FAQ
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Partners
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As a leader in the home care industry, Homewatch CareGivers is a proud member of the Home Care Association of America (HCAOA). Our COO, Jennifer Tucker, is a member of the board of directors at the HCAOA.
Homewatch CareGivers and the HCAOA share the mission to strengthen the professionalism of private duty home care providers through education and best practices. The HCAOA was founded on the principle that the purpose of private home care is to “employ, train, monitor and supervise caregivers, create a plan of care for the client and work toward a safe and secure environment for the person at home.”
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Homewatch CareGivers is a voting member of the National Quality Forum (NQF), a non-profit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to improving healthcare quality. The NQF acts, under legislative authority, as an advisory committee for federal government and private sector entities.
This membership allows us to identify opportunities for the home care industry through education and contributing to national efforts to improve health care. Homewatch CareGivers is the first home care company of its kind to become a member of the NQF, bringing an industry voice to this important organization.
At Homewatch CareGivers we believe that home care plays an important role in reducing medical costs and hospital readmissions. We are dedicated to improving healthcare quality through sharing and collaboration, as well as identifying measures that demonstrate the value of quality home care. Our work with NQF helps us discover how we can do these things better than ever before.
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National Quality Partners (NQP™), an NQF initiative, is an active forum for National Quality Forum members to connect, collaborate, and supply thought leadership on quality improvement strategies to achieve national healthcare quality goals. NQP leads practical, action-oriented initiatives to drive meaningful and lasting change for patients and their families.
The NQP Leadership Consortium comprises 30 experts and thought leaders from the NQF membership, including Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Merck, American Hospital Association, and the Veterans Health Administration.
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Homewatch CareGivers partners with experts in dementia, family caregiving and the best approach to care. Their teachings and best practices have been infused into our care philosophy so that the care experience for the entire care team—the caregiver, care receiver, and those around them—is as enriching and engaging as possible. We share their expertise in regular blogs, FAQs, and videos on this website and through our social media channels.
Physicians we partner with include:
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Caring for a person with dementia is a physical and emotional journey. The Dementia Action Alliance (DAA) is a diverse coalition of passionate people creating a better society in which to live with dementia. Homewatch CareGivers takes part in key DAA committees which include the Corporate Leadership Council, Technology Committee, and Optimizing Well-Being Committee.
Goals of these committees include:
- Education about negative effects of stigma and misperceptions surrounding dementia
- Championing strategies for accommodations
- Identifying beneficial technologies
- Promoting relationship-centered support practices
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The Eden Alternative® is an international non-profit organization dedicated to improving quality of life by focusing on changing the culture of care. Homewatch CareGivers has taken this journey alongside The Eden Alternative® by infusing the principles and philosophy into our person-centered and directed approach to care. We are proud to have on staff a Certified Eden Educator that guides the quality care delivery and education to our network.
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Care Providers
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“By 2050, the racial and ethnic diversity of older U.S. adults will have changed even more profoundly. Older non-Hispanic white adults, long deemed the “majority population,” will account for only about 58% of the total population aged 65 or older”
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
The State of Aging and Health in America 2013
https://www.cdc.gov/aging/pdf/state-aging-health-in-america-2013.pdf
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“80% of people 65 and older live with MCC” [multiple chronic conditions]
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
MultipleChronic Conditions Chartbook
2010 MEDICAL EXPENDITURE PANEL SURVEY DATA
Additional source information:
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Public Health Rep. 2011 Jul-Aug; 126(4): 460–471.
PMCID: PMC3115206
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“More than one in three people age 65 years or older falls each year.”
National Institute on Health
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“Nearly 9 of 10 adults have trouble using the everyday health information that is routinely available in our health care facilities, retail outlets, media, and communities.”
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
The State of Aging and Health in America 2013
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“Of the 5.4 million Americans with Alzheimer's, an estimated 5.2 million people are age 65 and older, and approximately 200,000 individuals are under age 65 (younger-onset Alzheimer's).”
“One in nine people age 65 and older has Alzheimer's disease.”
Alzheimer's Association 2013 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures
www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_facts_and_figures.asp. The full report will also appear in the March 2013 issue of Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association (Volume 9, Issue 2).
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“…loneliness has twice the impact on early death as obesity does…”
UChicagoNews
AAAS 2014: Loneliness is a major health risk for older adults
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“When preventive or treatment regimens are very complex and/or require lifestyle changes and the modification of existing habits, nonadherence can be as high as 70%”
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Ther Clin Risk Manag. 2005 Sep; 1(3): 189–199.
