HOME INSTEAD SENIOR CARE,
305 Q House, Furze Road, Sandyford,
OUTSTANDING SMALL BUSINESS
Dublin 18. Tel: 01 2973490.
www.homeinstead.ie
On the home
and dry
Followingtheethosofhelpingolder
peopleretaintheirindependence,
theHomeInsteadSeniorCare
franchiseprovidesoptimumlevels
ofindividualisedcaretoitselderly
clients
‘When assigning a caregiver
to a client, we talk to the
client and the family to find
out the person’s interests and
personality and put a lot of
work into finding someone
they will get on with’
Ed Murphy
H
OME Instead Senior Care is the epitome of personal care, dementia care, post-hospital care and dis- Taking on new caregivers is a rigorous process. Home
how a franchise model can work well, having ability care. Instead insists on four references and a Garda-check.
grown from a pilot office in Leopardstown in “Theaverageserviceisthreehoursofcareaday,fivedays Nursesineachofficeprovidetrainingtomakesurethecare-
2005 to occupy 14 offices this year. Joint aweek.Oneofthereasonswehavedonesowellisthatnor- giver’s abilities match up to the client’s disabilities.
founder and chairman Michael Kearney expects this to mallythefamilyoftheclientpaysthebillsandfamilymem- “We’reveryfussyaboutthepeoplewetakeon.Theyhave
climb to 18 this year, which would give it coverage for bersinemploymentcanclaimtaxreliefof41pconthecost to have good English, be able to cook and have empathy
every county in the country. oftheservice.Theaveragecostwouldbearound¤300,so for the elderly. The average age of a caregiver is 45, but a
TheHomeInsteadSeniorCareorganisationwasfounded aftertaxreliefthatamountstoabout¤180,”saysKearney. hugenumberarebetweentheagesof45and60,andthere
inOmaha,Nebraskain1994,withtheaimofprovidingawide “A survey a couple of years ago showed that for 90pc of isonewhois78yearsofage.We’reprovidingemployment
rangeofservicestotheelderly,allowingthemtoremaininde- olderpeopletheirbiggestfearwasendingupinanursing to a lot of people who would otherwise be at home. When
pendentandliveintheirhomesforlongerthanwouldoth- home. It’s a huge blow for them to leave their own home, assigning a caregiver to a client, we talk to the client and
erwisebepossible.Today,therearemorethan850franchise andtheirconditiontendstodeterioratewhenthathappens. the family to find out the person’s interests and personal-
officesin14countries,andLeopardstownisnowthebiggest Whenwestartedout,therewasn’tasimilarservicetowhat ityandputalotofworkintofindingsomeonetheywillget
office in the world, Kearney notes. wewereproviding,andastheolderpopulationisincreas- on with.”
Following a career with Snap Printing, Kearney became ing dramatically, we expect demand to continue to grow.” Regardingqualitycontrol,nursescarryoutmonthlyvis-
business partners with Ed Murphy in 1992 and they While the business generally is on the up, Kearney its to check on the caregiver and the client. They assess
decided to expand into other franchises in 2004. They acknowledges the impact the recession, and particularly whether the client’s health has deteriorated in the previ-
jumped at the opportunity when their research led them thebankingcrisis,ishavingonthisarea.“Whileouraver- ousmonth,andtalktothefamilytomakesurethey’re
to Home Instead. ageserviceisthreehoursaday,fivedaysaweek,anum- happy. “Some of our clients are quite unwell and a large
Winner of the Irish Franchise of the Year 2008, Home berofclientsrequire24-sevencareoreightorninehours’ proportionisintheearlytomid-stagesofAlzheimer’sdis-
Instead’srevenuesgrew68pclastyearandtheIrish-based careadayforsevendays.Ifyouconsiderthatalotofolder ease.Ifitweren’tforHomeInstead,theywouldhavetogo
businessisbudgetingforafurther25-30pcincreaseinterms people were depending on dividends from banks that into a nursing home,” says Kearney.
ofrevenueandtheamountofpeopleitlooksafterthisyear. have now dried up, this is bound to have an effect. While “Oneofourgoalsistohaveeveryareaofthecountrycov-
It currently has 900 clients and 900 caregivers. demand is increasing all the time, the number of hours is eredwithinthenexttwoyears,whetheronourownsteam
Theservicesrangefromafewhoursadaytoalive-inserv- decreasing. orinpartnershipwiththeHealthServicesExecutive.Ithas
ice,dependingontheindividual’sneeds.Thecarercanlook “Theserviceismorepopularbytheday,andLeopardstown alreadycontractedtheLeoparstownofficetolookafter75
afterday-to-dayneedssuchaslighthousekeepingandlaun- haditsbusiestthreeweeksinJanuary,butitwouldbefool- peopleintheBlackrock/DunLaoghaireareaandweexpect
dry,mealpreparation,companionship,uptoandincluding ish to ignore the effects of the banking-sector crisis.” this trend to continue.”
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