Preparing for your first caregiver visit

The first caregiver visit goes best when the caregiver has three things: a clear written care plan, a quick tour of the home and where everything lives, and a proper introduction so your parent knows who they are and why they’re there. With a good agency, the care plan is already done — your job is mostly the tour and the introduction.

Here’s how to prepare, and what the first visit usually looks like.

Before the visit

Write a one-page “home sheet” the caregiver can keep to hand:

• Emergency contacts, in the order to call them, and the doctor’s office number.
• A current medication list — name, dose, time of day — and where the medication and the pill organizer are kept.
• Allergies, dietary needs, and foods your parent loves and hates.
• The daily routine: wake time, breakfast, the order they like to do things, nap, bedtime.
• Mobility notes: which side to stand on, what aids they use, which chairs are hard to get out of.
• The little things that settle or unsettle them — a favorite radio station, a subject to avoid, a phrase that helps when they’re anxious.

Tidy the working areas. Clear the paths the caregiver and your parent will use, make sure the bathroom and kitchen are usable, and check the lighting on the route to the bathroom.

Decide the practical stuff: which door the caregiver uses, where they park, whether there’s a key or a lock box, where they can put their coat and bag, and which cupboard the cleaning supplies are in.

Introducing the caregiver

How you frame it matters. Try “This is [name]. They’re going to give us a hand a couple of mornings a week so things are easier” — us, not you, and a hand, not care.

• Be there for the first visit if you can, but don’t hover the whole time — give them a chance to talk.
• Let your parent show the caregiver around themselves where possible. It puts them in the host role rather than the patient role.
• If your parent is resistant, ask the caregiver to start with the lightest tasks — a cup of tea, a chat, a bit of tidying — and build up to personal care over a few visits.

What the first visit usually covers

Expect the first visit to be more about getting oriented than getting everything done. The caregiver will go through the care plan with you, do the home tour, confirm the routine, and start on the agreed tasks at whatever pace feels comfortable. The care coordinator will usually check in afterwards to see how it went.

After the first week

Give it a little time — the first few visits are an adjustment for everyone — but do tell the coordinator what’s working and what isn’t. Is the timing right? Are the tasks the right ones? Is the personal fit good? Small adjustments early on make a big difference, and the plan is meant to change.

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If you’re getting ready for a first visit and want to talk anything through, call your care coordinator — that’s what they’re there for.

This article is general information, not medical, legal or financial advice. For clinical questions, speak to your doctor.