The question that built a company — and still guides every hire.
When Kathy and Eddie Chu started caring for their aging parents, they weren’t thinking about starting a business. They were thinking about what every adult child thinks about — is my parent safe, comfortable, and truly cared for?
That lived experience — the worry, the research, the hope that the person walking through the door would treat their parents with dignity — became the foundation of everything Choice Home Care is today.
In 2011, Kathy and Eddie co-founded Choice Home Care in Ottawa with a vision that was simple but uncompromising: care that is competent, compassionate, and deeply human.
The Question That Became Policy
Most home care agencies follow hiring checklists. Choice Home Care does too — but they go one step further. Before any caregiver joins the team, the final question is always the same:
“Will I allow this person to care for my parents?”
If there is any hesitation — even a moment of doubt — the answer is no.
“Because if we wouldn’t trust someone with our parents, why would we send them to yours?” — Kathy Chu, Co-Founder
This isn’t just a hiring philosophy. It’s a promise to every family who opens their door to a Choice Home Care caregiver.
Built on Personal Experience
Kathy and Eddie didn’t build Choice Home Care from a business plan. They built it from personal experience — the kind that only comes from sitting beside an aging parent, navigating complex care needs, and understanding firsthand what families truly need in those moments.
That experience gave them clarity on three things that would never be compromised:
- Compassion — every client treated like family
- Competency — skilled, trained, nurse-managed care
- Compatibility — the right caregiver for the right family, every time
More Than a Decade Later
Since 2011, Choice Home Care has helped hundreds of Ottawa families navigate some of life’s most challenging moments — from aging in place to post-hospital recovery to complex, evolving care needs.
Families don’t just rate the service. They call their caregivers family.
“Choice Home Care adapts easily, warmly and compassionately to my father’s rapidly changing physical, mental and emotional needs. They are like part of our family.” — Kimberly Baynes, Google Review
That kind of feedback isn’t the exception. It’s what happens when a company is built by people who understand — from personal experience — what truly matters.
A Culture That Cares for Everyone
The same philosophy that guides client care extends to the people who deliver it. Choice Home Care’s caregivers are trained, mentored, supported, and respected — because a team that feels valued gives their very best to every client.
“We give our best to our caregivers, so they give their best to their clients.” — Adolfo Fonseca, Business Support Manager
In an industry known for burnout and turnover, Choice Home Care’s people-first culture stands apart — and it shows in the continuity, warmth, and quality of care that families experience every day.
From One Family’s Experience to Hundreds of Families Served
What started as a personal journey — two people caring for their own parents — has grown into Ottawa’s trusted nurse-managed home care provider, serving private clients and public health partners alike.
But the heart of it hasn’t changed. Every caregiver hired, every family served, every care plan built — it all still comes back to that one founding question:
“Would I trust them with my parents?”
At Choice Home Care, the answer is always yes — or they don’t make the team.