September 5, 2025 • 26 mins
🌟 19 Years of Compassionate Care in Southwest Michigan 🌟
Meet Shelly Nutter, Area VP at Fresh Perspective Home Care. For 17 years, she’s led with heart, building a culture where caregivers feel valued and families feel supported.
💬 “Our caregivers are the heart and soul of the agency. When they feel cared for, they give back tenfold to the clients they serve.”
Highlights from the conversation:
✅ Serving 6 counties across Southwest Michigan
✅ Caregiver rewards & recognition programs
✅ New Client Care Liaison role to ease transitions
✅ Innovative use of Sensei AI for proactive care
✅ Reliable backup systems for every client
🎥 Watch the full Care Across America interview here: https://homecaremarketingnews.com/19-years-of-compassionate-care-a-conversation-with-shelly-nutter-area-vp-of-fresh-perspective-home-care/
#homecare #careacrossamerica #SouthwestMichigan #caregivers #kalamazoo #michigan
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
My name is Shelly Nutter.
With Fresh Perspective HomeCare, I'm the area vice
president.
Fresh Perspective Home Care hasbeen doing business in
southwestern Michigan.
We are in our 19th year.
I've been with Fresh PerspectiveHome Care now for over 17 years
and I can't imagine doing thisanywhere else.
I fell in love from day one andI'm still in love to this day.
(00:31):
And I'm still in love to thisday.
My biggest reason why isbecause I have found not only
the kind of work that fits meand who I am with, always
wanting to help people, making adifference, but I've also feel
like I have found a company thathas the there's the same morals
and values that I have as aperson, where I don't have to
feel like I wear.
Found a company that has thethere's the same morals and
values that I have as a person,where I don't have to feel like
I wear one set of shoes here atwork, one set of shoes at home.
It kind of meshes and meldsvery well, so I can truly and
(00:55):
sincerely be me from the heart,the soul, regardless, which
makes it very easy for me tooversee and manage a business
that's 24-7, because I feel likeI'm fully invested in making
sure everybody feels supported,cared for, and that's from staff
to clients, to their family,all across the board, because
(01:19):
we're all playing a part in whatreally needs to happen.
We are all a team in thatprocess.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Tell us a little bit more about your service area.
You said Southwest Michigan.
What does all of that include?
Because that's a big area.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
We are the most heavily in Kalamazoo and Van
Buren County, but we havetypically stayed within the six
owner counties in SouthwestMichigan, which are Kalamazoo
and Van Buren County, Berrien,Cass, St Joe and Allegan.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Wow.
So you guys cover a lot ofterritory, so that means you
probably have a lot ofcaregivers at this point too.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
We do, and obviously we're always looking for more so
we can extend our helping handto others.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
So that's great.
When 17 years ago, when you gotstarted in this business, was
there a specific reason why youwere drawn to home care or
something happened in your life,or is it just you fell into
this immediately?
New.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
I've always enjoyed working at smaller businesses
where you know everybody by name, there's a little bit more
closeness, people aren't justanother number, that kind of a
thing.
But I left a position where Idid not feel the morals and
values match within thatbusiness and within myself, and
I had a very difficult timecontinuing to do that, and so I
(02:41):
was looking for something alittle different.
I happened upon FreshPerspective Home Care and I'm
like I wonder what that is.
So that's when I startedlearning and in hindsight I'm
like I guess I knew what homecare.
I just didn't know like theformality and the profession of
it.
Because a friend of mine, adear friend of mine, in high
school her mom had MS and wewould always rush home after
(03:01):
school to relieve the aid, toprovide a gap of care for her
mom until her dad got home fromwork, and then we could go play,
if you will.
But I didn't realize what wewere doing.
I mean you didn't care offriends and family, that was
just the norm.
You just did that stuff.
Yeah, absolutely.
So it was kind of like inhindsight it's like I had
(03:23):
experience but didn't knowreally that this was a whole
business, this was a wholeindustry and it really.
It just I felt everything fallin place and fall together.
My educational background is inaccounting and now I feel like,
okay, so I'm really still in theaccounting piece by running and
managing the business.
But I also feel like it'sbringing in the people aspect of
(03:47):
it, where I can make sure it'sall balancing, make sure it all
makes sense, make sure all theT's are crossed and the I's are
dotted for everybody, and thenobviously quickly learning what
it takes to be a caregiver andwhat's expected of a caregiver.
So, knowing that we needed towholeheartedly support those
caregivers and stand by them andassist them in any way that we
(04:09):
can, whether it's with time off,our own compassion, resources,
whatever it is, because whatthey do is so unique and they
just give so much of themselvesto do the job that they do.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
Yeah, oh yes, absolutely.
They are the heart and soul ofthe agency, really, and it's
nice to hear you say that youwant to care for.
You want to provide good careand service for everyone
involved, including thecaregivers, because they really
are what makes a home careagency great, and when they feel
cared for, then they give back.
(04:42):
It's really.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
They often put themselves last at home and in
work now, so somebody's got tolook out for them.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
That's right.
Life issues come up, and it'snice to work for an agency that
really cares about what'shappening in your life, not just
if you can fill a role for afew hours, but if you need a
little extra this or you needsome time for that, or your
tire's flat or you get your kidsare sick.
If there's something else thatcan be done to help, that's
(05:13):
really nice.
So, yeah, those caregivers aregold, and so we need to take
good care of them.
So when somebody calls youroffice, when they are
overwhelmed, I always use myselfas an example.
I'm 54.
My mom's 75.
She's perfectly healthy, thankgoodness.
But if I wasn't in thisbusiness and didn't know, I
(05:36):
would have some reservations.
I wouldn't know if I'm doingthe right thing here.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
So when somebody calls the office, what can they
expect or what should theyexpect when they first connect
with me, I ask them to tell me alittle bit about their loved
one, tell me what's going on andwhat are some of the concerns
you're having, so I can identify.
