Elder Home Share Companion's top 5 qualities for success!
Elder Home Share has been working with families now for close to three years. We work to source a good match to live with an elderly parent and in this time, we have learnt a thing or two about what makes a great companion.
From my experience, the top 5 qualities that make a great home share companion are kindness, friendliness, trustworthiness, reliability and my favourite which I would not have really understood if I was not a home share companion myself - patience.
These are the basic necessary qualities we look for in a home share companion and how we assess this is through our reference checks when we make the follow up calls on the references provided by companions. Before the home share companion moves in with the homeowner, the reference check is carried out. Our goal is to find out if the potential home share match has these qualities.
Having someone in the home who is trustworthy is obviously very important as the home share companion is living in the home with the elderly person and has access to that person’s life. Friendly and kind yes, a friendly person who can make conversation and show kindness and consideration is another special quality we think is key to success. Likewise, being reliable is a cornerstone for successful home sharing with the elderly. The homeowner and their family need to be able to rely on the home share companion and know they can count on them. Below a picture of myself and David out at TV 3 sharing our home share experience of living together for two years! David is now in a great nursing home and doing great.
When I moved into my first home share placement with David who is now 99 as his home share companion, I learned with time that patience is a key too and having home shared now for three years, I still see it as the 5th quality that rounds out the perfect match, likewise for the person who moves in living with a friendly kind home-owner is just as important as it is a two-way relationship built on respect and consideration.
If you’re looking for a support solution for an elderly loved one to continue to live at home with greater security and positive social contact, reach out to us today to find out more Elder Home Share It’s a win-win!
