Caregiver/Cook/Household Manager
20-25$/hour depending on experience or 67K to 84K/year
Monday through Friday/Weekend work available/10 AM to 8 PM
My parents will be moving into an apartment in Vergennes, VT. My dad is 82 and my mom is 80. My dad has Type II diabetes. His diet must be managed. My mom has dementia. She must be encouraged to be active.
We need someone who can manage a household during the week Monday through Friday and work part time on the weekends. During the week, the hours are 10 AM to 8 PM. These times might be negotiable depending on the schedule and needs of the caretaker. The primary responsibilities of this job include:
Keeping the apartment clean
Laundry
Shopping for groceries
Preparing meals and cleaning up after them
Involving my mom in tasks such as helping to cook and fold the laundry
There will be plenty of time during the day on the job to sit with my parents and talk to them while my Dad watches the news and my mom naps or does needlepoint. But we are also looking for someone who can manage a household, especially a refrigerator and pantry so that my parents can be provided nutritious meals. And we are looking for someone who can assist my mother in being more active during her day. When meals are prepared and light cleaning or laundry must be done, the caregiver must be able to jump to it and involve my mom. Although she can no longer use the stove, my mom can chop vegetables, set the table, and fix glasses. But because of her dementia, she must be encouraged, not simply asked. The same goes for my mom with hobbies such as needlepoint. The caretaker is encouraged to bring their own interests and hobbies and share them with my parents to keep their minds (and bodies) active.
Sometimes my Dad will insist that he and my Mom do not need food or that my Mom does not need help. We need someone who can work around him without directly telling him no (although he is getting to a point where he knows he needs help). In other words we need someone forceful enough to ignore him but able to do so in a delicate and sometimes sneaky way.
Another must is that the meals must have little to no sugar or carbs but still be home cooked and delicious. A perfect example would be something as simple to cook as a hamburger steak with a sweet potato and broccoli. For breakfast two fried eggs with a piece of whole wheat toast. Salmon croquettes with a salad. We are not looking for a world class chef. We need someone who can prepare meals from scratch and do so efficiently. We are open to menu ideas (my parents will mostly eat anything) as long as they do not include sugar or carbohydrates (or at least very little of them).
Experience is obviously a plus but we are also willing to take someone new to such a position as long as they have a lot of initiative and gumption. My mom, even with her dementia, is a joy to be around. She enjoys being hugged and being helpful. My dad is of sound mind and is also funny, but he struggles with his blood sugar. He can also get quite frustrated with politics and depressed about my mom’s condition. Although he is very opinionated, he is also not afraid to apologize and is a sweet natured man at heart. He does not move/walk well, but with encouragement to do light exercises, his mobility should improve. My mom moves/walks like a 60 year old. In many ways taking care of my mom who has dementia is much easier than taking care of my dad who has been known to try my siblings’ and my patience.
We as a family have developed strong trusting relationships with caregivers as they’ve taken care of my grandmothers and now my Mom and Dad. We are willing to work with the caregiver to determine a schedule and make a plan that will provide the care Mom and Dad need (and deserve), all in a safe environment. This includes planning for vacation time for the caregiver and working ourselves into the care team rotation when the need arises, like over holiday time. We are open to a team of caregivers as well and do not need for this position to be only one person.