Are they really in these earlystages or are they in a?
Oh, this is an urgent situation?
And I listen to them.
(06:03):
I might ask a couple questionsto get clarification or whatnot.
Who are they living with?
Some safety questions andthings like that.
And then what I first let themknow is that it is definitely an
overwhelming situation, nottheir situation, but navigating
the aging and when you need helpand how to get help and how do
you do all that.
And I assure them that I'vedone this for a very long time.
(06:25):
I don't claim to have all theanswers, but I can help get
people pointed in the rightdirection or find some answers
for them, without themexhausting themselves even more
so trying to figure it all outwhen the most important thing is
understanding, knowing, so thatyou can make the best choices
for you and your loved one.
And so I just share that withthem, so that you can make the
(06:45):
best choices for you and yourloved one and so I just share
that with them.
It's very much from theperspective of information
gathering versus sales pitch orsales pressure to close the deal
, and I let them know I'll givethem the general information on
the questions they want.
We do background checks and wevet our people, the training I
do go through, what kind of therange of our rates are, but I
(07:06):
let them know that typically thenext step I try to encourage
folks to do is what I call ameet and greet.
There's no obligation and thereis no cost.
It's an opportunity for me tocome out and do an intake so I
can assess the situation, I canbetter understand what's going
on, so that I can make aprofessional recommendation on
what I would recommend.
I share information about us asan agency, so the do's and the
(07:29):
don'ts of what caregivers canand can't help with.
That way everybody's exchangedenough information before having
to feel the pressure of makinga decision, and that's how I
pose that first step.
If they want me to send themsome information, I'd have a
generic letter from the inquirybasically saying those same
things, because sometimes it'soverwhelming information and
having it in writing helps themand then we just go from there.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
And so if somebody calls and says I have somebody,
my mom's going to be dischargedin the next two days and it's
coming up on as quick, how fastcan you all get services in a
home?
Does it take 24 hours or a fewdays?
Speaker 1 (08:05):
So in all honesty, it depends on the timing of that
call, timing of the availabilityof caregivers, timing available
on my schedule Last week I hadnine people.
I was trying to get onboardedand started with services right
away, so I couldn't meet withanybody new that week.
So it really just depends.
It could be a couple days to aweek.
If they say, hey, I need full24-7 care, okay, I could
(08:31):
probably do it up in stages.
Or if you wanted to wait till acomplete 24-7 team is put
together, it might take twoweeks to do that.
And I do explain, if it's a bitof an emergency situation, we
can always do it more urgently.
But understand it wouldn't bemom or dad's normal care team,
it would be just staff whilewe're putting that in place.
Because I explained thatcontinuity and how important
that is and that's really whatour goal is.
But I also understand thatthere's an urgency involved that
(08:54):
we just may need to getappropriate people in there
while we put a team in place.
So I kind of give them thatoption.
If you want me to move faster,I can, but understand it may not
start with the care team we'relooking to put together.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
And that's understandable.
I think people get it.
If this is kind of last minute,you're going to piecemeal it
with great caregivers until youcan get that same routine of
folks coming in and I wouldimagine that some people want to
start slow and they want to dosometimes maybe.
And what's your minimum?
Do you guys have a minimum?
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Our minimum is four hours a week and we are okay
with that being in one shift orsplit it into two shifts of two
hours, but four hours a week isour minimum.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Yeah, I think that's really reasonable, because four
hours I mean by the time you getthere, get settled, help with a
few things, get the kitchencleaned up.
There's just a four hours isgoing to fly by.
It depends on what thecaregiver needs to do.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
Sometimes that four hours seems intimidating to the
client, and so that's why weoffer two times at two hours.
If that takes some of that edgeof worry and anxiety off for
them, we can work with that aswell.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
Yeah, and that's great.
That's enough time.
Let's say somebody needs a bathor somebody needs just a
laundry done or linen changed orsomething like that.
Those little things are greatin two hours, or maybe it's
during mealtime so they're noteating alone or we make sure
they get it.
So I think that's really greatfor minimums.
A lot of agencies have a muchhigher minimum and that's
(10:31):
sometimes challenging for folks,but I understand staffing home
care is one of the hardest jobsI think that exists.
This is a human, very human andvery compassionate industry,
but it's also it's all revolvesaround people.
So sometimes staffing can bereally challenging, especially
(10:51):
as big as you guys are andserving a lot of big space.
You have to find somebody who'sclose to them, so you do a
wonderful job of all of that.
So onboarding nine clients inone week oh my goodness, that's
a lot.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
That's a bit unusual.
I usually try to do two orthree a week, yeah, and some of
these were folks that I maybemet a couple weeks ago and they
finally were just making thedecision.
And then all of a sudden, I hadone of our contract agencies.
Yeah, and some of these werefolks that I maybe met a couple
weeks ago and they finally werejust making the decision.
And then all of a sudden, I hadone of our contract agencies.
They were like we've got allthese clients and they weren't
large amount of hours but it I'drather let me just start
(11:26):
helping people, because at somepoint they're going to need more
hours at some point.
We don't unage.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
So that's great, though, when somebody calls that
, they're able to.
I think to me what's importantis that that if I were in that
position, I'd want to talk tosomebody who had a lot of
experience, who had been aroundthe block long enough to be able
to say to me you know, it'sgoing to be okay.
This is what I normally see andthis is how things usually work
(11:55):
, but we can work with you,however.
You need this to happen.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
I think that's really from a professional and from a
human perspective, it's very Ido try to share with them,
especially if they're concernedabout how do we afford that.
I let them know that we workwith a lot of different contract
agencies that offer differentprograms, that I can share
information with them to see ifthey may qualify.
(12:20):
I do express I'm not thedecision maker on who qualifies
for what, but we do work withthose agencies.
So should you qualify and wantto work with us, they just
simply send us the authorizationand we send them the bill for
the work we do.
