How to Select a Home Care Provider

Selecting a Home Health Care Provider can be made a lot easier by asking some questions about the organization. The link to the 'print version' leads to a printable page that lets you easily compare different providers.

Questions to Ask a Home Health Care Provider

• How many years has the provider been serving your community?
• Does the provider offer printed material describing its services and costs?
• Is the provider accredited? This means that their quality of care has been surveyed and approved by an outside accrediting organization (such as Accreditation Canada, CARF, ISO, FOCUS Accreditation, Canadian Centre for Accreditation).
• Is the provider a member of a provincial association that has standards of care - such as the Ontario Home Care Association?
• Can you get a service agreement which outlines the services to be provided and the cost, in writing?
• What are the costs for services?
• Will the provider help access insurance policies and/or government funded services on your behalf?
• How does the provider handle billing?
• Will the provider provide a list of references?
• What are services provided?
• Will these services meet the home care needs time?
• Are provider caregivers available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week?
• Does the provider have a nursing supervisor on call and available 24 hours per day?
• What are the qualifications of the staff?
• Does the provider ensure patient confidentiality? How?
• How are employees hired and trained?
• Does the provider require criminal record background checks and communicable disease screens for its employees?
• What is the procedure for resolving issues that may arise between the patient/family and home health care staff?
• Is someone available to answer questions or respond to a crisis?
• Who can you call with questions or complaints?
• What happens if a staff member fails to make a scheduled visit?
• Will the same person visit regularly?

Questions to Ask References

• Do you frequently refer patients to this provider?
• Are your patients/clients satisfied with the services?
• Do you have a contractual arrangement with this provider? If so, are they required to meet special standards of care?