The schedule an agency or candidate proposes is only as good as the map it was built from. Draw the map first, then compare every proposal against it. The map is about what the day requires, not what anything costs.
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: Draw the 24-hour strip
Write each block on a single sheet and leave room to fill in its start, its end, and who is in the room during it:
What it costs: The Missouri median for non-medical in-home care is $33 an hour, per the CareScout (Genworth) Cost of Care Survey 2025 state data tables, released March 2026. New Plan Care's standard rate is $34 an hour with a four-hour minimum, so a visit starts at $136 (newplancare.com/services).
- Wake: Start ______ End ______
- Morning meal: Start ______ End ______
- Morning routine, such as washing and dressing: Start ______ End ______
- Midday: Start ______ End ______
- Afternoon: Start ______ End ______
- Evening meal: Start ______ End ______
- Evening: Start ______ End ______
- Bedtime: Start ______ End ______
- Overnight: Start ______ End ______
Step 2: Mark the fixed points
Mark meal times, medication reminder times, outings, appointment days, and rest periods. Medication reminder times are a schedule point only. The family keeps the medicine, and the doctor and pharmacist keep their roles.
Step 3: Mark each block P or R
Use P if a person must be present in the room during that block. Use R if a person must be reachable but not in the room. Leave the block empty if no help is needed.
Blocks marked P: ______ Blocks marked R: ______
Step 4: Mark the family's own gaps
Mark which blocks the family covers and which they cannot cover. Count them. Do not estimate.
Family covers: ______ blocks Family cannot cover: ______ blocks
Step 5: Write the weekly totals
Multiply each block count by the number of days in the week it applies. Write the totals:
Present blocks per week: ______ Reachable blocks per week: ______
Give every candidate or agency the same totals in the same format. Their proposals can then be checked against the same numbers.
Step 6: Ask for a schedule against your map
Ask the provider to propose a schedule that fits your map block by block. Listen for them restating each P block, naming the overnight arrangement, and saying plainly where they cannot cover. Walk away if they propose full coverage without asking about your map, say they can do whatever you need without naming a block, or treat overnight as included without saying what the person does during it.
To decide between an agency and a direct hire once the map is done, see Hire a Caregiver in St. Louis: Agency or Direct.