I
am a social worker.
I have worked in community health
care for the past 16 years. I have made at least 2,000 visits to people in
their homes. Most of these people are aged 65 and over. The first ten years of
visiting was as a Home Care Case Coordinator and the last six have been as a
Geriatric Mental Health Clinician. Most of my visits are one-time only visits,
and it is to conduct in-home assessments of an individual. On occasion there
are follow-up or reassessment visits. I am also doing private counselling and I meet people wherever works for them.
My
experiences of these home visits has lead me formulate “best practices.”
I have never actually written down what works for me in terms of home visits. I was never really trained in this, it's just something I have developed
over the years. My workplace has had a few rules implemented, so these have
also become part of my daily practice. The goal of these best practices is to
conduct a safe and successful experience for not only myself but also for the
people I have to meet with.
Some
of these best practices come as a result of trial and error and I know I
probably have some more things to learn.
I have come up with a list of 19 “best
practices” and procedures that always (most of the time, anyways!) results in a
positive experience.Generally speaking, these are my tried and true
professional approaches to ensuring a safe and successful visit. I hope they
can offer you some tips to make your home visits more productive and
positive.
Things
to bring or have on hand:
- Client file/forms
- Cell phone
- Water bottle
- Hand sanitizer
- Booklets and resources
- Lined paper
- Business cards
- Clip board
- Indoor shoes
- Booties (for bedbugs)
- Extra pens and pencils
- Compassion, smiles and compliments
After you have determined the
request is appropriate and is within your catchment area, here are some tips to
take note of.
1. Determine if I need an
interpreter. Is there anything on the
referral or consult that indicates the person does not speak a language you are
fluent it? For example, if it says the person speaks Mandarin, do you know
Mandarin? Or do you need to enlist an interpreter? Sometimes family members are
able to help out and are very used to doing this. For more serious or
complicated situations, you may want to obtain the services from an official
interpreter.
2. Figure out who to call about
making the appointment. The
referral source should indicate if you should call the client him or herself,
or if it’s better to call a family member. Preferably it would be someone that
is already very involved in the person’s care and one that is trusted by the
client. If there is no indication of such person, call the client direct and
then find out if he/she would like you to call or involve any other family
member. Most older people have one or two family members who are involved in
their care and would prefer to have their loved one involved in the assessment.
On occasion, there are people who prefer to not have anyone else involved, and
this has to be honoured as well. Privacy issues must be respected at all times.
3. Make sure the person is
agreeable to having you come to their home. Sometimes
people do not agree with the need for assessment. They may agree initially, but
then change their mind. For example, a person in hospital may agree to a home visit
just so they can get out of the hospital. Perhaps the person’s doctor mentioned
he/she was going to send a referral and the client forgets about it. They say
yes to a daughter who is nagging them to agree just to get her to be quiet. One
of the biggest hurdles for me is to explain in a simple and favourable way who
referred me, why, what I do and what I hope to do for them. If they refuse the
visit, it’s important to report this back to the referral source (the doctor
for example) and to help problem solve how to get the visit done. Sometimes it
means involving a family member or the referral source may have to encourage
the visit. However, if the person does not want you to come, don’t
go. I have been in situations where the family member really, really wants me
to come to the home to do the assessment, but when I arrive, the person does
not want me there. I was actually physically pushed out the door once! My
services are voluntary, so I explain this fact to the person. I advise that I
will leave if I am not wanted, however, their doctor, Home Care Case
Coordinator, etc. wanted this in order to provide the best care possible. I
make sure I talk to the client on the phone before I go if at all possible.
4. Always confirm the home
address. There have been times when the
person moves or the address on the referral form is incorrect. This saves a lot
of grief in the end. Sometimes I ask about parking if I am unfamiliar with the
area. If the person lives in a secured building, I ask if there is a special
code to buzz when I arrive and I write it down.
5. Ask if there are any
smokers or pets in the house. If
no one has been to the home before, and there are no previous records, I ask
about smoke and pets. If the person or someone in the household smokes, I ask
if they could refrain from smoking while I am there as second-hand smoke has
been proven to be harmful. If there are any pets in the home, I ask if the pet
could be put into another room while I am there so there are no issues with
allergies, jumping up, biting, etc.
