Starting home care on Vancouver Island takes one of two paths: government-funded through Island Health, or private pay. The process is different for each, and knowing what to expect saves you weeks of frustration.
Government home care
Government home care starts with a call to your local health unit or the Community Access Line. If care is indicated, the health unit completes a financial assessment to determine your daily per-diem rate (if any) and a home safety assessment. A Case Manager is assigned who authorizes hours of service based on the care plan tasks they're able to provide. Those directions go to the home care department for nurse review and scheduling.
Government home care offers the most flexible services across the largest geographic area Island-wide. The catch: it may take several days to weeks to actually begin service, depending on capacity in your area.
Private home care
Private home care starts with the client or family researching local providers. We do this research every year and post it publicly to help with this step. From there, a spouse or family member calls around to compare services, though many providers refuse to give basic information like rates over the phone without a home visit first.
Once you've made a decision, there's a service agreement to sign and a home safety visit to check for hazards. If the provider has a nursing team, they review the care plan for clinical concerns before the schedulers take over and start booking visits.
Private providers tend to be less flexible than government care: higher minimum visit durations and limited geographic availability. The upside is speed. Some private providers can start same day or next day in emergencies.
How CommunityPlus Care does it
We put all our service information up front, with nothing hidden. We sign the service agreement before coming to the home for the safety assessment. Our nursing team reviews every initial care plan for clinical concerns, and our coordination team schedules services, including same-day starts when required. We offer 1-hour visits with no weekly minimum and no subscription fees.
If you're weighing your options, start with the Community Access Line for government care, and get in touch with us directly if you need something faster or more flexible.