March 20, 2025 • 19 mins
What happens when you combine the concept of eHarmony with the pressing need for quality senior home care? Philip Marxen has the answer. As founder of Hallmark Home Care of South Charlotte and York County, Philip has created a revolutionary approach to helping seniors age gracefully in their own homes through a unique caregiver matching service.
The statistics are compelling: 10,000 baby boomers retire daily, and between 80-90% strongly prefer to remain in their homes rather than move to senior living facilities. Yet traditional home care models often fail these seniors with rotating caregivers, creating anxiety and frustration for people who treasure stability and routine. Philip witnessed this firsthand when his grandmother's quality of life diminished dramatically after being forced to leave her home due to inadequate care options.
Hallmark's direct referral approach stands apart from traditional agencies. Rather than employing caregivers directly, they meticulously vet independent caregivers (with an impressive 8% acceptance rate) and match them with seniors based on care needs, personality, and preferences. This model allows caregivers to earn 20-25% more than agency employees while clients develop lasting relationships with a single caregiver they've personally approved. It's a win-win that creates remarkable "stickiness" in these relationships.
What truly sets Hallmark apart is their ability to respond to emergencies within hours, sometimes placing 24/7 care within 12 hours of receiving a call. They handle all the administrative complexities while providing insurance coverage and backup support. For families facing sudden care decisions, this comprehensive approach offers peace of mind and preserves their loved one's dignity and independence. Visit hallmarkhomecare.com/southcharlotte or call 980-202-2224 to discover how this innovative care model could help your family navigate the senior care journey with grace and dignity.
Hallmark Homecare South Charlotte & York County, SC
Philip Marxen
(980) 202-2224
pmarxen@hallmarkhomecare.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Regina Lee.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of
the Good Neighbor Podcast.
I'm broadcasting here out ofSouth Charlotte and my favorite
thing to do is talk to localbusiness owners, and I'm super
excited today to have aconversation with Philip Markson
.
He is the owner of HallmarkHome Care of South Charlotte and
York County.
(00:31):
Welcome, philip.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Welcome, Regina.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Yes, yes, I'm happy to chat with you.
You know I've gone down thisjourney personally with my
father and soon to be my mother,so you know I've got a lot of
questions.
So what exactly does yourcompany do?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
Yeah, you're happy to get into that and, just for
starters, I wanted to thank youfor doing what you do, featuring
local businesses.
It's fun to learn about peopledoing interesting things in the
community, and so thank you forthat.
You know, focusing on thebusiness of Hallmark Home Care
is a direct referral agency.
So what we do we recruitcaregivers into a registry and
(01:11):
then we match them with clientsthat are in need of care,
whether it be in their homes, intheir communities or in their
facilities.
You can think of our registry aslike a bench that includes some
of the best caregivers inCharlotte.
They've chosen the path of aprivate caregiver and their hope
is that Hallmark will matchthem with a client that's a good
(01:33):
fit in terms of care needs,income, location, schedule and
any other preferences that theyhave.
They value their independence,they like being able to choose
their own clients and theyappreciate the higher income
that they can generate as anindependent caregiver.
When clients are referred to us, we conduct an interview first
(01:56):
to understand their needs andpreferences.
We take these details and weuse them to create a customized
match with a caregiver in ourregistry.
It's sort of like how a tailortakes measurements to create a
bespoke suit or like eHarmony.
It's sort of like the eHarmonyof home care.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
Exactly, and so you know, because the client and
caregiver each have to approveeach match, what we see is a
stickiness to the relationshipthat's really unique, and so
continuity of care is huge forour clients.
Instead of wondering who willshow up each day and navigating
a revolving door of faces,clients develop long-term
(02:38):
relationships and routines withtheir caregivers that are
matched by us.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Very cool.
So this differs, then, fromsome of the national agencies
that have their own team ofpeople that they bring into your
house, possibly rotating them.
This is different.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
That's right.
