Just in Time Care Real-Life Stories

Scenario 1

An employee in Nashville, Tennessee needed temporary care for her mother, who was going to have knee surgery in a few weeks. The employee estimated that her mother would need full-time assistance for three to four days and then possibly half-days for a couple of days after that. Her mother would also need backup care again in March or April, after her other knee was operated on. The care was needed in her mother’s home in nearby Brentwood. The employee was concerned about a stranger coming to her mother’s house. The Just in Time Care specialist discussed ways to assess the quality of in-home agencies (background checks, bonded, etc.) and reviewed in-depth questions she could ask to help her feel more comfortable. She also explained how the service her mother needed would be performed by a companion/sitter service, not an actual licensed provider, because her mother would not require nursing care.

The specialist located four agencies to provide the care, plus passed along several additional useful resources. The employee used one of the referred agencies, and in a letter to The Family & Workplace Connection, said "I don’t know what we would have done without this program. Yes I do, I would have taken even more vacation days to stay with Mom!"

Scenario 2

In the New York City metro area, an employee's eight-month-old daughter was beginning to get sick. The mom was planning to take off from work the next day to take her baby to the doctor, but she wasn’t sure what would happen after that. If the baby was very sick, the mom would not want anyone else caring for her, but she also might consider using a caregiver from an in-home agency. At first, the mom didn’t want the Just in Time Care specialist to do the work in finding care if she wasn’t going to use it. The specialist told her not to worry about that, since it is our job to identify options, to help her be prepared and be comfortable with whatever choice she makes. The specialist explained how in-home agencies generally won’t begin to look for a caregiver until they hear from a client, so it would be preferable to have the agencies start the ball rolling now.

The specialist proceeded with the legwork and came up with three in-home/nanny agencies for the family to choose from. Since the employee still was not sure what she would need, the specialist advised her to go ahead and line up a caregiver, and if she ends up not using the care, she can cancel it. The employee was very appreciative of the assistance and was well prepared with options.

Scenario 3

A first-time caller asked if we could help her find care for her two children during several weeks in August. The employee requested referrals to family child care homes that would be flexible in providing care for her four-year-old son and two-year-old daughter. The employee’s husband was normally home with the children during the day since he has a night-shift job, but for a few weeks in August, the dad had to complete training during the day, leaving the family without child care. The specialist searched near the employee's home and that same day, relayed six options to the employee. The specialist also discussed in depth how the Just in Time Care service works. The employee ended up using a combination of a family child care home and her sister-in-law to cover the period. The employee said she doesn’t know what she would have done without Just in Time Care. "It really helped me during this challenge," she told the specialist.