So I do try to help themunderstand some of that.
If they may fit some of thecriteria for those resources as
(12:40):
well.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
And there are a lot of different programs out there.
It's very complicated sometimes, but you will know when you
talk to somebody what you canrecommend to them and they can
go and where to find moreinformation and find out.
I think that's one of thebiggest part of it is how much
is this going to cost?
Who's going to pay for it?
(13:01):
And getting the answers tothose questions are at least
being pointed in the rightdirection, like you said, is
really hopeful.
It really takes a load off, aworry off too.
So they call and it usuallytakes.
It depends on the week, ofcourse, and you all get services
set up when the caregiverarrives the first time, do they?
(13:24):
How does that system work?
Getting the caregiver into thehouse?
Speaker 1 (13:28):
So when we have made that match and have a start date
, we then confirm with ifthere's an assigned family
member that coordinates theschedule, or sometimes it's the
client themselves.
We call to introduce who thatcaregiver is going to be.
We go over the schedule againand make sure that they and
we'll tell them a little bitabout the client, like why did
(13:48):
we, or the caregiver, why did wepick this caregiver for you?
And so we'll share some of thatwith them, like whether it's
their experience, theirpersonality, whatever it was
that we felt would make themsuccessful with that individual.
So they feel like they know alittle something.
And we also make sure we wantthem to know who it is that's
coming, because we don't wantthem letting somebody in that
does not belong in their home.
(14:08):
That caregiver will have an IDbadge with a photo of themselves
on it, and that's typically howthat goes.
Sometimes they may have a lovedone that'll say oh, I'll be
here for the first shift just tohelp make mom more comfortable.
But just recently, in the lastcouple of months, we created a
new position called our clientcare liaison.
She is our most seasonedcaregiver.
(14:31):
She's been with us like 12years and now we've pulled her
off of her regular schedule andwe have her go out with a
caregiver for their first shiftwith a client to do the physical
face-to-face introduction.
If it's an existing client andwe maybe through transition
we've lost a caregiver andthey're introducing a new one,
(14:51):
she again will bridge that gapand introduce them.
So sometimes she's meeting theclient for the first time as
well.
But we let the client knowbecause we want her to know you
and you to know her, becauseanytime you need a new caregiver
she's going to come and helpintroduce that.
Or if there seems to be achallenge going on, she's going
to come in and try to helptroubleshoot that.
So she's kind of like the eyesand the hands of what we try to
(15:17):
do here in the office.
But it's also support forcaregivers, especially if this
is a newer field to them,because there's nothing a little
bit more awkward than knockingon a stranger's door, letting
yourself in, rummaging in theircupboards for their lunch, then
getting them naked and puttingthem in the shower.
That's daunting for your firstvisit with somebody.
Just providing that extrasupport for all of them across
(15:40):
the board, we've just felt likethat is a piece that, if we're
in a position to be able tooffer.
That might help people feelmore successful on both ends
from the caregiver end.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
I think that's a great role, and I think that's
also something that othercaregivers could aspire to do.
If they stay with you longenough and they're seasoned
enough, they could also helpmake some introductions.
I think that's a wonderful roleto have and a nice icebreaker
for everybody.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
And sometimes if somebody you always get folks
that get real comfortable withtheir caregivers, if somebody is
sick, they're like oh, justnever mind, just cancel the
shift I can say I can have Wendybring this person over so
there's no pressure for you.
And once in a while I'll saywhy don't I just have Wendy come
over and help you today?
You know, sometimes she'llbridge that gap, but it's just
an extra tool to really helpthat person that might tend to
(16:32):
cancel if their person's notavailable.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
That's great.
Oh, I think that's a wonderfulrole to have.
I think those introductions canbe very important and probably
takes a huge anxiety off of thecaregiver as well.
Meeting somebody new for thefirst time, especially if
they're new to the caregiving inthe home.
It's great for everybodyinvolved.
So that's a really great role.
I'm glad you guys implementedthat.
(16:55):
It's definitely something thatpeople probably appreciate a lot
, that introduction.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
I would.
It's been a positive thing forus so far so.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Great.
So is there anything else aboutFresh Perspective that you'd
like to tell us that we didn'tcover anything?
That's about you?
Speaker 1 (17:13):
I will say I know, since COVID, people's backup
systems have changed and theircommitments to backing up have
changed pretty significantly.
A lot of it's due to thestaffing stress or staffing
being pulled so thin.
We have really tried tomaintain a strong priority and
(17:34):
making sure we have a backupsystem in place for all of our
shifts, and a couple of ways wedo that is utilizing our client
care liaison if need be,utilizing office staff if need
be during our office hours.
If we got to pull somebodybecause there's a short
situation, then we'll do what wegot to do last minute and then
we'll do what we got to do lastminute.
And then the after hours we paycaregivers to alternate being
(17:57):
on call in the evenings, mondaythrough Friday, and then all day
on Saturday and Sunday.
So we pay them a stipend to beon call and then they get paid
for every shift that they pickup as well.
So that's really helped tosolidify making sure there's
always a backup available.
And I think that's importantbecause I hear a lot of folks if
(18:18):
they're looking for a newagency or have not had a good
experience, they're like, oh, wewere never offered a backup and
we do our very best to makesure we're always offering a
backup.
Now I tell everybody we alsohave to prioritize the level of
somebody's risk and need.
But if just because mom onlyneeds help with meals and
laundry doesn't mean she doesn'tneed the help, so we may have
(18:41):
to look at doing it at a littlebit later time or maybe the next
day, but we will make certainshe doesn't go without that help
.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
That's great.
I'm glad you guys focused onthat backup plan because we
always say when you hire anagency, that's one of the
greatest benefits is that youcan rely on them to have someone
you can talk to.
If a caregiver is sick, iftheir tire is flat, if their
kids are sick, you can alwaysrely on an agency to try and
(19:08):
provide backup.