So the main misconception weface in the market is that we're
a home care agency.
We're not.
There are many great home careagencies in Charlotte and these
agencies hire caregivers,exactly as you mentioned, to
deliver care directly.
Due to the high overhead oftheir model, they're only
(03:20):
typically able to pay caregiversabout half of what they charge
clients and unfortunately that'snot a very livable wage in
Charlotte these days.
We operate a different modeldirect referral agency.
So what it means in practice wedon't hire or fire any
caregivers.
We don't provide care.
(03:41):
We place independent caregiverswith clients.
We're a matchmaker.
As we talked about thisdifferent model, what's cool
about it is it enablesindependent caregivers to earn
about $3 to $5 or 20 to 25% morethan they would as agency
employees, and these higherearnings in turn allow us to
(04:03):
attract the better caregivers.
Also, what we see thesecaregivers stay with their
clients longer because theychose them and because the
earnings are livable.
They love having control overtheir schedule.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I love that.
How in the world did you getinto this?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
So you know, when my grandmother struggled living on
her own in the 80s, she becamesuper frustrated.
She was a fiercely independentwoman and as she really
struggled with some of the basicthings of upkeep in her
apartment, it was it was reallysad to see, and so you know her
home was her happy place.
We tried to figure out a way toallow her to stay there, and so
that was where she felt safe,comfortable and in control.
(04:49):
To help her keep that, we usedlocal home care agencies in San
Diego where I grew up, andunfortunately it just didn't
work.
You know, it was very difficultto earn her trust, and the
inconsistency of caregivers, thesort of revolving door of faces
(05:15):
every few days, it made hervery anxious and nervous and
prone to frustration, and so atthat point we didn't see a model
like Hallmark out there, and so, unfortunately, we felt there
was no alternative other thanbringing her into a community,
into a facility.
So we did that and it was sosad, it was so clear that that
was the beginning of the end.
(05:37):
She lost control, became veryfrustrated, had to give up her
home, and so I brought Hallmarkto Charlotte because I'm
convinced it could have made adifference for her and I think
there are many others in hersituation in Charlotte that
would also benefit, I think.
Also, you know my background isas an investor, so you know
(05:59):
that's sort of the personalattractiveness to the business.
From an investment standpoint,your senior care is a really
attractive market to serve dueto the demographics.
So you've got 10,000 babyboomers retiring each day.
And then the other factorthat's driving demand for home
care is consumer preference.
So studies show that somewherebetween 80 and 90 percent of
(06:23):
seniors strongly prefer to agein place instead of going into a
community.
Now, that's not possible foreveryone, but for those that it
is.
We really take pride in helpingthem achieve that.
So you know it's really forthose seniors it's not just
about adding years to life, butreally about trying to add life
to those years.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I love this model.
You kind of nailed it with thejourney with my father, you know
.
We went through all of thesedifferent agencies where they
were bringing in their peopleand it just wasn't a fit and we
ended up placing him somewhere.
And now we're dealing with mymother and I think this just
makes so, so much sense.
(07:05):
So I understand caregivers wantto make more money, but how do
you know that they're great.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
So you know it's a four-step process, a really
detailed vetting process that weuse, because that is really the
key question.
It all starts and ends with thequality of those individual
caregivers that we place.
If we're not placing good ones,the whole thing doesn't make
sense.
And so to get into it quickly.
The four steps are the firststep is resume screening, the
(07:35):
second step is an interview, thethird step is professional
reference checking and thefourth step is a comprehensive
background check, including evenmotor vehicle registrations and
that sort of thing.
The interview is really keybecause, beyond checking for
certifications and and and theirexperience, you really want to
(07:55):
get a good sense for theirpersonality, because that's a a
good sense for their personality, because that's a key part that
comes into the matching, and sowe really try to focus on that
as well.
Our registry right now is up to158 caregivers and what we're
really proud of is theacceptance rate is 8%.
