. Sometimes they feel getting help robs them of their sense of independence. Sometimes they feel it’s too expensive. Choice Homecare’s nurse care coordinators understand the family dynamics and will assist you to put your parents or loved ones at ease. Sometimes they are willing to try out our homecare services for a short time. Virtually every time, our clients feel so at home with our caregivers that they continue with having them in their homes after the initial trial periods.

We achieve our stellar 5-Star Google-rated homecare services reputation by putting into action our “4-C Values”. We are:

• Client-Centred: People we care for are the reason for doing what we do
• Competent: Caregivers supported by Nurses provide expert and compassionate care
• Creative: We go beyond the ordinary to bring joy and solutions that work
• Compassionate: We care for our clients as we would our family

The result is worry-free care that honours the client’s and their families’ wish to stay home safely and eases their burden.

We match our caregivers systematically to our clients’ specific needs. We do our matching over and above just skills. In fact, we have a 5-star track record of matching our caregivers with the clients through a matrix including Culture, Temperament, Skills, and Experience. Furthermore, our caregivers are never alone. When they are providing care, they have live-access to our Nurse Care Managers 24/7 to ensure our clients receive the right care if the unexpected arises.

The Choice Homecare team has maintained a near-perfect record of client retention since 2011. Many of our clients stay with us for years, even when their needs progress from companionship and housekeeping to complex care as they age. This is possible because our Nurse Care Managers are constantly in touch the clients receives and monitors reports from our caregivers, often on a shift-by-shift basis. If our care monitoring detects any significant change in condition, we respond appropriately by revising the care plan, contacting family members as necessary, and with the family’s permission, collaborate with other medical professionals to ensure we work as a team to attend to every need.

It’s simple—call us at (613) 907-3191 to speak with a Choice Homecare nurse. With your permission, we will arrange for a head-to-toe assessment either remotely or in your home. Using the assessment, we will work with you and/or your family to customize a care plan the fits your needs and your schedule and assign one or more caregivers who are matched to your needs in terms of culture, temperament, skills, and experience. Our goal: improved quality of life and restore joy and peace to the clients their families.