I'm Backkkkkkkkkk!

Of course, I recognize that my aide deserves to go on vacation, just like the rest of us. Nevertheless, I always dread the week I know she will be gone. Over the years, Sharon has become part of the family - she knows our schedules and we know hers. I believe, we have a great partnership. Some may say we are picky or quirky about the care of Muddear, but I say that's okay, we have a right to be. Sharon agrees with this sentiment.

Every time a new aide arrives it is like starting over from scratch and we lose that comfortableness that we share with Sharon. This week wasn't any different. Two aides were assigned to cover Sharon's time, but for some odd reason, the agency only scheduled 38 hours of coverage instead of 40. To begin with, the aides were late two days and that's just the beginning of the story.

To protect the innocent, I'll call the first aide Sandy and the second Jamie. Jamie was supposed to work on Tuesday and Wednesday from 8:30 to 4:30. I asked if she could stay until 5:30 to which she responded "no" for Tuesday and "yes" for Wednesday. On Wednesday, during the middle of the day Jamie called my husband at work stating she needed to leave early, but needed to make sure someone would be home. What?

I was sick on Monday and Tuesday and therefore was home all day. Thank goodness! Jamie didn't bring lunch on Tuesday and needed to leave to pick up something - the agency never notified her that Flossie could not be home alone. Huh?

Sandy was the aid for Monday, Thursday and Friday. Ironically, she had no lunch on Monday either - for the exact same reason stated by Jamie. On Wednesday, I received a phone call from the agency that Sandy needed to leave early on Thursday, but would make up her hours on Friday. No problem, I thought, I can work with that. Unfortunately, on Thursday she had a family issue that required her to leave after only a half day at work. Friday morning I received a phone call from the agency - Sandy called in. Great! Especially, since she had not completed half of the items requested.

To top matters off, it seemed like the aides were afraid to make decisions on their own. I recognize that Flossie was a new client for both of them, BUT... while I was sick Jamie knocked on my door to show me how much Flossie ate for lunch. She wanted to make sure she had eaten enough. Why do I have to make that determination? Common sense would say "no" if Flossie ate less than half of her lunch or "yes" if she ate more than half. If no, save the rest and offer later when inevitably Muddear will be hungry again.

This morning was Sharon's first day back. When I caught a glimpse of her, Sharon's first words were... "I'm Backkkkkkkkkk!"