Re: Hiring 24/7 Caregivers

[Guest guest]

Teri

I can only offer suggestions re: the payroll issue. You can deduct the cost of

the caregivers on your income tax return whether it's through an agency and they

will handle the payroll for their employees, or private hire, as long as you do

appropriate payroll deductions and filings. It's filed on Schedule H of form

1040. I work for a CPA firm and we always recommend that anyone hiring private

caregivers contact a payroll processing company to assist you through the

process of obtaining an employee identification number, both fed and state, and

once everything is set up, all you have to do is report hours to them and they

can generate the checks (or do direct deposit) and handle all the tax filings

for you. It is worth every penny.

Good luck. PS: Personally, I've done it both ways caring for my parents before

they passed away. Each circumstance is very personal and unique.

>

> will be out of Rehab in a few days and I do have a couple of ladies lined

up as 24/7 caregivers. But I'm having second thoughts as to whether they will

be a good fit for him. is on the big side (5'10 " , 175lbs) and very strong

and can be obstinate. At the Rehab Center, he now can get around in a walker.

However, what I've observed is that he takes commands from a man better than a

woman. I'm also concerned about his falling when we get home; would it then

make more sense to have a male caregiver.

>

> Also, hiring privately or through an agency. My accountant says we can

deduct it from our income tax if through an agency; if privately, I must do

payroll.

>

> Your comments will be appreciated.

>

> Teri

>

[Guest guest]

However, what I've observed is that he takes commands from a man better than a

woman.  I'm also concerned about his falling when we get home; would it then

make more sense to have a male caregiver.

Hi Terri, when we have met and talked I have expressed my opinion on women for

my husband before, they didn't work out for him for different reasons on each

one. I hired a man from an agency in the end and in the beginning he was

very good, but because my husband's friends stopped coming around when they

could no longer understand him, my husband bonded with the male caregiver and

they became more like friends and not caregiver/patient. The caregiver began to

listen to Jim's demands, even though I warned him that Jim has dementia and

doesn't know what he's talking about at times. Jim had the caregiver doing

repair jobs around the house and the caregiver was not a handy-man and I had to

call in the repair people to repair the jobs that the caregiver would do for

Jim. I didn't have the heart to fire the caregiver. I had fired 5 women already

and my husband needed a buddy he could watch his TV programs with. He did not

like soap operas and things the

female caregivers wanted to watch. TV was the only thing my husband had left at

that time he could enjoy and he liked having a buddy to watch it with; like

sports and guy stuff. The move to the nursing home stopped my having to call in

repair people to repair the repairs. To the very end the male caregiver visited

my husband weekly at the nursing home and was a friend to Jim to the end.

Jim was getting aggressive with me too, so I had to put him in a nursing home,

since I took care of him on my own from 5PM to the next morning and all hours on

weekends. He was about the same weight and height as your husband. 

One of the female caregiver's from an agency stole something. I came home one

day from work early. I was sick and they sent me home. The caregiver was in

another room watching a soap opera and my husband was sitting alone in the

kitchen asleep with his head down in his plate of food. I was angry and fired

her, but it was my first time to fire a caregiver and I made the mistake of

firing her on a Thursday and asking her back for Friday, so I could go to work,

because I knew I would be feeling better to go to work on Friday, I just looked

sick, so I was sent home. I think it was more stress than being sick.

So, on Friday she came back knowing she was fired. I got a call at work on

Friday from her that she had an emergency call and had to leave Jim right now.

Jim was home alone for about 45 minutes until I could get home. When I got home

I found that she had stolen our boombox that I played music on for Jim to calm

him. That was during the time of boomboxes.

I had just used it the day before and found that it was not in the place where I

always put it and I knew I had put it there the day before. I called the agency

to report it, but they called her and asked if she had taken the boombox and of

course, she said, " No. " They told me they had never had a complaint about her

before and that she claimed she didn't take the boom box, so it was my word

against hers and I dropped it. I went to several other agencies, but women never

worked out well with my husband. He also turned one into a sex object. He would

have never done that in his right mind. These are just my experiences. I have

heard others that have great experiences with their caregiver.

I didn't want to figure out tax deductions on the caregiver's pay and hired out

of agencies. I did hire by word of mouth a male caregiver once and not from an

agency. I had taken family to San Francisco while he stayed with my husband. We

had been gone several hours and when we returned Jim was " Home Alone! " Jim

didn't get along with the caregiver and got aggressive. This was before cell

phones were common and I didn't have one to call me on. The caregiver left Jim

and called on our home phone, when I arrived home there was a message that Jim

got aggressive with him and he didn't have to put up with it and left.

Jim had been on his own for a few hours, which shocked me. Thankfully, he didn't

start the house on fire by cooking something with his freedom or go for a walk

and get lost or hurt.

I wish you the best of luck, and that everything works out well for you and your

husband.

Jan

To: LBDcaregivers <LBDcaregivers >

Sent: Sunday, October 16, 2011 4:21 AM

Subject: Hiring 24/7 Caregivers

will be out of Rehab in a few days and I do have a couple of ladies lined

up as 24/7 caregivers.  But I'm having second thoughts as to whether they will

be a good fit for him.  is on the big side (5'10 " , 175lbs) and very strong

and can be obstinate.  At the Rehab Center, he now can get around in a walker. 

However, what I've observed is that he takes commands from a man better than a

woman.  I'm also concerned about his falling when we get home; would it then

make more sense to have a male caregiver.

Also, hiring privately or through an agency.  My accountant says we can deduct

it from our income tax if through an agency; if privately, I must do payroll.

Your comments will be appreciated.

Teri

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