So I'm glad you guys do thatand some agencies simply just
can't.
So it's great to know you guysare able to do that for folks.
That's wonderful.
That's such a safety net.
Really, you know what?
I have a fly Sorry, I'll editthis out.
A fly is suddenly flying aroundme.
We don't have flies in ourhouse, ew, okay, I think that
(19:35):
that, honestly, that's probablythat you did a great job.
You did an amazing job ofexplaining your services.
So I that's wonderful.
So thank you for doing this andyou did a great job, thank you.
So what I'll do is I am going toedit this down a little bit,
and I will.
We will have a couple ofdifferent ways that we're going
to.
We're going to do this so we'llhave the long version which is
(19:55):
our conversation, and then I'llalso divide it up into clips, so
we have different clips talkingabout you, mainly talking about
different aspects of yourbusiness and service, and those
kinds of things.
Ai is wonderful about dividingup these clips and making them
stand out really nicely.
So once that is done, I willsend you a note to let you know.
(20:18):
Hey, here's the video andhere's, and we'll put together a
blog post to go with it.
We will post it, we'll put iton your website as a blog post
with the video.
We'll do all those things,gotcha.
Speaker 1 (20:30):
All right.
So there, there are two thingsthat I feel like we do a little
bit I don't know if I would sayunique, but a little bit more
than most agencies in our area.
One is on the end of ourcaregivers.
Like I said, we really want tomake sure we're taking care of
them, looking out for them andsupporting them.
We've invested in an actualrewards program for them.
(20:53):
That's awesome, and so anytimethey pick up extra shifts, they
are getting a thank you messageand a reward.
These rewards are points thataccumulate that they can trade
in whenever they want for giftcards of hundreds of options.
I shared this with our clientsand their family, because if
they call and want to thank acaregiver for something they've
(21:15):
done, they will then get a nicethank you and a reward of
recognition as well.
Or if, while I'm doing anassessment, somebody says gosh,
sandy always goes above andbeyond, like she doesn't just
make sure mom is doing well andhas all of her needs met, she
really makes mom laugh, and sothen again, that's another
trigger for that reward systemto kick in.
(21:36):
We do that also with our.
We call it our high fiveemployee of the month, somebody
who deserves a high five becausethey're doing a great job and
we do that through that and thenwe post it.
I think you see that in ournewsletters and stuff like that.
We also started a rookie of themonth.
So one of our new people whojust come out with a bang just
really surprising us thatthey've really just stepped into
(21:58):
this position beyond what we'veexpected.
We recognize them.
So I say that because I knoweverybody tries to do that on
their own, but this has justbeen a method that I feel has
really amped that support andthat recognition in a much
bigger way than I've ever seenit before by the feedback I get
(22:19):
from our clients and ourcaregivers.
Thank you so much, for I reallyappreciated the thank you and
the points.
Clients now know that so they'llcall on purpose, where before
most people only called whenthey got a concern or an issue
or whatever.
I'm receiving more calls onpurpose for the thank yous
because they want to rewardtheir caregivers and they know
(22:39):
that's how they'll get rewarded.
So that's been huge.
There's also a referral packagedeal that they through the
whole process of gettingsomebody referred getting
somebody who's been interviewedand hired in their first hundred
hours, their first 300 hours.
Everybody's getting rewardsboth the referrer and the new
hire so they're earningrecognition and points for that
(23:00):
as well, and our referrals havebeen more than I've ever seen
them before with that.
That's great.
So I think that's a huge thingfor somebody to know that we
take care of those.
You know those caregivers, sothat because we want them to
stay there to help you, it's notjust throwing a warm body out
there on a schedule for you.
It is way more than that.
And then on the client side,one of the really big things
(23:23):
that we've implemented this yearis a hybrid system of care care
, for if somebody is a littlebit leery and not ready to make
a decision if they actually needcare or not, they can utilize
the hybrid piece or they can usea combination of both of them.
It's an AI tool.
It is audio-based only.
I don't know if you've everheard of Sensi.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Yes, absolutely.
I love Sensi.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
So we have started utilizing Sensi and it has
helped us feel so much moreproactive versus reactive to
when something occurs andadjusting that care plan or the
schedule or the times orwhatever it is.
I feel like we are smarter nowbecause we pick up trends and
(24:07):
say you have us there from 12 to4 and you don't get home until
6 6, but they really need thathelp till 5, because we're
hearing some of these thingsgoing on or we're noticing
somebody's falling more orwhatever it is.
Somebody hasn't moved.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
when they usually move in the morning, they
haven't gotten out of bed orthey're waiting later and later
to get up.
Yep, I think, being that itsenses and it's not video, it's
sensing audio occurrences Ithink that's a really great
system and it really is.
It's amazing how it picks uppatterns so very quickly and
(24:44):
knows what should be happeningin that client's home and alerts
to when things don't seem right.
That is really cool.
Speaker 1 (24:52):
We've had amazing and wonderful experiences with it.
So Annette has become ourstandard of care for folks.
We don't charge extra for itunless they want it as a
standalone, until they candecide, do we or do we not?
Or let me see what kind ofthings you recommend after I've
had it for a month to see whatyou think.
So then that'd be the only timewe would charge for it as a
(25:12):
standalone.
So those are some of the thingsthat we are investing in for
better quality of care andbetter responses to things going
on in the home, as well as ourcaregivers.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
I think all of those things are people really
appreciate.
First of all, when a caregiveris obviously treated well by
their employer.
I think we all can agree thatconsumers really want to know
that their caregivers are beingtaken care of by their employer,
and so that's super important.
And of course, the caregiversthemselves feel loved and feel
(25:47):
cared for across the board.
That's great.
Across the board, that's great.
And then the sense-y part of itadding that little piece, that
extra piece when there isn't acaregiver there even when there
is, but when there's not acaregiver there and you can hear
or sense or see or not see, butyou can have that system, sense
that things aren't quite right.
