Articles & Guides

Browse our knowledge base of home care information, organized by topic.

CommunityPlus Service Practices

Data Disclosure

Data Disclosure: Collection, Use and Storage Our in-house operations system, Lifespan Unified Care, is hosted on our own…

Invoice Terms

Invoice Terms Applicable Taxes are paid for by the client, as they apply to the services provided and pursuant to Federa…

Rates + Holidays

Rates + Holidays Rate & Premium Changes may occur at the beginning of each calendar year. Increases are typically ar…

Premiums

Premiums Premiums are amounts charged in addition to the hourly bill rate for specific types of service. No one likes ad…

Liability

Liability Workplace insurance is provided through WorkSafe BC under Community Plus Care Ltd. The Payor and Client agree …

How We Use 'AI'

How We Use 'AI' Community Plus Care uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to make our work more efficient — never to replace…

Home Care Basics

Starting with a Home Caregiving service

How to start a Home Caregiving service? Government Home Care starts with a call to the local health unit or the Communit…

What is Continuity of Care?

What is Continuity of Care? Everyone talks about Continuity of Care. But what IS Continuity of Care? How do we define it…

Visit Timing vs Team Continuity

Visit Timing vs Team Continuity When a caregiver cannot make it for your scheduled service on short notice due to an acc…

Resistance to Care

Resistance to Care Almost everyone has some resistance to the idea that they might need assistance with personal care an…

How much does Private Home Care cost on Vancouver Island?

Many care providers make it difficult to obtain pricing information but we've done the work for you! We ask every island…

Do Awards, Certifications, Memberships or Accreditations matter?

Do Home Care Awards, Certifications & Memberships or Accreditations matter? Awards, Certifications and Memberships a…

Is 'Small' 'Local' home health care best?

Is ‘Small’ ‘Local’ home health care best? There is a common perception that small local home care agencies are the best …

Travel Time & Rural Travel Time

Travel Time is a cost of providing a home care visit and employers are required to pay Caregivers for travel time. Norma…

CommunityPlus Care Cost Calculator

Currently the average cost for a 2 hour service on Vancouver Island is: About $55 per hour for care providers that are n…

Reasons for Home Caregiving

End-of-Life

End-of-Life End-of-life (Palliative) care is about providing comfort, dignity and ease during a person’s final days, wee…

Supporting Independence

Supporting Independence From five to infinity, no one wants to be told what to do. We value our independence at every st…

Relief for Family Caregivers

Relief for Family Caregivers Over 1.4 million people in British Columbia are unpaid caregivers. They provide 80% of care…

Assistance to Appointments

Assistance to Appointments Assistance to Appointments is available when you need transportation at specific times with a…

Essential Daily Tasks

Essential Daily Tasks Essential Daily Tasks are the activities of daily living (ADLs) that are necessary to live and lea…

Mobility Support

Mobility Support Mobility is freedom When mobility is impaired the world gets smaller and our dependency on others goes …

Presence for Safety

Presence for Safety Presence for Safety is about risk mitigation . Having a caregiver present for safety may be recommen…

Care While Travelling

Care While Travelling Taking a trip with Caregiver support doesn’t have to be a headache! Caregivers can facilitate trav…

Help during Hospitalization

Help during a hospital stay is available to supplement the personal support they provide. Caregivers can come in to prov…

Help after Hospitalization

Help after Hospitalization Lengthy hospital stays often warrant temporary post-discharge support when returning to the h…

Post-Op Support

Post-Op Support After a serious surgery people may be required to have a care attendant for 24 hours or longer when they…

Reasons for Home Nursing

Condition Assessment

Condition Assessment Nurses provide in-home clinical perspective for health conditions like Pain, Mobility or Swallowing…

Weekly Vitals

Weekly Vitals Weekly nursing visits can be a low intrusion way to add regular clinical perspective and an early warning …

Wounds, burns and large skin tears

Wounds, burns and large skin tears Nurses provide in-home wound care supporting the healing of post-op incisions, seriou…

Post-op Monitoring

Post-Op Monitoring Nurses provide in-home post-operative monitoring & assessment for reassurance that the health and…