So it's very difficult to getthrough.
(08:17):
We're really trying to be veryselective and it's interesting
in terms of getting to thosefigures.
You often hear in the newsabout a shortage of caregivers
in the marketplace and, broadlyspeaking, that's absolutely
right.
We don't see that at allbecause of the differences in
our model.
We don't see that becausethey're attracted to the livable
(08:39):
earnings and the control theyget working as an independent
caregiver.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So how do you match them then with the I don't know
the client, the patient?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Yeah.
So the way we do that is whenwe get a referral that comes in
through one of our partners andwe start speaking with the
client.
We conduct an interview inorder to understand all the
different activities of dailyliving that they would like
assistance with, and then alsoget into things like their
preferences.
So, for example, one of themost common ones is does mom
(09:14):
like somebody who's more thechatty type and going to be
really engaging?
Yes, that's perfect, you know,and some people love that,
others hate it.
Right, they want somebodythat's more of a wallflower and
is going to let them do theirthing and only help when asked.
So, you know, we try to getinto both what are their
qualifications to assist, whenare they looking for that
(09:36):
assistance, what are their needs?
But also, what are theirpreferences, what's a good fit?
Speaker 2 (09:41):
What about like medical needs?
You know that kind of.
Do you have qualifiedcaregivers that fit that model?
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Yes, so we do sometimes see clients that have
needs that extend beyond basicpersonal care and activities of
daily living into light medicalneeds.
An example would be you know,maybe they have a wound that
requires application ofanointment, maybe they've got a
medication that they needassistance with.
Because these are privatecaregivers, they can act in the
(10:13):
direction of their own clients,and so what we do is we are able
to match caregivers and checkthat they have the sort of
experience that the client needs, and then we advise the client.
Look, this is the qualificationthat the caregiver has.
It allows them to do X, y, z,but it's up to you if you'd like
(10:34):
them to do more, if they'recomfortable and you're
comfortable.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
I imagine your business is often emergency
based.
How do you handle that?
How quickly can you respond?
Speaker 3 (10:56):
Philip, yes, I broke up for a second, but I caught it
, so I think you know in termsof you're absolutely right.
The majority of our inquiries,unfortunately, are from people
who are in an emergencysituation.
Maybe maybe their loved onefell, was hospitalized or
received a concerning diagnosisthat has changed their lives and
(11:19):
what the family needs to do,and so they're scrambling.
Many times the people that areon the other side of the phone
from our team there's someone intears or in shock, and so it's
a very difficult situation andit's a privilege to be able to
help them.
They're worried not only abouttheir loved one, but often what
we see as well is they'reworried not only about their
loved one, but often what we seeas well is that they're trying
to figure out what the impact isgoing to be to their broader
(11:43):
family as well, and so we areable to respond very quickly,
and that's one of the thingsabout our model it allows us to
be very nimble, because we haveall of these independent
caregivers that are anxiouslyeagerly awaiting placements with
clients where there's a mutualfit.
(12:03):
In recent months, as an example,there were three situations
where we were called upon tomatch caregivers to provide 24-7
care around the clock that theywanted to begin.
They needed it to begin within12 hours, and so this is why
they couldn't work in many ofthese cases with traditional
agencies that would not be ableto respond that quickly, and so
(12:26):
we made the requested placementsin all three cases within the
timeframe requested by theclients, and the reactions of
these families is just sorewarding.
You know, we're able to moveincredibly quickly because the
model is unique, and it's greatto see.
You know how happy the familiesare when they see it come
together.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yeah, I really, really love this model and I did
not know it existed.
So I imagine you run across alot of misconceptions when you
talk to potential clients.
Tell us about those.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
Yeah, you know, I think that really stems from the
topic we touched on earlieraround how you know the
difference between agenciesbeing employees and us being a
traditional home care agencyversus what we are, which is,
you know, we're not that, we'rea matchmaker, we're a referral
agency, and so we're recruitingand placing these caregivers,
(13:19):
and so that main misconceptionis really around helping people
understand what that means and,by extension, what it means we
can do and can't do.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Gotcha.