That's such a great opportunityto help the adult children
(26:12):
understand what's really goingon.
Or the family member who can'tbe there all day.
That really is a nice additionto your services.
So I thank you for doing that.
That is, that's wonderful.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
But those are the things that I think make us a
little bit more unique than justany other home care agency.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
I'd say you're right, because not everybody does all
these great things.
You really are taking care ofnot just the person who needs
care, but everybody all the wayaround, so that's great.
My name is Shelly Nutter.
With Fresh Perspective HomeCare, I'm the area vice
president.
Fresh Perspective Home Care hasbeen doing business in
southwestern Michigan.
We are in our 19th year.
I've been with Fresh PerspectiveHome Care now for over 17 years
and I can't imagine doing thisanywhere else.
I fell in love from day one andI'm still in love to this day.
(00:31):
And I'm still in love to thisday.
My biggest reason why isbecause I have found not only
the kind of work that fits meand who I am with, always
wanting to help people, making adifference, but I've also feel
like I have found a company thathas the there's the same morals
and values that I have as aperson, where I don't have to
feel like I wear.
Found a company that has thethere's the same morals and
values that I have as a person,where I don't have to feel like
I wear one set of shoes here atwork, one set of shoes at home.
It kind of meshes and meldsvery well, so I can truly and
(00:55):
sincerely be me from the heart,the soul, regardless, which
makes it very easy for me tooversee and manage a business
that's 24-7, because I feel likeI'm fully invested in making
sure everybody feels supported,cared for, and that's from staff
to clients, to their family,all across the board, because
(01:19):
we're all playing a part in whatreally needs to happen.
We are all a team in thatprocess.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Tell us a little bit more about your service area.
You said Southwest Michigan.
What does all of that include?
Because that's a big area.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
We are the most heavily in Kalamazoo and Van
Buren County, but we havetypically stayed within the six
owner counties in SouthwestMichigan, which are Kalamazoo
and Van Buren County, Berrien,Cass, St Joe and Allegan.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Wow.
So you guys cover a lot ofterritory, so that means you
probably have a lot ofcaregivers at this point too.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
We do, and obviously we're always looking for more so
we can extend our helping handto others.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
So that's great.
When 17 years ago, when you gotstarted in this business, was
there a specific reason why youwere drawn to home care or
something happened in your life,or is it just you fell into
this immediately?
New.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
I've always enjoyed working at smaller businesses
where you know everybody by name, there's a little bit more
closeness, people aren't justanother number, that kind of a
thing.
But I left a position where Idid not feel the morals and
values match within thatbusiness and within myself, and
I had a very difficult timecontinuing to do that, and so I
(02:41):
was looking for something alittle different.
I happened upon FreshPerspective Home Care and I'm
like I wonder what that is.
So that's when I startedlearning and in hindsight I'm
like I guess I knew what homecare.
I just didn't know like theformality and the profession of
it.
Because a friend of mine, adear friend of mine, in high
school her mom had MS and wewould always rush home after
(03:01):
school to relieve the aid, toprovide a gap of care for her
mom until her dad got home fromwork, and then we could go play,
if you will.
But I didn't realize what wewere doing.
I mean you didn't care offriends and family, that was
just the norm.
You just did that stuff.
Yeah, absolutely.
So it was kind of like inhindsight it's like I had
(03:23):
experience but didn't knowreally that this was a whole
business, this was a wholeindustry and it really.
It just I felt everything fallin place and fall together.
My educational background is inaccounting and now I feel like,
okay, so I'm really still in theaccounting piece by running and
managing the business.
But I also feel like it'sbringing in the people aspect of
(03:47):
it, where I can make sure it'sall balancing, make sure it all
makes sense, make sure all theT's are crossed and the I's are
dotted for everybody, and thenobviously quickly learning what
it takes to be a caregiver andwhat's expected of a caregiver.
So, knowing that we needed towholeheartedly support those
caregivers and stand by them andassist them in any way that we
(04:09):
can, whether it's with time off,our own compassion, resources,
whatever it is, because whatthey do is so unique and they
just give so much of themselvesto do the job that they do.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
Yeah, oh yes, absolutely.
They are the heart and soul ofthe agency, really, and it's
nice to hear you say that youwant to care for.
You want to provide good careand service for everyone
involved, including thecaregivers, because they really
are what makes a home careagency great, and when they feel
cared for, then they give back.
(04:42):
It's really.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
They often put themselves last at home and in
work now, so somebody's got tolook out for them.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
That's right.
Life issues come up, and it'snice to work for an agency that
really cares about what'shappening in your life, not just
if you can fill a role for afew hours, but if you need a
little extra this or you needsome time for that, or your
tire's flat or you get your kidsare sick.
If there's something else thatcan be done to help, that's
(05:13):
really nice.
So, yeah, those caregivers aregold, and so we need to take
good care of them.
So when somebody calls youroffice, when they are
overwhelmed, I always use myselfas an example.
I'm 54.
My mom's 75.
She's perfectly healthy, thankgoodness.
But if I wasn't in thisbusiness and didn't know, I
(05:36):
would have some reservations.
I wouldn't know if I'm doingthe right thing here.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
So when somebody calls the office, what can they
expect or what should theyexpect when they first connect
with me, I ask them to tell me alittle bit about their loved
one, tell me what's going on andwhat are some of the concerns
you're having, so I can identify.
Are they really in these earlystages or are they in a?
Oh, this is an urgent situation?
And I listen to them.
(06:03):
I might ask a couple questionsto get clarification or whatnot.
Who are they living with?
Some safety questions andthings like that.
And then what I first let themknow is that it is definitely an
overwhelming situation, nottheir situation, but navigating
the aging and when you need helpand how to get help and how do
you do all that.
And I assure them that I'vedone this for a very long time.
