Thriving at Home (April 2016)
by Sarah Lane
When my husband, Greg, and I told our friends and family we had decided to open FirstLight Home Care – South Sound, they kept asking us the same question – “What’s your plan?”
We heard it over and over again. And since neither of us had ever started a business before, it was a genuine sincere inquiry. But we didn’t decide to start a local home care agency on a whim. Both of us had experience in successful organizations, I had worked previously placing caregivers in the homes of seniors and Greg had spent six years as President of a thriving non-profit media corporation. We also spent well over a year developing a detailed blueprint to guide us through the launch and growth of our FirstLight business.
At the core of the plan was one simple objective – Be The Best. That is, offer our clients the best possible care and the best service around.
Home care is unlike any other business. Our clients are asking us into their lives and their homes. Their families are placing their trust in us to support and care for the health, safety and security of their loved ones. To Greg and me, the personal commitment we make to our clients and their families is our most important responsibility each and every day.
Providing our clients with the best care possible starts with hiring only the very best caregivers. The rigorous hiring process we use focuses on the qualities that make exceptional caregivers and we never compromise on the character screening, drug testing and comprehensive background checks we conduct on every applicant. These high standards are essential to us finding the expert caregivers with a passion for aiding others and whose greatest concern will be the health and well-being of the person for whom they are caring.
But how does a home care agency like ours measure whether we are accomplishing our goal of being “The Best?” Well so far this year, we’ve received two strong indicators that we’re on the right track:
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Best of Home Care. In January, FirstLight Home Care – South Sound won two Best of Home Care Awards. We were proud to be named both a “Provider of Choice” and an “Employer of Choice” – for the second year in a row. The Best of Home Care Awards are based upon independent feedback gathered from clients and caregivers by Home Care Pulse, the industry’s leading firm in performance benchmarking and quality satisfaction management. FirstLight Home Care – South Sound is one of only seven Washington home care agencies to win BOTH awards in 2016 – and the only agency in Thurston County to receive either award! 
Best of South Sound. Then last month, FirstLight Home Care – South Sound was named “Best Home Health Care Agency” in the 2015 Best of South Sound The Best of South Sound is voted on by the people in our community, including the clients and families we serve and our colleagues in health care.
What makes us most proud of these awards is that both are based upon the independent opinions of others, including those we serve, those who work for us and those we work with, signs that we are achieving our goal of providing “the best” possible care to our clients and their families.
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“Thriving at Home” is a monthly column by Sarah Lane, a certified Home Care Aide and owner of FirstLight Home Care — South Sound. To learn more about home care, respite care, dementia care, or any of the non-medical home care services offered by FirstLight Home Care, give Sarah a call at 360-489-1621 or go to www.southsound.firstlighthomecare.com.