About Hajrija

Reviewed on 12/26/2013

It is my pleasure to write this letter in support of Heidi. Heidi worked for my family, caring for my elderly mother, for the last 3 years or so until her death on 12/22/13, at age 92. My mother was in declining health for approximately 12 years, suffering from dementia and immobility, caused by knee and hip problems. When Heidi came to us, my mother was in the later stages of dementia and very difficult to care for, with unprovoked aggression, physical and verbal abuse of caregivers, and exhibiting challenging behaviors like sleeplessness and paranoid psychosis, all caused by her advanced mental decline. It had been my mother's wish to be cared for, and die, at home if possible, but her condition made that very difficult at times. Finding caregivers or Home Care agencies who were sufficiently experienced and comfortable with my mother's degree of physical aggression and other complex needs was very difficult. For the last year or so, we needed 7/24 care including awake overnight care, provided in 3 different locations, with my mother non-ambulatory. In every way, Heidi was a godsend to us. She was without a doubt the best of all of our caregivers over many years, and a true professional who treated my mother with dignity and respect at all times regardless of how difficult her behavior became. Heidi is a wonderful combination of positive attitude, emotional balance and resiliency, trained professionalism, endless patience, and the youthful spirit and physical strength we all wish we had. She is experienced with elder care, home care, and dementia, and was very helpful to us in planning for my mother's care, and in the final year served as our 'coordinator' who also managed the rest of the team, helped with respite care and planning, responded to call outs, etc. We came to rely on Heidi as the primary caregiver among our team of 7 or 8 home care providers, most working part-time as private duty, (non -agency), with Heidi actively participating in medical appointments and family decisions about my mother's care. Overall, Heidi is an outstanding home care provider who will treat even the most difficult clients with respect and dignity and will support the family regardless of the stresses that may impose. Heidi is also trustworthy, punctual, and reliable. She was often asked to fill more than 40 hours in a week, and sometimes more than 60 including awake overnights when another caregiver had called out. She worked well with family and was generous and patient with our difficult family dynamics that sometimes created problems for caregivers. Heidi is responsible about money and could be trusted with cash or credit cards as needed to purchase home care supplies, take my mother for an outing, etc.; we had no reservations whatsoever at any time with her having full access to our homes, unsupervised. She is honest and forthright, speaks up about concerns, but does not insist on things being done 'her way' if there are disagreements. She is very bright, learns quickly, and has endured significant adversity with great emotional maturity, making her much, much 'older and wiser' than her chronological age and in fact, more so than most people of any age. She is a pleasure to have around and to work with daily, and will always be treated as a family member in our homes. We became very close to her and relied on her enormously toward the end, and she never let us down. In fact, she held us all together through some of the most difficult times. In summary, let me state that I would hire Heidi again in a minute, without reservation, and with great enthusiasm. Regardless of what she is hired to do, she will do it well and with integrity, and will be a pleasure to have around. We need more people like Heidi in all professions, not just home care.