(06:25):
I don't claim to have all theanswers, but I can help get
people pointed in the rightdirection or find some answers
for them, without themexhausting themselves even more
so trying to figure it all outwhen the most important thing is
understanding, knowing, so thatyou can make the best choices
for you and your loved one.
And so I just share that withthem, so that you can make the
(06:45):
best choices for you and yourloved one and so I just share
that with them.
It's very much from theperspective of information
gathering versus sales pitch orsales pressure to close the deal
, and I let them know I'll givethem the general information on
the questions they want.
We do background checks and wevet our people, the training I
do go through, what kind of therange of our rates are, but I
(07:06):
let them know that typically thenext step I try to encourage
folks to do is what I call ameet and greet.
There's no obligation and thereis no cost.
It's an opportunity for me tocome out and do an intake so I
can assess the situation, I canbetter understand what's going
on, so that I can make aprofessional recommendation on
what I would recommend.
I share information about us asan agency, so the do's and the
(07:29):
don'ts of what caregivers canand can't help with.
That way everybody's exchangedenough information before having
to feel the pressure of makinga decision, and that's how I
pose that first step.
If they want me to send themsome information, I'd have a
generic letter from the inquirybasically saying those same
things, because sometimes it'soverwhelming information and
having it in writing helps themand then we just go from there.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
And so if somebody calls and says I have somebody,
my mom's going to be dischargedin the next two days and it's
coming up on as quick, how fastcan you all get services in a
home?
Does it take 24 hours or a fewdays?
Speaker 1 (08:05):
So in all honesty, it depends on the timing of that
call, timing of the availabilityof caregivers, timing available
on my schedule Last week I hadnine people.
I was trying to get onboardedand started with services right
away, so I couldn't meet withanybody new that week.
So it really just depends.
It could be a couple days to aweek.
If they say, hey, I need full24-7 care, okay, I could
(08:31):
probably do it up in stages.
Or if you wanted to wait till acomplete 24-7 team is put
together, it might take twoweeks to do that.
And I do explain, if it's a bitof an emergency situation, we
can always do it more urgently.
But understand it wouldn't bemom or dad's normal care team,
it would be just staff whilewe're putting that in place.
Because I explained thatcontinuity and how important
that is and that's really whatour goal is.
But I also understand thatthere's an urgency involved that
(08:54):
we just may need to getappropriate people in there
while we put a team in place.
So I kind of give them thatoption.
If you want me to move faster,I can, but understand it may not
start with the care team we'relooking to put together.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
And that's understandable.
I think people get it.
If this is kind of last minute,you're going to piecemeal it
with great caregivers until youcan get that same routine of
folks coming in and I wouldimagine that some people want to
start slow and they want to dosometimes maybe.
And what's your minimum?
Do you guys have a minimum?
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Our minimum is four hours a week and we are okay
with that being in one shift orsplit it into two shifts of two
hours, but four hours a week isour minimum.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Yeah, I think that's really reasonable, because four
hours I mean by the time you getthere, get settled, help with a
few things, get the kitchencleaned up.
There's just a four hours isgoing to fly by.
It depends on what thecaregiver needs to do.
Speaker 1 (09:52):
Sometimes that four hours seems intimidating to the
client, and so that's why weoffer two times at two hours.
If that takes some of that edgeof worry and anxiety off for
them, we can work with that aswell.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
Yeah, and that's great.
That's enough time.
Let's say somebody needs a bathor somebody needs just a
laundry done or linen changed orsomething like that.
Those little things are greatin two hours, or maybe it's
during mealtime so they're noteating alone or we make sure
they get it.
So I think that's really greatfor minimums.
A lot of agencies have a muchhigher minimum and that's
(10:31):
sometimes challenging for folks,but I understand staffing home
care is one of the hardest jobsI think that exists.
This is a human, very human andvery compassionate industry,
but it's also it's all revolvesaround people.
So sometimes staffing can bereally challenging, especially
(10:51):
as big as you guys are andserving a lot of big space.
You have to find somebody who'sclose to them, so you do a
wonderful job of all of that.
So onboarding nine clients inone week oh my goodness, that's
a lot.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
That's a bit unusual.
I usually try to do two orthree a week, yeah, and some of
these were folks that I maybemet a couple weeks ago and they
finally were just making thedecision.
And then all of a sudden, I hadone of our contract agencies.
Yeah, and some of these werefolks that I maybe met a couple
weeks ago and they finally werejust making the decision.
And then all of a sudden, I hadone of our contract agencies.
They were like we've got allthese clients and they weren't
large amount of hours but it I'drather let me just start
(11:26):
helping people, because at somepoint they're going to need more
hours at some point.
We don't unage.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
So that's great, though, when somebody calls that
, they're able to.
I think to me what's importantis that that if I were in that
position, I'd want to talk tosomebody who had a lot of
experience, who had been aroundthe block long enough to be able
to say to me you know, it'sgoing to be okay.
This is what I normally see andthis is how things usually work
(11:55):
, but we can work with you,however.
You need this to happen.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
I think that's really from a professional and from a
human perspective, it's very Ido try to share with them,
especially if they're concernedabout how do we afford that.
I let them know that we workwith a lot of different contract
agencies that offer differentprograms, that I can share
information with them to see ifthey may qualify.
(12:20):
I do express I'm not thedecision maker on who qualifies
for what, but we do work withthose agencies.
So should you qualify and wantto work with us, they just
simply send us the authorizationand we send them the bill for
the work we do.
So I do try to help themunderstand some of that.
If they may fit some of thecriteria for those resources as
(12:40):
well.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
And there are a lot of different programs out there.
It's very complicated sometimes, but you will know when you
talk to somebody what you canrecommend to them and they can
go and where to find moreinformation and find out.
I think that's one of thebiggest part of it is how much
is this going to cost?
Who's going to pay for it?
(13:01):
And getting the answers tothose questions are at least
being pointed in the rightdirection, like you said, is
really hopeful.