I love it.
What are some of the things youwish our listeners knew about
you guys that we haven't coveredin this conversation?
Speaker 3 (13:43):
You know, I think it's just that we're a different
sort of option.
You know that can be compellingfor many situations.
I think there are certainlysome situations where a family
member really needs to move intoa community.
Maybe it's socialization need,maybe it's the level of acuity
where it's it's so medicallyoriented that they need to be
near that sort of equipment andand and RNs and that sort of
(14:05):
staff.
So I think it's not foreveryone, but we really believe
that this different optioncompelling for a lot of
situations, you know, for peoplewho want their own private
caregiver that's professional,vetted and insured, our referral
agency can be a great fit.
You know, we deliver clientswith a comprehensive solution
(14:28):
that makes working with anindependent caregiver really
easy, whereas, for example, ifyou got one off carecom you'd
sort of be scratching your headwhat do I do now?
How do I handle hours?
How do I handle 1099 generation?
How do I handle?
What do I do if they call out?
You know we're there to helpclients with all of those things
and sort of navigate theprocess and make it seamless.
(14:49):
So, you know, just just helpingpeople understand that there's
this, there's this differentoption out there that can be a
good fit and it's worth checkingout.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Understand that there's this different option
out there that can be a good fitand it's worth checking out.
So when you match someone tothe person at home, the elder
person, who are we, the clientpaying you guys, or that
caregiver?
Speaker 3 (15:08):
Yeah, so in our model it's super transparent.
I'll contrast it with an agency.
In the case of an agency,you're paying one fee to an
agency and then they pay thecaregiver as their employee.
In our case, the client paystheir caregiver directly and
then they pay us a fee.
That fee is essentially twothings it's essentially a
(15:31):
payment over time of thematchmaking fee, and then it's
also a payment in respect of theadministrative services that we
offer to help make working withtheir private caregiver a
seamless experience.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
So when you say that caregiver is insured, that is
through your agency.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
So there's a policy that covers that caregiver in
respect of any sort of accidentsor issues that could arise in
the home, and the fee that theypay us does cover that policy.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Gotcha, I'm clear now .
Awesome.
Well, this is a phenomenalmodel.
I'm sure most people like medon't know it exists, haven't
spent years with my dad andgoing through trying at home,
and then all of this Very, verycool, philip.
So when you're not running thisamazing business, what do you
(16:26):
like to do for fun in the area?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Yes, I love living in Charlotte.
My daughters are 10 and sevenyears old, which are just really
fun ages are 10 and seven yearsold, which are just really fun
ages.
You know we, we enjoy playingcard games, board games, video
games.
We do pickleball.
You know playing soccer, theyounger one is super into soccer
and then you know, on my own, Ilove racket sports, so I
(16:48):
probably play tennis and andmore recently started adding
pickleball.
I probably play tennis orpickleball two or three nights a
week which.
I really love you know greatexercise and get the competitive
juices out and social as well.
I'm also a foodie and winelover and love some of the
developments in Charlotte sceneon those fronts.
(17:10):
You know, as examples, I mean Ithink flower shop is a super
underappreciated restaurant.
I mean I think Flower Shop is asuper underappreciated
restaurant.
Just amazing pasta.
And I'm a huge fan of PetitPhilippe right nearby.
Just an awesome wine shop thatyou know does weekly tastings
and has an amazing event space.
Those are some of the places Ilike to go.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Oh, I was going to ask you.
I'm not familiar with both ofthose.
I'll have to try it.
Well, it has been a pleasurehaving you on the show.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
How do our listeners find you guys, yeah.
So thank you so much for havingme and it's been really fun to
talk about the business andpeople can find us in a couple
of ways.
