One of the best ways to combat the ongoing caregiver shortage is to ensure your team feels supported and valued. There are agencies that hold Caregiver Appreciation Days, which is amazing, but what about the other days of the year? Consistently showing your caregivers how important they are is a key way to set them up for ongoing success both in their personal and professional life. With countless job openings available and very few people willing to fill those spots, ensure your caregivers don’t leave your agency in search of a better opportunity by following our tips below.
Offer a living wage.
According to an article published in the Rowan Report by Darcey Trescone, caregivers’ wages have not increased much over the past decade, which doesn’t allow for them to make a living wage. In 2020, the median wage for caregivers was $13.56, around $20,200 annually – requiring about 44% of these workers to rely on some form of public assistance. Increasing average pay will show your caregivers you value the work they do, along with helping them afford standard costs of living.
Provide valuable continued education.
The home care space is constantly changing, so updating your training and eLearning plans is essential for providing the support to ensure your caregivers are successful. CareConnect offers an eLearning integration (you can learn more here), that allows your team to learn wherever they are – at home or on the go! When you only offer trainings that are years old, with information that isn’t relevant to today’s home care climate, your agents won’t feel as if the company values them and their improvements.
Provide quality support.
When most (if not all) of your workforce is remote, your home care agency needs to have a support system in place to help your team when they require help. Inside the CareConnect mobile app, there is a live support team along with an array of how-to videos and infographics, so caregivers always have on-demand support through the method they prefer to use.
Ensure ease of booking shifts
Can you imagine how frustrating it would be if a caregiver could only book a shift over a phone call? Making your shift booking process as smooth as possible for caregivers while allowing them to check their schedule to ensure they’re not double-booking themselves is key. CareConnect offers a seamless shift booking system that allows your caregivers to book with ease and even recommends shifts specific to their schedule and distance preferences!
In order for your caregivers to be successful at your agency and loyal to you, they need to understand that you value their success. Putting in the effort now to help your caregivers be successful will ultimately lead to your home care agency being successful.
About CareConnect
CareConnect is a disruptive technology company that enables home care providers to reduce the cost of managing, scheduling, and retaining qualified caregivers. CareConnect’s suite of capabilities includes advanced workload optimization, eLearning, and secure communications for caregivers. At a time when agency owners need help maximizing caregiver schedules to fill shifts faster, CareConnect is rapidly transforming the way home care providers onboard caregivers to get them to work quickly, allowing them to build lasting, trusting relationships with their clients and ultimately, better outcomes. For more information click here.