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Who could afford to work as a home carer? Well I tried, for about six months and in the end I had to leave because I couldn't afford to stay on. The company, a national one with council contracts really sold the job to me at my initial interview. The pay didn't seem too bad at 7.30 an hour, plus free training (not something I would have expected to pay for, anyway) and the chance to do NVQs. I don't drive but I do have a bike - they told me that all my clients would be in the city centre, 'within walking distance of each other'.
What they DON'T tell you at interview, is that in fact that you are only paid (by the second) for the time you are in a clients house. You have to 'log in' (using the clients phone) and log out, when you arrive and leave. If you log out more than three minutes over the allocated time (appointments are usually for either 15 or 30 minutes)you are not paid, unless there is a good excuse - client requires paramedics for example. And as for all my clients being in the city centre, I was all over the city because they only had TWO in the city centre.
So here's how it is. I leave home at 6.30 am (and I DO live in the city centre); half an hour of cycling to the first client for a 15 minute call and then another half hour cycle to the next client in the city centre. This is followed by another half hour for two more clients, both in a suburb of the city and so on... getting home at around midday, sometimes 12.30 to 1.00pm. I will then go out again for the evening calls at 5pm, visiting the same clients for 15 minutes each all over the city. I will usually get home at around 7.30 - 8.00 pm (four clients, 15 minutes each).
No pay for time spent travelling between clients...
No pay is given for the time you spend travelling between visits which works out at more than the time you spend IN the homes! In the week before Christmas my wages were 54 for five days work. Travelling by bicycle or car wont make any difference and the company is unable to keep it's staff because of the way it pays. Without the staff, it cannot get the clients and so the vicious circle continues. It also means that the quality of care is driven down. The company cannot afford to sack staff who fail to turn up at clients houses or who are otherwise incompetent.
Whilst I was working, there was one other carer who routinely failed to keep his appointments, leaving his clients without their medication, without food or with beds unmade.(some of these clients were incontinent), yet he was not sacked. The company did not have anyone to cover his calls and without carers, would inevitably have lost their lucrative council contract.
In the week before Christmas, this particular carer went abroad. One of his clients, an elderly muslim man with altzeimers was placed on my rota for 'personal care' which involved help with showering. Because of his religion however, he had specified that he did not want a female carer, so when I rang the office I was told to 'take him off' and not to visit. They continued to place him on my rota for the next month and the night before my last day they called to ask me if I had been going. 'No', I replied, 'I was told not to - he's a Muslim and he does not want a female carer.' 'Oh, that's alright', the manager said, 'He's been told to expect a female.' So the next day, I cycled out to his home (45 mins. from the centre) only to be told when I arrived there, that he DIDN'T WANT A WOMAN!!! This makes me an hour and three quarters late for my next client on the other side of the city, whose son has arrived to take her out and who has cancelled the call by the time I get there. I don't get paid for either call.
So it is us, the carers, and the elderly or vulnerable who suffer whilst the profit making care agencies continue to rake in the money. Part of the initial training involves "awareness of clients' cultural sensitivities". If this company had any genuine regard to cultural sensitivities, it would have returned that muslim man to the council in order for them to have placed him with an agency who could have provided him with a male carer. Instead, he was left for a month and a half with no care at all.
It's an absolute disgrace. If there are any people out there with television or radio connections, please consider putting together a documentary about the state of home care in this country. Elderly people, many of whom suffer from dementia and cannot speak for themselves, or who are simply ground down and resigned to missed appointments, lateness and general incompetence are suffering invisibly. They do not want a constant flow of different carers that don't stay in the job because the pay is so bad. It is unsettling for them and upsetting to be always on the verge of losing someone they have got used to. My clients were extremely upset when I left and I was sad to leave them too.
Gripe over - I have a decent job now where I am paid properly. The misery, however, continues for carers and clients right across the country and I want people to be angry about it.