6. Ask if there are any bedbug
issues in the home. If there are bedbugs, or have
been bedbugs, find out what stage of treatment they are in. To be safe, take as
little as possible into the home. Don’t put anything down on the floor. Keep
your jacket on. Watch where you sit. Avoid couches and fabric chairs. Remain
standing if you can. You can also wear protective gear like little disposable
blue booties that go over your shoes if you need to. One time I met with a
woman outside of her apartment suite, and I witnessed a bedbug crawling on her
shirt. I made the visit as quick as possible.
7. When booking an appointment,
give the person options. I ask if
he/she would prefer a morning or afternoon appointment. Research I have read
states mornings are a better time for most older people, after they have had a
good sleep. This is when they are functioning at their best. Afternoons are
often nap time and this wouldn’t be a good time to do a cognitive assessment or
ask questions that require a lot of brainpower.
8. I always call before I
leave. When I initially book the
appointment, it is usually for a few days or a week ahead. I offer to give
him/her my phone number and I also tell the person I always call before I leave
to confirm our appointment. The problem of “no-shows” is easily solved by using
this simple technique. Sometimes people forget about the meeting, or they
conveniently have something else come up so they have to cancel. It is very
rare that the person cancels on me, but sometimes the visit is delayed because
of something that held them up.
9. I bring my cell phone. This is a great tool to have. If the person doesn’t
answer the door you can call them on the phone. Some people can’t hear you
knocking for example, or they have their TV up loud. A cell phone also offers
safety. I have also used the cell phone to call the person to say I was caught
up in traffic. Once I had to cancel my visit enroute because it was raining so
hard the streets were flooding!
10. When I arrive, I always
take off my outdoor footwear, unless the client or family member is adamant
that I leave my shoes/boots on. This
is a sign of respect. After I have introduced myself, and confirm I am in the
right place at the right time, I put on my indoor shoes.
11. When they ask where I would
like to sit, I often suggest a table, like the kitchen or dining room table. This offers me the most comfortable seating
arrangement, and I can write down things easily enough. I make sure I have a
clipboard with me in case I don’t have access to a table. This is also handy
when my client has to do cognitive testing and they are sitting in a chair or
on a couch.
12. I always ask about the
client’s hearing and if he/she has a “better side.” This helps me determine how close to sit and on what
side.
13. I make sure I have extra
pencils, pens and paper with me. I
never know when my pen will run out. I have been in a situation where I didn’t
have any scrap paper with me for writing notes and I had to ask the client for
a piece of paper. That is embarrassing.
14. When offered a cup of
coffee or glass of water, I politely decline, advising that I brought my own
bottle of water with me. I had a
situation in the past where I spilled a cup of water. Now I always carry my own
water bottle, and keep the lid closed. No more spills for me.
15. Bring resources and
giveaways. People tend to like it when
you can leave reading material for them to look at after you are gone.
16. I always give lots of time
at the end of my visit for questions. I
explain next steps so they know what to expect. I make sure I have left my
business card and encourage them to call me if anything comes up.
17. I always thank the client
for answering all of my questions. I
also thank the client and family member for their time.
18. I try to say something
positive in the end, something that will leave the person with a good feeling. For example, I might say, “You have a beautiful
family” or “We are going to get you some help.” I may compliment his/her
environment, such as, “You have a beautiful home, there is so much light,”
“Look at the view!” or “I love the artwork.” If there are family photos around
the home, I ask “Who is in this picture?” The person usually lights up and it
makes them feel good. I may also ask about framed awards and certificates, as
these are hung up on the wall because they are important to the person.
19. I sanitize my hands. I always have hand anti-bacterial hand sanitizer in my
car, so I make sure I sanitize my hands before and after each visit (preferably
I would be washing with soap and water). I don’t want to transfer any germs
from one person to the next. I shake hands with people so I want to ensure
cleanliness.
Do you have any best practices or
other tips for home visits you would like to share? Any comments or questions
on what you have read here? Please do so in the comments below.
Angela G. Gentile, MSW, RSW
Additional reference: Safe Practice
Procedure, Sample Policy 2: http://www.mhcc.org.au/media/5889/sample-policy-2-safe-practice-home-visiting.pdf
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