Questions to Ask Caregiver
Questions for interviewing a caregiver for an older or unwell family member at home. They cover training, the shape of a normal day, medication limits, falls and emergencies, backup cover, references, and the terms of the arrangement.
The questions
Open any question for the note
How long have you been doing this work, and what kind of clients have you cared for?
Why ask it
The useful detail is the match rather than the number of years. Someone experienced with dementia may have little experience with a transfer belt or a feeding tube. Listen for the conditions they name without being prompted.
What training or certification do you hold, and when did you last renew it?
Why ask it
Ask about first aid and CPR dates specifically, because those lapse. A caregiver who knows their own renewal dates tends to keep the rest of their records in order too.
Can you walk me through a shift you worked recently?
Why ask it
More revealing than a list of duties. You learn what they do without being asked, how they pace a day, and whether personal care and light housekeeping are part of the job or treated as favors.
Which parts of this work are you comfortable with, and which would you rather not do?
Why ask it
Bathing, toileting, transfers and incontinence care are where arrangements most often break down. Someone who names a limit plainly is easier to plan around than someone who agrees to everything and then quietly avoids it.
Have you cared for someone with the same condition before?
Why ask it
Ask for an example rather than a yes. What they describe, refusing food, restlessness in the late afternoon, waking at three in the morning, shows whether they have handled it or only read about it.
What's your rate, what counts as overtime, and how do you want to be paid?
Why ask it
Settle holidays, mileage, overnight rates and cancellation terms now. Vagueness about money at this stage usually becomes a difficult conversation in the first month.
How do you handle medications?
Why ask it
In many places an unlicensed caregiver may remind and hand over but not administer. A caregiver who knows exactly where that line sits for their own credentials is protecting both of you.
What would you do if you arrived and found there had been a fall?
Why ask it
Listen for the order of steps: check for injury before moving anyone, call for help, then notify family. Someone whose first instinct is to lift the person up alone has not been trained for it.
When would you call an ambulance, and when would you call me first?
Why ask it
You are testing judgment, not protocol. Chest pain, sudden confusion and a head injury should not wait for a phone call to family, and a well-trained caregiver will say so plainly.
How would you keep me updated, and how often?
Why ask it
Ask what form it takes: a written log kept in the house, a text at the end of each shift, a call only when something changes. Without an agreement here, families find out about problems weeks late.
What happens if you're sick or your car won't start?
Why ask it
Cover is the most common failure point in a private arrangement. Find out whether they have someone they trust to send, or whether the gap becomes yours to fill at short notice.
What notice do you need if the schedule changes, and what notice will you give me?
Why ask it
Caregivers often hold several clients at once. Knowing how flexible the hours really are prevents the situation where a hospital appointment cannot be covered.
Are you insured, and is there a current background check I can see?
Why ask it
Independent caregivers may carry their own liability cover, while agency staff are usually covered by the agency. Ask which applies here and who is responsible if there is an injury in the house.
Can I speak to two families you've worked for, including one where the job ended?
Why ask it
The second reference matters more than the first. How a placement ended, and whether the caregiver is comfortable letting you ask about it, is the most useful thing you will hear all week.
Do you drive, and would you take someone to appointments?
Why ask it
Sort out whose car, whose insurance, and who pays for fuel and parking. Many caregivers will drive a client's car but not their own, and some will not drive clients at all.
What can you cook, and how do you handle a restricted diet?
Why ask it
Low salt, diabetic, soft or pureed food, and thickened liquids each take particular knowledge. Ask what they have actually prepared before rather than whether they can follow instructions.
How do you help someone move around safely?
Why ask it
Ask about bed-to-chair transfers, walkers, and whether they have used a hoist. Physical assistance is where both the caregiver and the person being cared for get injured, so the training here is not optional.
What do you do when someone refuses care?
Why ask it
Refusing a shower, refusing pills, refusing to get out of bed. The answer separates caregivers who back off and return later from those who either force it or give up and write it in the log.
What would you do with someone through a long, quiet afternoon?
Why ask it
Companionship is most of this job and the first thing to get dropped. Cards, the radio, a short walk, sorting through photographs: specifics here suggest someone who fills the hours rather than watching the clock.
If this stops working for either of us, how do we end it?
Why ask it
Agree notice periods, final pay and return of keys before you need them. Settling this calmly at the start makes a hard conversation later much shorter.
Hiring and Working With a Caregiver
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before the interview
Write down what the job actually is
List the tasks for a normal day and the tasks for a bad day, with hours attached. Most mismatches come from a job that was described as companionship and turned out to include lifting and personal care.
Have the person being cared for in the room if they can be
They will notice things you do not, and the caregiver's manner toward them during the interview is better evidence than any answer given to you.
Check what your area requires
Rules on who may administer medication, and on background checks and insurance for private hires, vary by state and country. Knowing the local position lets you tell a careful answer from a confident guess.
Running a trial period
- 1Agree a paid trial of a few shifts before committing to a schedule.
- 2Be present for part of the first shift, then leave for part of it.
- 3Keep a written log in the house from day one, with medication times and anything unusual.
- 4Sit down at the end of the trial and ask what would make the work easier.
- 5Confirm hours, rate, notice and emergency contacts in writing before continuing.
Signs to take seriously
- Unwillingness to give references, or references that cannot be reached.
- Reluctance to write anything down, including hours worked.
- Medication times that drift, or pills left out for later.
- The person being cared for becomes quiet or anxious around a particular shift.
- Money or small valuables that cannot be accounted for.
- Repeated late arrivals presented as unavoidable.
Keep in the house where anyone can find it
- A current medication list with doses and times, plus the pharmacy number.
- Diagnoses, allergies and the primary doctor's contact details.
- Emergency contacts in order, with a note on who has authority to make decisions.
- Copies of any advance directive or power of attorney.
- The daily log, kept in the same place every day.