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Also too as someone else said here shifts can be cancelled on the day and you won't be compensated unless you ring up to try and get other work. You can be travelling long distances too.
They are not fussy about who they take on either if you pass the CRB your in. Some of the carers I worked with were lovely (but soon left like I did after 6 months) the hardy ones stayed and by hardy I mean rough handlers, mean comments no kindness. Some moaned in front of clients about other clients. One gave me a dressing down because I would only work new years eve and not Christmas eve in front of a client. One had mental illness diagnosed Bi-polar. Dignity was breached on many occasions. Short cuts taken where they could one would ask the clients son to use the hoist as she had a bad back (everytime). There was a lot of bullying and not a nice atmosphere at all. I reported many incidents of lack of dignity to the care provide including one where I was under supervision of a supervisor - looking after a paralysed lady the supervisor changed the ladies incontinence pad and explained what she saw in a very loud voice "oh what have you been eating - gosh pooh stinky" when I went on my own later that week the lady cried and told me how embarrassed she was. I explained to the care provider and was told not to worry she is very emotional. There was a man who had Autism/Break down and was kept in a room in a basement he had a window out of which was a wall you could touch no view. Carpet soaking in wee and the rest of the home seemed to be for drunken alcoholics. When I asked if he got out I was told to mind my business and a complaint put into my care agency I wasn't sent again. The system stinks and I hope I don't need it when I am older. However having x2 children with special needs I am very scared for them. There are good carers I like to think I went out of my way to help but then you have no gurantee. Things need to change. The company I worked for also does insurance for the over 50's.
If they were valued more then those who look after them would be paid a decent wage and not be ripped off with extra charges and unreasonable demands.
The office staff were my biggest problem. I thought the world of my clients. They knew me and liked me going to them. But the office staff were full of attitude. Carers join and are told they can have the hours they want, but they left after a week because they either get hardly any ir they get bombarded. There were times when theyd take on a client half an hour walk away, id be given ten mins to get there. I used to explain it was too far and i was earning about £3 for the effort.
The office used to put new clients on my rota and not even phone to let you know if the client has a key safe or if there pallative or if they are aggressive.
I had 7 hours a day not including 3 hours walking. I told the office that was plenty for me. Working 6.45 till 1.15 then 4.45 till 9. Tgey failed to listen and by the tine i walked out i was up to 9 hours a day plus 3 hours walking. They put a shopping call on me aswel so one day id be working 6.30-2.30 then back at 4.30 till 10.00.
Now for the rubbish wage. The lack if appreciation and communication, who can blame carers for quitting. The sad thing is i cared about my 7 clients. I looked after them most days. I will miss chatting to them why there lunch was cooking. There stories and learning about there lives. I feel sad i have left them and now they have different carers going in.
These people are in there last years of life. We are sometimes all they have most carers want to do there job and keep this connection but sadly we are pushed to give up. Care companies should be inspected. Calls to staff should be recorded and random checks should be carried out.
Carers deserve more respect. We are out there in rain and hot days, snow and ice to help people. We can not eat out tea at a normal tume. We grab what we can. We dont get time with our family at night. We work weekends. We get harrased on our days off. We get attitude and no support from our managers. We get paid rubbish amounts of money. We gave to buy our own uniforms. We have to travel to get our own gloves. We have to beg for gloves aswel! Print of our own rotas and take them in. Get no travel pay. There is room for alot of change!!!
Let's Imagine for just a moment... What would happen if tomorrow morning not one carer decided to turn up for another rewarding day at the office ? ...... It would be chaos and although in theory that may never happen, just remember as carers leave in droves and staff turnover increases (and young people avoiding a care career like a plague) ... What does the future hold for Care In Our Community?? For the sake of your families and your own future care, make it a major issue with your local MPs and all the individuals who influence decisions surrounding Healthcare in the UK - demand a better "care focused" (not money focused) homecare or care home service. No one listens to one voice, but many voices speak so much louder ..
jack