Published online 2005 Sep.
PMCID: PMC1661624
The challenge of patient adherence
Leslie R Martin,1 Summer L Williams,2 Kelly B Haskard,2 and M Robin DiMatteo2
(Dishman 1982, 1994; Brownell and Cohen 1995; Katz et al 1998; Chesney 2000; Li et al 2000).
17. Brownell KD, Cohen LR. Adherence to dietary regimens. 1: an overview of research. Behav Med. 1995;20:149–54. [PubMed]
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“50% of patients do not take their medications as prescribed”
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Mayo Clin Proc. 2011 Apr; 86(4): 304–314.
doi: 10.4065/mcp.2010.0575
PMCID: PMC3068890
Medication Adherence: WHO Cares?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3068890/
1. Sabaté E, editor. , ed. Adherence to Long-Term Therapies: Evidence for Action. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization; 2003.
2. Lee JK, Grace KA, Taylor AJ. Effect of a pharmacy care program on medication adherence and persistence, blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2006;296(21):2563-2571 [PubMed]
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Annual cost of complications $50 billion as of 7/09/2020 according to the CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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“Between $100 and $300 billion of avoidable health care costs have been attributed to nonadherence in the US annually, representing 3% to 10% of total US health care costs.”
US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
Risk Manag Healthc Policy. 2014; 7: 35–44.
Published online 2014 Feb 20. doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S19801
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Over $1 trillion estimated yearly Medicare spending by 2023
Congress of the United States Congressional Budget Office
Federal Health Care Spending: Why is it Growing? What could be done about it?
Douglas W. Elmendorf, Director, November 13, 2013
https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/presentation/44761-wharton0.pdf
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Franchising
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Homewatch CareGivers strives to make the franchising process as simple as possible. We want you to come into this business with an accurate understanding of the industry and all that we have to offer as a home care franchise. To that end, we’ve developed a streamlined but comprehensive education process for prospective franchisees designed to take approximately 60-90 days to complete.
Your first step is to read through our website, familiarize yourself with what makes us unique, view franchisee testimonial videos, check available territories, and read articles from our franchise blog. Please make sure you are aware of the initial investment requirements, as well.
Visit our Steps to Ownership page for more details on the full process.
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For nearly four decades, we have developed an intimate knowledge of the industry. Our strong foundation of expert home care based on tried-and-true practices will help launch your business successfully and quickly. Our commitment to providing in-depth training and ongoing support ensures that you’ll be well-equipped for success. When you select Homewatch CareGivers, you are getting much more than a name. You’re gaining an instant support system dedicated to helping you succeed.
We offer a variety of other differentiators:
- Our unique approach to care, based on person-directed caregiving, provides you with a distinct identity in your market.
- Our proprietary training platform, Homewatch CareGivers University, ensures ongoing, professionally developed training for your caregivers and staff.
- Our customized care solutions for people living with chronic conditions, Alzheimer’s, and dementia allow our clients to age in place.
- Our accountability and quality assurance standards bring confidence to clients and their families that our care is exceptional.
- Custom technology platforms offer back-end business management for owners, as well as convenience tools for clients and families.
- The ability to track outcomes of your clients offers added value to client families and referral sources.
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No, medical and healthcare experience is not necessary to start a Homewatch CareGivers franchise. We find people with marketing, sales, or operations experience are well-suited for this industry. We also look for individuals with high, long-term income goals who are equally interested in improving the lives of others. Our Selective Candidate Profile page offers more detail on who is a good fit.
Our ideal home care franchisees possess the following traits:
- Ability to follow a proven business model
- Experienced leader who can manage a variety of individuals
- Searching for a people-driven, service opportunity
- Civic-minded and a community partner
- Seeking an active role in ownership of a business
- Passion for our mission, vision, and values
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Yes, you are welcome to speak with any of our franchise owners. In fact, if you do engage with us in the ownership process, you will be given a copy of our Franchise Disclosure Document, which contains a list of all franchisees and their contact information. Upon completing the educational portion of our process, you will have the opportunity to speak one-on-one with various franchisees by phone or face to face. As a franchisor, we encourage collaboration within our network, and you will find that many of our owners are able and willing to speak with you about their experiences to help you determine if this is the ideal business for you.
