Frequently Asked Questions
01
How do I know you're the right Care company for me?
We pride ourselves on our delivery of Care. We are a well established company with a long history of satisfied clients. We genuinely care about all our clients and treat them with the utmost respect. Our team work tirelessly to ensure all clients needs are met and their expectations are regularly exceeded. We truly believe that our clients get the best out of life whilst maintaining an independent lifestyle with our support. Feel free to read our Testimonials.
02
I'm looking for Care for my Mother and I have no idea what requirements she has. This is the first time we've considered external help or support, how will I know what she may need?
We are dedicated to providing a bespoke and tailored service to your needs. We appreciate it's daunting asking for and finding the correct external help, but our trained and experienced carers will make the transition feel seamless. Firstly, we could discuss your needs over the telephone or even arrange a free home visit to help assess your loved ones needs and discuss a way forward.
03
I do not know who would be responsible for assigning or paying for my Five Star Home Care needs?
This is too often the case and some people go without the necessary support they need. This could be because they are confused about what they can receive free of charge via the Local Authority, or what they would be liable to pay for. You can discuss these matters with us at our office and we can put you in touch with the relevant people such as; Social Services, Social Workers or Local Authorities. Or alternatively we can deal with you directly as a Private client.
04
How much would a standard package of Home Care cost?
This is unfortunately very hard to answer, mainly due to the nature of the Care or support required and the frequency at which we would provide it. All Care packages are different, infact we do not have two Care packages the same. Please feel free to talk to us at the office to have an informed chat about our services or to explore options of how we can assist you or a loved one.
05
I don't know what to do, but my relatives care needs have changed?
This is something that happens regularly to our clients and their families. We have experienced carers who will notice small and big changes to the client whilst they complete their duties. Carers recognise that should they become concerned about any changes in the client or the clients needs, they report them to the family and the main office. It is sometimes necessary to make adjustments to the care plans in order to meet the clients new needs. This is all done with the consent and involvement of the client and the clients family if appropriate. It could be as simple as your loved now requires assistance with some light cleaning duties or temporarily needs help with showering. We will use a flexible approach to support you and your loved one in the comfort of your own home.
06
Reviewed March 2020
Corona Virus COVID-19 Business Continuity Strategy
As Corona Virus spreads widely throughout the U.K, we are implementing some strategies to help protect our clients our staff and business.
We are placing the Health and Safety of our clients and carers at the forefront of everything we do.
As a company we have decided to cease all staff meetings/121's or appraisals with immediate effect. We do not want our whole workforce or key staff members put in a position of contracting COVID-19.
We expect our employees to report all illness; sudden or prolonged to us with immediate effect. We also expect them to report any changes in client’s well-being no matter how small. This reporting will be in the form of telephone calls, or where appropriate using our private company WhatsApp group.
Should someone contract the COVID-19 virus we would expect them to keep in communication with us and to take all precautionary measures to avoid further spread.
Should this happen where a staff member contracted the virus all employees who have worked with them since the U.K outbreak at the beginning of March 2020, will need to be tested for the virus along with any clients/client’s family members.
We have highlighted the symptoms of the virus to all employees so they can be vigilant, also reiterated the way in which to report the illness observed either in themselves or others. The sickness reporting procedure will remain the same via telephone and they must then follow Government guidelines regarding self-isolation for the recommended timescales.
In order to reduce the risks of exposure in our workplace we will keep all staff members up to date with any new information or direct them appropriately. We already provide all employees with gloves, aprons and face masks. But we are encouraging all employees to wash hands regularly and thoroughly in line with Government advice.
We have also provided hand sanitiser for employees to use should they be unable to wash their hands. We have also ensured the frequency of cleaning at our head office premises is increased. Soap, hot water and hand sanitiser is readily available at our Head Office premises. All high-risk contamination areas are also being sanitised such as; telephones, keyboards and door handles etc.
All our clients are considered high risk to the COVID-19 infection due to their age and vulnerability. We have begun to look at their underlying health conditions and making ourselves familiar with their ongoing situation. We will subsequently be contacting all family/next of kin for each client to discuss what precautions they are taking or could take to lower the risk for their family member.
We will continue to support each client in a safe and controlled way until told otherwise by a Government or WHO official.
We will continue to help explain the COVID-19 virus to our clients, thus encouraging them to help themselves to wash hands where appropriate.
It is paramount we keep all channels of communication open between client, client’s families and employees to help with any uncertainty or confusion of what to expect from us.
A small proportion of our clients have had a Hospital/Respite stay scheduled and unscheduled since the beginning of the outbreak in the U.K. We have decided to ask clients and the client’s families who are due to return home from Hospital/Respite to self-isolate for 7 days where possible. We appreciate this may not be possible and will liaise with the family, client and supplier on ‘Best Practice’ for this situation.
As a company we have decided to focus on our current clients, and we will not be tendering for new packages and clients until further notice. We do not have any plans to hire any new Carers either, recruitment will happen organically when needed.
Employees who have already booked holidays abroad are to follow the Foreign Office and Government guidelines. We have already explained to staff NOT to travel to any countries with an outbreak as it increases the risk of contraction and/or further spreads the virus.
If someone has contracted the virus Public Health Wales (PHW) will contact us with regards to the case, identifying others who has been in contact with the affected person, carry out a risk assessment and then give advice and/or actions to take.
We have a contingency plan in place should staff members contract the virus. 3 office staff are fully trained and qualified to provide care. We have also contacted several recently retired carers as a temporary measure to care for our clients. We feel these people would only be used as a last resort as the Government are suggesting the peak of the Pandemic could be anywhere from April-June 2020.
We have a strategy in place should we need to close the Five Star Head offices. All office staff have laptops and work mobiles for working from home situations and staff would be able to collect replacement protective gloves, aprons etc from the head office doorstep 24/7.
Our company has a 24/7 mobile number for clients, client’s families and staff to use. We are contactable constantly and will help answer questions or concerns around the clock.
Our suppliers have confirmed they can continue to provide usual levels of protective equipment we provide our staff. They have agreed to minimise interaction at our premises by allowing us to verbally agree delivery, instead of signing something and they will leave items in the doorway and will not enter our premises.