It really takes a load off, aworry off too.
So they call and it usuallytakes.
It depends on the week, ofcourse, and you all get services
set up when the caregiverarrives the first time, do they?
(13:24):
How does that system work?
Getting the caregiver into thehouse?
Speaker 1 (13:28):
So when we have made that match and have a start date
, we then confirm with ifthere's an assigned family
member that coordinates theschedule, or sometimes it's the
client themselves.
We call to introduce who thatcaregiver is going to be.
We go over the schedule againand make sure that they and
we'll tell them a little bitabout the client, like why did
(13:48):
we, or the caregiver, why did wepick this caregiver for you?
And so we'll share some of thatwith them, like whether it's
their experience, theirpersonality, whatever it was
that we felt would make themsuccessful with that individual.
So they feel like they know alittle something.
And we also make sure we wantthem to know who it is that's
coming, because we don't wantthem letting somebody in that
does not belong in their home.
(14:08):
That caregiver will have an IDbadge with a photo of themselves
on it, and that's typically howthat goes.
Sometimes they may have a lovedone that'll say oh, I'll be
here for the first shift just tohelp make mom more comfortable.
But just recently, in the lastcouple of months, we created a
new position called our clientcare liaison.
She is our most seasonedcaregiver.
(14:31):
She's been with us like 12years and now we've pulled her
off of her regular schedule andwe have her go out with a
caregiver for their first shiftwith a client to do the physical
face-to-face introduction.
If it's an existing client andwe maybe through transition
we've lost a caregiver andthey're introducing a new one,
(14:51):
she again will bridge that gapand introduce them.
So sometimes she's meeting theclient for the first time as
well.
But we let the client knowbecause we want her to know you
and you to know her, becauseanytime you need a new caregiver
she's going to come and helpintroduce that.
Or if there seems to be achallenge going on, she's going
to come in and try to helptroubleshoot that.
So she's kind of like the eyesand the hands of what we try to
(15:17):
do here in the office.
But it's also support forcaregivers, especially if this
is a newer field to them,because there's nothing a little
bit more awkward than knockingon a stranger's door, letting
yourself in, rummaging in theircupboards for their lunch, then
getting them naked and puttingthem in the shower.
That's daunting for your firstvisit with somebody.
Just providing that extrasupport for all of them across
(15:40):
the board, we've just felt likethat is a piece that, if we're
in a position to be able tooffer.
That might help people feelmore successful on both ends
from the caregiver end.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
I think that's a great role, and I think that's
also something that othercaregivers could aspire to do.
If they stay with you longenough and they're seasoned
enough, they could also helpmake some introductions.
I think that's a wonderful roleto have and a nice icebreaker
for everybody.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
And sometimes if somebody you always get folks
that get real comfortable withtheir caregivers, if somebody is
sick, they're like oh, justnever mind, just cancel the
shift I can say I can have Wendybring this person over so
there's no pressure for you.
And once in a while I'll saywhy don't I just have Wendy come
over and help you today?
You know, sometimes she'llbridge that gap, but it's just
an extra tool to really helpthat person that might tend to
(16:32):
cancel if their person's notavailable.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
That's great.
Oh, I think that's a wonderfulrole to have.
I think those introductions canbe very important and probably
takes a huge anxiety off of thecaregiver as well.
Meeting somebody new for thefirst time, especially if
they're new to the caregiving inthe home.
It's great for everybodyinvolved.
So that's a really great role.
I'm glad you guys implementedthat.
(16:55):
It's definitely something thatpeople probably appreciate a lot
, that introduction.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
I would.
It's been a positive thing forus so far so.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Great.
So is there anything else aboutFresh Perspective that you'd
like to tell us that we didn'tcover anything?
That's about you?
Speaker 1 (17:13):
I will say I know, since COVID, people's backup
systems have changed and theircommitments to backing up have
changed pretty significantly.
A lot of it's due to thestaffing stress or staffing
being pulled so thin.
We have really tried tomaintain a strong priority and
(17:34):
making sure we have a backupsystem in place for all of our
shifts, and a couple of ways wedo that is utilizing our client
care liaison if need be,utilizing office staff if need
be during our office hours.
If we got to pull somebodybecause there's a short
situation, then we'll do what wegot to do last minute and then
we'll do what we got to do lastminute.
And then the after hours we paycaregivers to alternate being
(17:57):
on call in the evenings, mondaythrough Friday, and then all day
on Saturday and Sunday.
So we pay them a stipend to beon call and then they get paid
for every shift that they pickup as well.
So that's really helped tosolidify making sure there's
always a backup available.
And I think that's importantbecause I hear a lot of folks if
(18:18):
they're looking for a newagency or have not had a good
experience, they're like, oh, wewere never offered a backup and
we do our very best to makesure we're always offering a
backup.
Now I tell everybody we alsohave to prioritize the level of
somebody's risk and need.
But if just because mom onlyneeds help with meals and
laundry doesn't mean she doesn'tneed the help, so we may have
(18:41):
to look at doing it at a littlebit later time or maybe the next
day, but we will make certainshe doesn't go without that help
.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
That's great.
I'm glad you guys focused onthat backup plan because we
always say when you hire anagency, that's one of the
greatest benefits is that youcan rely on them to have someone
you can talk to.
If a caregiver is sick, iftheir tire is flat, if their
kids are sick, you can alwaysrely on an agency to try and
(19:08):
provide backup.
So I'm glad you guys do thatand some agencies simply just
can't.
So it's great to know you guysare able to do that for folks.
That's wonderful.
That's such a safety net.
Really, you know what?
I have a fly Sorry, I'll editthis out.
A fly is suddenly flying aroundme.
We don't have flies in ourhouse, ew, okay, I think that
(19:35):
that, honestly, that's probablythat you did a great job.
You did an amazing job ofexplaining your services.
So I that's wonderful.