The website is Hallmark, justspelled, just like the TV
channel hallmarkhomecarecomslash South Charlotte, all one
word.
So Hallmark home carecom slashSouth Charlotte and, if bonus
(18:05):
preferred, the business line is980 202 2224.
So 980 202 2224 and we're happyto take any inquiries, even if
people are just sort ofexploring ideas and proactively
thinking about options in orderto be prepared.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
I love it Awesome.
I will have some personalquestions for you.
By the way, thank you, philip,so much for joining us and, yeah
, charlotte's a great place.
Speaker 3 (18:36):
Happy to have you on our show today thank you, regina
, it was a pleasure, and takecare thank you for listening to
the good neighbor podcast.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
To nominate your favorite local businesses to be
featured on the show, go tognpsouthcharlottecom.
That's gnpsouthcharlottecom, orcall 980-351-5719.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Regina Lee.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of
the Good Neighbor Podcast.
I'm broadcasting here out ofSouth Charlotte and my favorite
thing to do is talk to localbusiness owners, and I'm super
excited today to have aconversation with Philip Markson
.
He is the owner of HallmarkHome Care of South Charlotte and
York County.
(00:31):
Welcome, philip.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Welcome, Regina.
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Yes, yes, I'm happy to chat with you.
You know I've gone down thisjourney personally with my
father and soon to be my mother,so you know I've got a lot of
questions.
So what exactly does yourcompany do?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
Yeah, you're happy to get into that and, just for
starters, I wanted to thank youfor doing what you do, featuring
local businesses.
It's fun to learn about peopledoing interesting things in the
community, and so thank you forthat.
You know, focusing on thebusiness of Hallmark Home Care
is a direct referral agency.
So what we do we recruitcaregivers into a registry and
(01:11):
then we match them with clientsthat are in need of care,
whether it be in their homes, intheir communities or in their
facilities.
You can think of our registry aslike a bench that includes some
of the best caregivers inCharlotte.
They've chosen the path of aprivate caregiver and their hope
is that Hallmark will matchthem with a client that's a good
(01:33):
fit in terms of care needs,income, location, schedule and
any other preferences that theyhave.
They value their independence,they like being able to choose
their own clients and theyappreciate the higher income
that they can generate as anindependent caregiver.
When clients are referred to us, we conduct an interview first
(01:56):
to understand their needs andpreferences.
We take these details and weuse them to create a customized
match with a caregiver in ourregistry.
It's sort of like how a tailortakes measurements to create a
bespoke suit or like eHarmony.
It's sort of like the eHarmonyof home care.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
Exactly, and so you know, because the client and
caregiver each have to approveeach match, what we see is a
stickiness to the relationshipthat's really unique, and so
continuity of care is huge forour clients.
Instead of wondering who willshow up each day and navigating
a revolving door of faces,clients develop long-term
(02:38):
relationships and routines withtheir caregivers that are
matched by us.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Very cool.
So this differs, then, fromsome of the national agencies
that have their own team ofpeople that they bring into your
house, possibly rotating them.
This is different.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
That's right.
So the main misconception weface in the market is that we're
a home care agency.
We're not.
There are many great home careagencies in Charlotte and these
agencies hire caregivers,exactly as you mentioned, to
deliver care directly.
Due to the high overhead oftheir model, they're only
(03:20):
typically able to pay caregiversabout half of what they charge
clients and unfortunately that'snot a very livable wage in
Charlotte these days.
We operate a different modeldirect referral agency.
So what it means in practice wedon't hire or fire any
caregivers.
We don't provide care.
(03:41):
We place independent caregiverswith clients.
We're a matchmaker.
As we talked about thisdifferent model, what's cool
about it is it enablesindependent caregivers to earn
about $3 to $5 or 20 to 25% morethan they would as agency
employees, and these higherearnings in turn allow us to
(04:03):
attract the better caregivers.