Catheterization

Catheterization Nurses can provide intermittent catheterization at home to relieve urinary retention for long-standing c…

Injected Medications

Injected Medications Nurses provide in-home injections for prescribed medications and materials. Injections could includ…

The CommunityPlus Difference

The Caregivers We Keep

The Caregivers We Keep Finding and keeping exceptional caregivers is key to providing exceptional client service.  Excep…

Flexible + Responsive Service

Flexible and Responsive Service CommunityPlus provides the most flexible skilled caregiving service on the island - From…

Home Care Expertise

Home Care Expertise Home care is complex! Operating it well requires many people consistently documenting events, speaki…

Healthcare Navigation Support

Healthcare Navigation Support Finding the right information, knowing what questions to ask or where to start can feel ov…

Nurse Supervised

Nurse Supervised Operations Nursing Review of Client Intakes for clinical requirements and care plan tasks that need cli…

People-Centered Policy

People Centered Policy We built our business to be friendly to people with humane policies, plain language and readable …

Living Wage Employer

Living Wage Employer CommunityPlus has been a Living Wage employer since 2018, about a year after starting up. Providing…

Exceptional Value

Exceptional Value CommunityPlus delivers excellence in service and value. There will always be someone newer, offering s…

Types of Home Care Visit

Daily Phone Calls

Daily Phone Calls Short, consistent daily phone check-ins help keep people safe, oriented and connected. Daily phone cal…

Hourly Visits

Hourly Home Caregiver Visits Hourly Caregiving services are in-home visits between 1 hour and 12 hours long and generall…

Overnight Visits

Overnight Caregiver Visits Overnight services are in-home visits from 8-12 hours long and may be ‘Asleep’ or ‘Awake’. Th…

Live-in (Homestay) Visits

Live-in Caregiver Visits (Homestay) Live-in services are in-home visits that are 21 hours long with a 3 hour afternoon b…

24-Hour Support

24-Hour Support 24-Hour services involve two 12 hour or three 8 hour visits each day with a team of caregivers who remai…

Types of Home Nursing Visit

Hourly Visits

Hourly Home Nursing Visits Hourly Home Nursing Visits can be between 1 hour and 12 hours long but in most circumstances …

What Home Caregivers Do

Home Oversight

Home Oversight Homes need care too! Caregivers can help monitor household needs and coordinate visits for repairs you ha…

Homemaking

Homemaking Caregivers provide homemaking and light housekeeping to help maintain a safe and hygienic home environment. A…

Meal Support

Meal Support Food is the first medicine for good health and also a joy that most of us retain throughout most of our liv…

Medication Assistance

Medication Assistance Medication Assistance includes monitoring, reminders and administration for pre-dosed medications.…

Showers & Personal Hygiene

Showers & Personal Hygiene Personal Assistance ranges from being present for safety during a shower to lifts, transf…

Safety Supervision

Safety Supervision for an individual at high risk of falls Could be as simple as having a caregiver present in the home …

Errands & Appointments

Errands & Appointments Caregivers can run errands, shop for goods, transport people to appointments or outings for pleas…

Appointment Notetaking

Appointment Notetaking Caregivers can document and take notes about what happens during appointments in addition to prov…

Companionship

Companionship Humans are wired for social contact. Some more than others but we all want to feel seen and heard. When we…

Pet Care

Pet Care Keeping your pet is often a primary reason people choose to stay in their own home longer. Caregivers can help …

Dementia Care

Dementia Care requires sensitive caregivers with the right approach. Different types of dementia can have very different…

What Home Nurses Do

Assessments

Assessments Nurses provide in-home assessments to establish baseline, monitor and advise on a variety of health concerns…

Medical Health Advocacy

Medical Health Advocacy Nurses provide personal health support as a medical advocate. Dealing with the health system isn…

Wound Care

Wound Care Nurses provide in-home wound care supporting the healing of post-op incisions, cuts, skin tears, burns, ulcer…

In-Home Clinical Procedures

In-Home Clinical Procedures Nurses perform specialized health procedures. Some procedures require an RN and many procedu…

Specialized Medication Administration & Education

Specialized Medication Administration & Education Nurses provide medication administration given via injection or IV…