So thank you for doing this andyou did a great job, thank you.
So what I'll do is I am going toedit this down a little bit,
and I will.
We will have a couple ofdifferent ways that we're going
to.
We're going to do this so we'llhave the long version which is
(19:55):
our conversation, and then I'llalso divide it up into clips, so
we have different clips talkingabout you, mainly talking about
different aspects of yourbusiness and service, and those
kinds of things.
Ai is wonderful about dividingup these clips and making them
stand out really nicely.
So once that is done, I willsend you a note to let you know.
(20:18):
Hey, here's the video andhere's, and we'll put together a
blog post to go with it.
We will post it, we'll put iton your website as a blog post
with the video.
We'll do all those things,gotcha.
Speaker 1 (20:30):
All right.
So there, there are two thingsthat I feel like we do a little
bit I don't know if I would sayunique, but a little bit more
than most agencies in our area.
One is on the end of ourcaregivers.
Like I said, we really want tomake sure we're taking care of
them, looking out for them andsupporting them.
We've invested in an actualrewards program for them.
(20:53):
That's awesome, and so anytimethey pick up extra shifts, they
are getting a thank you messageand a reward.
These rewards are points thataccumulate that they can trade
in whenever they want for giftcards of hundreds of options.
I shared this with our clientsand their family, because if
they call and want to thank acaregiver for something they've
(21:15):
done, they will then get a nicethank you and a reward of
recognition as well.
Or if, while I'm doing anassessment, somebody says gosh,
sandy always goes above andbeyond, like she doesn't just
make sure mom is doing well andhas all of her needs met, she
really makes mom laugh, and sothen again, that's another
trigger for that reward systemto kick in.
(21:36):
We do that also with our.
We call it our high fiveemployee of the month, somebody
who deserves a high five becausethey're doing a great job and
we do that through that and thenwe post it.
I think you see that in ournewsletters and stuff like that.
We also started a rookie of themonth.
So one of our new people whojust come out with a bang just
really surprising us thatthey've really just stepped into
(21:58):
this position beyond what we'veexpected.
We recognize them.
So I say that because I knoweverybody tries to do that on
their own, but this has justbeen a method that I feel has
really amped that support andthat recognition in a much
bigger way than I've ever seenit before by the feedback I get
(22:19):
from our clients and ourcaregivers.
Thank you so much, for I reallyappreciated the thank you and
the points.
Clients now know that so they'llcall on purpose, where before
most people only called whenthey got a concern or an issue
or whatever.
I'm receiving more calls onpurpose for the thank yous
because they want to rewardtheir caregivers and they know
(22:39):
that's how they'll get rewarded.
So that's been huge.
There's also a referral packagedeal that they through the
whole process of gettingsomebody referred getting
somebody who's been interviewedand hired in their first hundred
hours, their first 300 hours.
Everybody's getting rewardsboth the referrer and the new
hire so they're earningrecognition and points for that
(23:00):
as well, and our referrals havebeen more than I've ever seen
them before with that.
That's great.
So I think that's a huge thingfor somebody to know that we
take care of those.
You know those caregivers, sothat because we want them to
stay there to help you, it's notjust throwing a warm body out
there on a schedule for you.
It is way more than that.
And then on the client side,one of the really big things
(23:23):
that we've implemented this yearis a hybrid system of care care
, for if somebody is a littlebit leery and not ready to make
a decision if they actually needcare or not, they can utilize
the hybrid piece or they can usea combination of both of them.
It's an AI tool.
It is audio-based only.
I don't know if you've everheard of Sensi.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Yes, absolutely.
I love Sensi.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
So we have started utilizing Sensi and it has
helped us feel so much moreproactive versus reactive to
when something occurs andadjusting that care plan or the
schedule or the times orwhatever it is.
I feel like we are smarter nowbecause we pick up trends and
(24:07):
say you have us there from 12 to4 and you don't get home until
6 6, but they really need thathelp till 5, because we're
hearing some of these thingsgoing on or we're noticing
somebody's falling more orwhatever it is.
Somebody hasn't moved.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
when they usually move in the morning, they
haven't gotten out of bed orthey're waiting later and later
to get up.
Yep, I think, being that itsenses and it's not video, it's
sensing audio occurrences Ithink that's a really great
system and it really is.
It's amazing how it picks uppatterns so very quickly and
(24:44):
knows what should be happeningin that client's home and alerts
to when things don't seem right.
That is really cool.
Speaker 1 (24:52):
We've had amazing and wonderful experiences with it.
So Annette has become ourstandard of care for folks.
We don't charge extra for itunless they want it as a
standalone, until they candecide, do we or do we not?
Or let me see what kind ofthings you recommend after I've
had it for a month to see whatyou think.
So then that'd be the only timewe would charge for it as a
(25:12):
standalone.
So those are some of the thingsthat we are investing in for
better quality of care andbetter responses to things going
on in the home, as well as ourcaregivers.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
I think all of those things are people really
appreciate.
First of all, when a caregiveris obviously treated well by
their employer.
I think we all can agree thatconsumers really want to know
that their caregivers are beingtaken care of by their employer,
and so that's super important.
And of course, the caregiversthemselves feel loved and feel
(25:47):
cared for across the board.
That's great.
Across the board, that's great.
And then the sense-y part of itadding that little piece, that
extra piece when there isn't acaregiver there even when there
is, but when there's not acaregiver there and you can hear
or sense or see or not see, butyou can have that system, sense
that things aren't quite right.
That's such a great opportunityto help the adult children
(26:12):
understand what's really goingon.
Or the family member who can'tbe there all day.
That really is a nice additionto your services.
So I thank you for doing that.
That is, that's wonderful.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
But those are the things that I think make us a
little bit more unique than justany other home care agency.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
I'd say you're right, because not everybody does all
these great things.
You really are taking care ofnot just the person who needs
care, but everybody all the wayaround, so that's great.
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If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.