Also, what we see thesecaregivers stay with their
clients longer because theychose them and because the
earnings are livable.
They love having control overtheir schedule.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I love that.
How in the world did you getinto this?
Speaker 3 (04:28):
So you know, when my grandmother struggled living on
her own in the 80s, she becamesuper frustrated.
She was a fiercely independentwoman and as she really
struggled with some of the basicthings of upkeep in her
apartment, it was it was reallysad to see, and so you know her
home was her happy place.
We tried to figure out a way toallow her to stay there, and so
that was where she felt safe,comfortable and in control.
(04:49):
To help her keep that, we usedlocal home care agencies in San
Diego where I grew up, andunfortunately it just didn't
work.
You know, it was very difficultto earn her trust, and the
inconsistency of caregivers, thesort of revolving door of faces
(05:15):
every few days, it made hervery anxious and nervous and
prone to frustration, and so atthat point we didn't see a model
like Hallmark out there, and so, unfortunately, we felt there
was no alternative other thanbringing her into a community,
into a facility.
So we did that and it was sosad, it was so clear that that
was the beginning of the end.
(05:37):
She lost control, became veryfrustrated, had to give up her
home, and so I brought Hallmarkto Charlotte because I'm
convinced it could have made adifference for her and I think
there are many others in hersituation in Charlotte that
would also benefit, I think.
Also, you know my background isas an investor, so you know
(05:59):
that's sort of the personalattractiveness to the business.
From an investment standpoint,your senior care is a really
attractive market to serve dueto the demographics.
So you've got 10,000 babyboomers retiring each day.
And then the other factorthat's driving demand for home
care is consumer preference.
So studies show that somewherebetween 80 and 90 percent of
(06:23):
seniors strongly prefer to agein place instead of going into a
community.
Now, that's not possible foreveryone, but for those that it
is.
We really take pride in helpingthem achieve that.
So you know it's really forthose seniors it's not just
about adding years to life, butreally about trying to add life
to those years.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
I love this model.
You kind of nailed it with thejourney with my father, you know
.
We went through all of thesedifferent agencies where they
were bringing in their peopleand it just wasn't a fit and we
ended up placing him somewhere.
And now we're dealing with mymother and I think this just
makes so, so much sense.
(07:05):
So I understand caregivers wantto make more money, but how do
you know that they're great.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
So you know it's a four-step process, a really
detailed vetting process that weuse, because that is really the
key question.
It all starts and ends with thequality of those individual
caregivers that we place.
If we're not placing good ones,the whole thing doesn't make
sense.
And so to get into it quickly.
The four steps are the firststep is resume screening, the
(07:35):
second step is an interview, thethird step is professional
reference checking and thefourth step is a comprehensive
background check, including evenmotor vehicle registrations and
that sort of thing.
The interview is really keybecause, beyond checking for
certifications and and and theirexperience, you really want to
(07:55):
get a good sense for theirpersonality, because that's a a
good sense for their personality, because that's a key part that
comes into the matching, and sowe really try to focus on that
as well.
Our registry right now is up to158 caregivers and what we're
really proud of is theacceptance rate is 8%.
So it's very difficult to getthrough.
(08:17):
We're really trying to be veryselective and it's interesting
in terms of getting to thosefigures.
You often hear in the newsabout a shortage of caregivers
in the marketplace and, broadlyspeaking, that's absolutely
right.
We don't see that at allbecause of the differences in
our model.
We don't see that becausethey're attracted to the livable
(08:39):
earnings and the control theyget working as an independent
caregiver.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So how do you match them then with the I don't know
the client, the patient?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Yeah.
So the way we do that is whenwe get a referral that comes in
through one of our partners andwe start speaking with the
client.
We conduct an interview inorder to understand all the
different activities of dailyliving that they would like
assistance with, and then alsoget into things like their
preferences.
So, for example, one of themost common ones is does mom
(09:14):
like somebody who's more thechatty type and going to be
really engaging?
