Why families switch home care providers

Most families do not switch because of one bad day. They switch because of a pattern. Missed home care visits. A different care worker every week. No continuity of care. Phone calls that go unanswered. The feeling that their elderly parent is a number on a roster, not a person receiving quality aged care at home.

Some families switch because their aged care provider cannot deliver the home care services they promised. Personal care that gets cancelled. Nursing care at home that never materialises. Domestic assistance that keeps getting rescheduled. When the gap between what was promised and what is delivered becomes too wide, families start looking.

Others switch because they found a home care provider with a larger aged care specific workforce and better carer matching. They want consistent carers, reliable home care visits, and the confidence that their parent’s in home care will actually happen as planned.

How to change your home care provider

Step 1: Choose your new home care provider first. Talk to them about your parent’s aged care needs, your Home Care Package or Support at Home funding, and what home care services you need. Make sure they can start before you leave your current provider.

Step 2: Notify your current aged care provider in writing. Check your home care agreement for the notice period. Most home care providers require 14 days notice, but some require longer.

Step 3: Your Home Care Package or Support at Home funding transfers with you. You do not lose it. Your new home care provider takes over the package management and your parent’s aged care continues without a gap.

Step 4: Any unspent home care funds in your package transfer to the new home care provider. Check the balance before you switch so you know exactly what is moving across.

What to watch for

Exit fees: Some home care providers charge an exit fee when you leave. This should be in your home care agreement. Ask about it before you sign with any aged care provider so there are no surprises.

Notice period: If your current home care provider requires 28 days notice and you want to leave sooner, you may still be charged for that period. Know the terms.

Continuity during transition: The best way to avoid a gap in home care is to have your new aged care provider ready to start the day your notice period ends. A home care provider with genuine aged care workforce depth can onboard new home care clients quickly enough to make that transition seamless.

Your parent’s care plan: Ask your current home care provider for a copy of your parent’s care plan, clinical notes, and medication management records before you leave. Your new aged care provider needs these to maintain continuity of care from day one.

Why families switch to Chris Barnard Health

Chris Barnard Health is an approved aged care provider and registered NDIS provider delivering home care services and Support at Home across Melbourne, regional Victoria, and Tasmania. Families switch to us because our aged care specific workforce of more than 1,000 aged care professionals means consistent carers, reliable home care visits, and genuine carer matching for older Australians and seniors.

We started as a specialist nursing agency in 2010. When families come to us from a home care provider that could not deliver, we understand what went wrong because we built our entire aged care workforce to make sure it does not happen again.

We handle the transfer. We match the right care worker to your elderly parent. And we make sure home care starts the way it should have started the first time.

Call 1300 602 469. It is what Melbourne’s leading and largest aged care specific workforce was built for. So your parent finally gets the home care they were promised.