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Finding good caregivers is crucial to running a home care business. We have created a turnkey, reliable screening process to help franchisees manage the task of hiring only the best caregivers. At Homewatch CareGivers, qualified candidates are selected through a comprehensive screening process that includes a skills and experience checklist, pre-training and testing online, DMV checks, validating of licensure or certifications (if required by the state), and a pre-screening phone interview. The remaining candidates go through another round of selection, which includes an in-person interview, a national background check, and reference checks. Our process has been designed to meet or exceed state standards for caregiver selection, which is essential to ensuring that our franchisees are the premier provider of home care services in their markets.
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Many people assume that the care they need as they age will be provided to them through Medicare or their private health insurance. This is a common misconception. Medicare and health insurance cover important therapeutic and curative services that are meant to treat particular health issues, but these medical issues can create care needs that extend beyond covered medical services.
When someone is living with a health condition or chronic illness, they often experience difficulty with the basic activities of daily life, such as meal preparation, grooming, bathing, getting dressed, etc. Home care services are meant to provide for these needs, which fall outside of medical care a person receives to treat an illness or injury. These home care services, such as those provided by Homewatch CareGivers franchisees, are not covered through private or public health insurance, except in the relatively rare cases of Medicare Advantage eligibility or for those who qualify through Medicaid. -
The franchise fee is $50,000 for a territory with a population typically containing 35,000-38,000 seniors. This fee allows franchisees to operate under the Homewatch CareGivers brand name and allows access to ongoing support, a lifetime training guarantee, and proven processes and systems to help launch and grow a home care franchise. We proudly participate in the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) VetFran program by offering veterans a 30% discount on the initial territory fee.
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Homewatch CareGivers awards protected territories that are developed collaboratively with you as much as the market allows. Our development team will work with you using state-of-the-art demographics tools to build an optimal market area. We also work with you to ensure we are building a territory in a strategic area that will be a good source of business partners and referrals.
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A Homewatch CareGivers territory consists of contiguous zip codes with healthy household incomes and a total senior citizen population (age 65+) between35,000- 38,000. The actual geographic size will depend on how densely populated your area is.
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At Homewatch CareGivers, we look for individuals with at least $80,000 in liquid assets and a minimum net worth of $350,000. The required liquid funds will help you pay our franchise fee of $50,000 and our net worth requirements help ensure that you have the ability to secure additional funds to start up the business. Initial investment estimates stated in our 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document for the first three months of business are between $92,310 and $154,000*. The total investment cost is based on varying factors, including the size of the territory you purchase, whether your state requires licensing, and the cost of operating in your local market area. We highly recommend having an additional $40,000 to $60,000 in working capital for the first year in addition to this initial investment range.
*See Item 7 of our 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document (“FDD”) for further details.
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Although we do not provide direct financing, there are several ways we can help you obtain funding for starting your own Homewatch CareGivers franchise. We have partnered with several organizations to help franchisee hopefuls become business owners.
We are an SBA-approved franchise. The Small Business Administration (SBA) can help you get small business loans as well as offer valuable advice. We will also help you work through the loan process, as we have relationships with national financing partners. Other sources for small business loans include home equity, veteran's loans, banks, self-directed financing (e.g., 401(k) rollover), credit unions, unsecured lines of credit, and friends and relatives. Your dedicated franchise consultant can help direct you to the funding source that is right for you.
Homewatch CareGivers has partnered with Benetrends Financial, which offers a team of FICO® Pro Certified consultants to help franchise candidates find their best sources of funding. We also have relationships with funding sources to help our current franchisees with loans to fund the growth of their business. Whether franchisees want to hire more staff, expand into new regions, or secure more office space, we can help connect them with funding sources to remain financially secure.
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This is largely up to you! An important part of the Homewatch CareGivers discovery process is clearly defining your individual goals as they relate to income, lifestyle, wealth, and equity. We want you to be confident that you can succeed in this business. We are governed by federal law, which does not permit us to tell you how much money you can make or how quickly you can make it; however, our detailed discovery process is designed to arm you with information and knowledge so you can determine, one way or another, whether our franchise opportunity can help you attain your personal financial goals. We do disclose financial information in our Item 19, which is part of our Franchise Disclosure Document. You will gain access to our FDD during our educational franchise ownership process.
Our team is available to answer any questions you may have about every part of our home care franchise opportunity. Contact us today!
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