Most families treat the reference call as a formality. It is one of the few checks in this process where a person who already paid for the service tells you what the shifts were actually like. Run it before you pay a deposit, and run it from a written list, not a hunch.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
Step 1: Get the right references
1. Ask the provider for two households that used the same kind of caregiver, for the same kind of hours, that you are considering. Get each name, the relationship to the person cared for, and a phone number. If the provider offers only a written testimonial, ask for a phone number anyway.
2. Ask for one household whose service ended, not only households still using it. Then ask how it ended. The answer shows you how the provider handles a problem it could not fix.
3. If you are hiring a caregiver directly, ask for the last two households where that person worked and for permission to call them. Tell each reference what you are asking about before you dial. A caregiver who cannot name a prior household for this kind of work has told you something too.
Step 2: Ask the questions that get past the script
4. How long did the caregiver work in your home, and why did the service start and stop?
5. What did the schedule look like in the first month, and did it hold?
6. Tell me about the first bad day. What went wrong, who fixed it, and how long did the fix take?
7. What did you have to tell them more than once?
8. What happened when the regular caregiver was out sick? Who called you, and how much notice did you get?
9. Would you hire them again for the same hours? If not, what would have to change?
Step 3: Listen for the detail
A useful answer has specifics: a day, a task, a fix, a name for the person who made the call. Listen for a reference who describes the schedule, the house routine and the first problem without being led there. Listen for a plan for what they would change. A reference who says only that the caregiver was wonderful has given you praise, not evidence. Write it down as praise.
Hesitation before a yes on rehiring is worth your attention. Do not argue it away. Ask what would have to change, then decide whether you can make that change in your own home.
Step 4: Walk away when
The provider offers only staff members, relatives of staff, or people who will not give a phone number. Every reference gives the same polished sentences. The reference cannot say how the service started or ended. The provider pushes back on your first-bad-day question instead of answering it. A direct-hire candidate names only personal friends as references for paid work.
Step 5: Write it down before you hang up
Keep one sheet per reference.
Reference name: ____________________ Relation to the person cared for: ____________________
How long the service ran: ____________ Hours per week: ____________
The first bad day and the fix: ______________________________________
What they would change: ______________________________________
Rehire: yes / no / yes with conditions: ____________________
Each question above comes from the same sheet you will use to compare providers. For how these sheets are built, see How We Write the Sheets. For the full order of steps, see Start Here: Five Steps to Hiring.