Almost quit my job today

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badgeygirl

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I'm an in home caregiver. I go into elderly people's homes and do everything from light housekeeping to bowel and bladder care ( a little yucky but someone has to do it). I LOVE my job.....mostly. I've recently had added an elderly Vietnamese woman in her 80's, she's got bad arthritis and the beginnings of dementia. She can be REALLY difficult. Part of my job with her is to give her a shower once a week and she's recently started asking me to lift her from a sitting position to standing. Our company policy is NEVER, EVER to lift our clients. I've called the office and had several discussions about this with them. They haven't really been helpful and I told them this morning that if the situation was not remedied I was going to quit. MAN! Did they ever act fast to figure out a solution. The old lady is going to be reassessed and I get to go to another clients house till they figure out if she needs more than we can give her. I was truly going to walk, in my field I can get work in a heartbeat and I'm valuable enough that my company doesn't want to lose me. Made me feel good that they are trying to fix this rather than lose me.
 
weldrwomn

weldrwomn

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It is nice to be valuable - I don't imagine that it is easy to find good people for the type of job you have.
 
sneakymom

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Originally Posted by badgeygirl

I'm an in home caregiver. I go into elderly people's homes and do everything from light housekeeping to bowel and bladder care ( a little yucky but someone has to do it). I LOVE my job.....mostly. I've recently had added an elderly Vietnamese woman in her 80's, she's got bad arthritis and the beginnings of dementia. She can be REALLY difficult. Part of my job with her is to give her a shower once a week and she's recently started asking me to lift her from a sitting position to standing. Our company policy is NEVER, EVER to lift our clients. I've called the office and had several discussions about this with them. They haven't really been helpful and I told them this morning that if the situation was not remedied I was going to quit. MAN! Did they ever act fast to figure out a solution. The old lady is going to be reassessed and I get to go to another clients house till they figure out if she needs more than we can give her. I was truly going to walk, in my field I can get work in a heartbeat and I'm valuable enough that my company doesn't want to lose me. Made me feel good that they are trying to fix this rather than lose me.
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I'm glad they're trying to fix it too- rather than lose you.
But they should have done something the FIRST time you called.
Not only could you get hurt if you lift the client wrong- if something goes wrong- the client could get badly hurt as well, and that's a place they probably don't want to go.


Cheryl
 
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badgeygirl

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I try to be an asset, I do a good job, the families rave about me, but yeah, it would have been nice if the company had listened the first time I said something. I was told that if I felt I was physically unable to work with this lady they would get someone else into her home. That didn't happen and it degenerated to what happened yesterday. I kind of felt lied to and when HR called me back to help work out the solution I flat told her so. My company claims to be christian based (I'm not Christian and they know it) so I was very disappointed to feel so lied to.

But at least they know that there are very few that will do what I do. It's not always so nice cleaning up elderly bottoms, but I seem to be good at it!
 
carolpetunia

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When my father became incapacitated, we learned just how precious a kind, gentle, and SMART caregiver is. It's difficult to entrust the daily care of your loved one to someone else, but for many reasons (including the patient's dignity), it's often absolutely necessary. I thank heaven for all the good people who came into our home and made my father as comfortable as possible during his final year or so. And I'm sure there are lots of families who feel the same way about you!
 
trillcat

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Good for you for you! Lifting is one of the most difficult things, can hurt the person you are caring and yourself! ( I still have a bad back from lifting a woman I was helping to care for, not properly trained for it) That is why they have lifting devices for those who get to the point they cannot do that on their own.
Those of us who choose this path have to be smart, and that is where the true care comes in.
A big yep about the nastier bits, bowel and bladder care. I have people thinking I have lost my mind, why in the world would anyone CHOOSE this? Well, because someone has to do it! I would hope someone who cares is there when and if I get to that point.
 
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krazy kat2

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Bless you for doing this job.
If we had not had help from several great caregivers when my DH's grandma was sick before she passed, I would have lost my mind. I stayed with her almost 24/7, she had pretty severe dementia, and a laundry list of other things wrong with her, and was just generally contrary.
Nobody realizes how hard caring for an elderly person can be until they do it, and you have my sincere admiration for making it a career.
 
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badgeygirl

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Originally Posted by Trillcat

Good for you for you! Lifting is one of the most difficult things, can hurt the person you are caring and yourself! ( I still have a bad back from lifting a woman I was helping to care for, not properly trained for it) That is why they have lifting devices for those who get to the point they cannot do that on their own.
Those of us who choose this path have to be smart, and that is where the true care comes in.
A big yep about the nastier bits, bowel and bladder care. I have people thinking I have lost my mind, why in the world would anyone CHOOSE this? Well, because someone has to do it! I would hope someone who cares is there when and if I get to that point.
Click to expand...
This is EXACTLY why I do it, I totally believe in karma, what goes around, comes around. Someday I may be in a position where I have to have a caregiver myself and I hope that my family can find someone like me that really truly cares about their clients. I may not always enjoy wiping bottoms, but I absolutely adore my clients.
 
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