Congratulations to Julie Mills from Maria’s Home Care Companions who was chosen as our July Star Carer. Her nomination read:
“Julie is a fabulous carer, who goes above and beyond for each and everyone of her clients. The clients all love Julie and say she brightens up their day, we continually get lovely feedback from clients and carers alike about how supportive and kind Julie is. She prides herself in her work and delivers a truly outstanding level of care. Julie is always there to help when needed and is reliable and a huge asset to the team.”
What was your reaction to winning CareLineLive’s July Star Carer Award?
I was surprised and – it felt good. I felt really appreciated which is lovely when the role can be a bit isolating out on the road by yourself.
What aspects of being a carer do you enjoy?
I’ve always liked and got on well with the elderly and I feel like I can make their day not only practically but I can lift their spirits. I enjoy contributing to their improved mental health.
How does CareLineLive’s Carer Companion App help you in your job?
We’ve used CareLineLive for a couple of years. Before that it was all on paper and “awful” with verbal handovers – we would have to speak to managers, get paper care plans, ring other carers for handovers – it all took so much time. We then used another company and that didn’t work out that well.
CareLineLive has changed the way we work without a shadow of a a doubt. It has massively improved the company, how it works, everything flows better. It’s great that we can read all the care plans online, upload photos where we need advice or make the family aware of something. It’s far easier to communicate about our clients by using the notes we are working and the care plan. All these things combined make our job a lot easier.
What are the challenges in your role?
I feel that sometimes I would like to give more time. While at Maria’s Home Care we are not “in and out”, clients always have their full hour or whatever we are contracted to do so that we give a good service beyond being safe, clean, fed and given their meds. But it is great to have time for doing activities together, chatting and giving them a little more time – I could stay there all day but with back-to-back calls we obviously have to go onto the next service user.
How do you switch off after a hard day at work?
I would probably have a glass of wine, watch TV and spend time with my children.
