October 16, 2014

11 Reasons You Should Become a Memory Care Professional for Tender Rose

memory_care_professional

It takes a special person to become a dementia caregiver.

Caring for adults with Alzheimer’s and dementia is a challenging, demanding and strenuous career path. However, while the daily duties of this profession may be difficult at times, the work you do is important and, ultimately, rewarding. Being a professional caregiver means making a difference in the lives of your clients, and their loved ones, for years to come.

Here at Tender Rose, we believe our Memory Care Professionals are the best in the industry. Each day, they’re driven to improve the lives of our clients by engaging them on a deeper level. We strive to not only improve the quality of life of our clients, but our employees as well.

If you’re a professional caregiver seeking an inspiring and fulfilling career path in dementia care, please read on to learn 11 reasons why a career as a Memory Care Professional with Tender Rose may right for you.

Reason #1: Higher Pay

As you’re probably already aware, most home care agencies pay their caregivers $12-14 per hour. However, we start our Memory Care Professionals on a salary of $16-18 per hour. The reason for this is simple: We know the work you do is both crucial and challenging, and we believe you deserve to be well-compensated. 

In addition to a higher-than-average starting salary, we also offer raises and paid time off after you’ve been with us for 90 days.

Reason #2: Longer Shifts + Consistent Hours

Most home care workers spends hours in their car each week, driving from client to client. This puts a lot of wear and tear on your car and infringes on your ability to build strong relationships with your clients.

At Tender Rose, we offer our caregivers 8-12 hour shifts and a highly consistent schedule. A steady, more predictable schedule allows you the uninterrupted one-on-one time you need to make a lasting, positive impact in your clients’ lives.

Reason #3: We Support You

Unlike other industries, the world of dementia care doesn’t observe normal business hours. Questions and concerns can arise at anytime. However, some agencies only offer support in weekdays. If an issue comes up at night, or over the weekend, you may be left to fend for yourself until the office re-opens. 

Tender Rose Home Care is different. We have a manager available to take your calls 24/7. Whether you have a question, a client concern or need help finding a replacement for your shift in case of a family emergency or illness, we’re always here to support you.

Our caregivers are what make us exceptional, and we focus all of our energy on giving you everything you need to be great at your job. 

Reason #4: Know Your Schedule a Month in Advance

One of the most frustrating things about being a caregiver is not receiving your work schedule until the week before your shifts. This sort of last-minute lifestyle makes it difficult to plan for child care, school or time with your family. 

At Tender Rose, we publish our schedules a month in advance. This way, you can organize your life and plan for the future.

Reason #5: We Match You with the Right Clients

As a dementia caregiver, you’ve probably cared for clients with whom you didn’t click. Sometimes this scenario is inevitable, but sometimes it’s because your employer didn’t consider whether you and the client were a good fit.

We’ve heard stories from our own Memory Care Professionals about being matched with abusive clients while working for different agencies. This sort of treatment hardly makes for a fulfilling experience.

We know how important it is for our employees to enjoy their job. That’s why we make sure you are matched with clients with whom we feel you are compatible, and we’ll never ask you to endure abuse in your working environment.

Reason #6: We Pay Double Time for Holidays

Most people look forward to holidays as an opportunity to spend time with their friends and family. For caregivers, however, a holiday is often just another work day. In fact, many agencies expect you to work every holiday with little to no incentive or additional reimbursement. 

We understand by working on a holiday, you’re likely sacrificing quality time with your loved ones. So, if you choose, we’ll help you arrange to take the day off. Memory Care Professionals who choose to work a holiday earn double their typical hourly pay. That’s our way of saying “thank you for all your hard work.”

Reason #7: No Last-Minute Cancellations

Have you ever woken up to a phone call from your agency canceling your shift for the day? Last-minute cancellations not only affect your income, they also throw off your daily routine. Unfortunately, untimely schedule changes are all too common the world of dementia care.

Here at Tender Rose, we understand the need for a regular schedule. We’ve discovered memory care specialists need consistency as much as the dementia and Alzheimer’s patients we serve. That’s why we do our best to alert you of any schedule changes well in advance. 

If your shift is canceled with less than 72 hours notice, and we cannot replace your shift with another client, then you will enjoy a fully paid day off. Your work is crucial to the success of our agency, and we know your time is valuable.

Reason #8: We Respect Your Rights

Working long hours without breaks and spending your hard-earned money traveling between clients—all without a single dime of overtime pay—seem to be the standard experience of a professional caregiver. 

Although labor laws were created to ensure you can enjoy a safe and fair work environment, many home care agencies neglect to adequately enforce these regulations.

At Tender Rose, we take labor laws seriously. In fact, we’ve even put specific practices in place to ensure complete fairness. By working for us, you can expect the following:

  • If you work in a client’s home, you will be paid time and a half for any hours over 9 hours in a day or 45 hours in a week.
  • If you work with one of our clients in a facility, you will be paid time and a half for any hours over 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. You will be paid double time for any hours over 12 hours in a day. You will also be paid for rest breaks.
  • If you work for more than one client in a day, you will be paid for any time spent traveling between clients. You will also be reimbursed for your mileage.
  • If you take your client for outings in your vehicle, you will be reimbursed for your mileage.

Reason #9: You’ll Enjoy Perks

Staying indoors all day with nothing more than a television to keep you entertained is difficult for caregivers as well as the clients they serve. Some agencies expect you and your client to spend long hours with little engagement, and ask you to focus on nothing more than the physical wellness of the patient.

At Tender Rose, we promote person-centered activity-based care. If your client is able, we encourage you to take them to the movies, to a museum, on a hike or just about anything else that brings joy and meaning to their lives. Best of all, Tender Rose reimburses you for any expenses—including mileage on your vehicle as well as movie tickets and meals for you and your client.

Reason #10: We Offer Paid Time Off

What’s worse than being home sick? Losing money by missing time at work. When it comes to the home care industry, paid time off seems to be a rarity.

At Tender Rose, we understand “life happens.” People get sick, family emergencies arise and, sometimes, you just need a little time off to relax and rejuvenate. By working with us, you’ll earn paid time off to use for any of the above. 

Reason #11: We Offer Paid Training

An address, a name and a schedule. 

At most agencies, that’s the only information you’ll receive when you’re assigned to a new client. This can be scary and, more often than not, makes for a trying experience. 

Unfortunately, not all home dementia care agencies understand the importance of developing psychologically healthy caregiver-client relationships, engaging clients on a personal level, or providing caregivers with the tools needed to make a lasting difference. 

At Tender Rose, we understand that, in order to provide exceptional care, you need training and preparation. To ensure you’re ready, we’ll provide you with the following:

  • Over five hours of paid dementia care training and a Tender Rose company orientation 
  • A report outlining a full assessment of the client’s condition
  • A detailed description of the care plan, and up to six additional hours of paid training on this plan (including two hours of orientation in the office and four hours shadowing other successful memory care professionals with the client)
  • Ongoing paid dementia care training

As you can see, Tender Rose is not your typical home dementia care agency. We take pride in offering the highest quality of care for our clients, and best work-life balance for our employees. Being a Tender Rose Memory Care Professional means bringing joy and meaning to the lives of Bay Area adults living with dementia while enjoying personal fulfillment and a supportive agency.

If you’re interested in working with Tender Rose, please take a few minutes to apply online! 

Subscribe to Dementia Care Blog