Yes, that's perfect, you know,and some people love that,
others hate it.
Right, they want somebodythat's more of a wallflower and
is going to let them do theirthing and only help when asked.
So, you know, we try to getinto both what are their
qualifications to assist, whenare they looking for that
(09:36):
assistance, what are their needs?
But also, what are theirpreferences, what's a good fit?
Speaker 2 (09:41):
What about like medical needs?
You know that kind of.
Do you have qualifiedcaregivers that fit that model?
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Yes, so we do sometimes see clients that have
needs that extend beyond basicpersonal care and activities of
daily living into light medicalneeds.
An example would be you know,maybe they have a wound that
requires application ofanointment, maybe they've got a
medication that they needassistance with.
Because these are privatecaregivers, they can act in the
(10:13):
direction of their own clients,and so what we do is we are able
to match caregivers and checkthat they have the sort of
experience that the client needs, and then we advise the client.
Look, this is the qualificationthat the caregiver has.
It allows them to do X, y, z,but it's up to you if you'd like
(10:34):
them to do more, if they'recomfortable and you're
comfortable.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
I imagine your business is often emergency
based.
How do you handle that?
How quickly can you respond?
Speaker 3 (10:56):
Philip, yes, I broke up for a second, but I caught it
, so I think you know in termsof you're absolutely right.
The majority of our inquiries,unfortunately, are from people
who are in an emergencysituation.
Maybe maybe their loved onefell, was hospitalized or
received a concerning diagnosisthat has changed their lives and
(11:19):
what the family needs to do,and so they're scrambling.
Many times the people that areon the other side of the phone
from our team there's someone intears or in shock, and so it's
a very difficult situation andit's a privilege to be able to
help them.
They're worried not only abouttheir loved one, but often what
we see as well is they'reworried not only about their
loved one, but often what we seeas well is that they're trying
to figure out what the impact isgoing to be to their broader
(11:43):
family as well, and so we areable to respond very quickly,
and that's one of the thingsabout our model it allows us to
be very nimble, because we haveall of these independent
caregivers that are anxiouslyeagerly awaiting placements with
clients where there's a mutualfit.
(12:03):
In recent months, as an example,there were three situations
where we were called upon tomatch caregivers to provide 24-7
care around the clock that theywanted to begin.
They needed it to begin within12 hours, and so this is why
they couldn't work in many ofthese cases with traditional
agencies that would not be ableto respond that quickly, and so
(12:26):
we made the requested placementsin all three cases within the
timeframe requested by theclients, and the reactions of
these families is just sorewarding.
You know, we're able to moveincredibly quickly because the
model is unique, and it's greatto see.
You know how happy the familiesare when they see it come
together.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yeah, I really, really love this model and I did
not know it existed.
So I imagine you run across alot of misconceptions when you
talk to potential clients.
Tell us about those.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
Yeah, you know, I think that really stems from the
topic we touched on earlieraround how you know the
difference between agenciesbeing employees and us being a
traditional home care agencyversus what we are, which is,
you know, we're not that, we'rea matchmaker, we're a referral
agency, and so we're recruitingand placing these caregivers,
(13:19):
and so that main misconceptionis really around helping people
understand what that means and,by extension, what it means we
can do and can't do.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Gotcha.
I love it.
What are some of the things youwish our listeners knew about
you guys that we haven't coveredin this conversation?
Speaker 3 (13:43):
You know, I think it's just that we're a different
sort of option.
You know that can be compellingfor many situations.
I think there are certainlysome situations where a family
member really needs to move intoa community.
Maybe it's socialization need,maybe it's the level of acuity
where it's it's so medicallyoriented that they need to be
near that sort of equipment andand and RNs and that sort of
(14:05):
staff.
So I think it's not foreveryone, but we really believe
that this different optioncompelling for a lot of
situations, you know, for peoplewho want their own private
caregiver that's professional,vetted and insured, our referral
agency can be a great fit.
You know, we deliver clientswith a comprehensive solution
(14:28):
that makes working with anindependent caregiver really
easy, whereas, for example, ifyou got one off carecom you'd
sort of be scratching your headwhat do I do now?
How do I handle hours?
How do I handle 1099 generation?
How do I handle?
What do I do if they call out?
You know we're there to helpclients with all of those things
and sort of navigate theprocess and make it seamless.
(14:49):
So, you know, just just helpingpeople understand that there's
this, there's this differentoption out there that can be a
good fit and it's worth checkingout.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Understand that there's this different option
out there that can be a good fitand it's worth checking out.
So when you match someone tothe person at home, the elder
person, who are we, the clientpaying you guys, or that
caregiver?
Speaker 3 (15:08):
Yeah, so in our model it's super transparent.
I'll contrast it with an agency.
In the case of an agency,you're paying one fee to an
agency and then they pay thecaregiver as their employee.
In our case, the client paystheir caregiver directly and
then they pay us a fee.
That fee is essentially twothings it's essentially a
(15:31):
payment over time of thematchmaking fee, and then it's
also a payment in respect of theadministrative services that we
offer to help make working withtheir private caregiver a
seamless experience.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
So when you say that caregiver is insured, that is
through your agency.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
So there's a policy that covers that caregiver in
respect of any sort of accidentsor issues that could arise in
the home, and the fee that theypay us does cover that policy.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Gotcha, I'm clear now .
Awesome.
Well, this is a phenomenalmodel.
I'm sure most people like medon't know it exists, haven't
spent years with my dad andgoing through trying at home,
and then all of this Very, verycool, philip.
So when you're not running thisamazing business, what do you
(16:26):
like to do for fun in the area?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Yes, I love living in Charlotte.
My daughters are 10 and sevenyears old, which are just really
fun ages are 10 and seven yearsold, which are just really fun
ages.
You know we, we enjoy playingcard games, board games, video
games.
We do pickleball.
You know playing soccer, theyounger one is super into soccer
and then you know, on my own, Ilove racket sports, so I
(16:48):
probably play tennis and andmore recently started adding
pickleball.
I probably play tennis orpickleball two or three nights a
week which.
I really love you know greatexercise and get the competitive
juices out and social as well.
I'm also a foodie and winelover and love some of the
developments in Charlotte sceneon those fronts.
(17:10):
You know, as examples, I mean Ithink flower shop is a super
underappreciated restaurant.
I mean I think Flower Shop is asuper underappreciated
restaurant.
Just amazing pasta.
And I'm a huge fan of PetitPhilippe right nearby.
Just an awesome wine shop thatyou know does weekly tastings
and has an amazing event space.
Those are some of the places Ilike to go.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Oh, I was going to ask you.
I'm not familiar with both ofthose.
I'll have to try it.
Well, it has been a pleasurehaving you on the show.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
How do our listeners find you guys, yeah.
So thank you so much for havingme and it's been really fun to
talk about the business andpeople can find us in a couple
of ways.
The website is Hallmark, justspelled, just like the TV
channel hallmarkhomecarecomslash South Charlotte, all one
word.
So Hallmark home carecom slashSouth Charlotte and, if bonus
(18:05):
preferred, the business line is980 202 2224.
So 980 202 2224 and we're happyto take any inquiries, even if
people are just sort ofexploring ideas and proactively
thinking about options in orderto be prepared.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
I love it Awesome.
I will have some personalquestions for you.
By the way, thank you, philip,so much for joining us and, yeah
, charlotte's a great place.
Speaker 3 (18:36):
Happy to have you on our show today thank you, regina
, it was a pleasure, and takecare thank you for listening to
the good neighbor podcast.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
To nominate your favorite local businesses to be
featured on the show, go tognpsouthcharlottecom.
That's gnpsouthcharlottecom, orcall 980-351-5719.
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