Right at Home aids seniors and the disabled

On any given day, 65 to 70 employees of Right at Home Cedar Rapids are deployed to residences throughout the area, performing a variety of tasks that are intended to allow people to lead happy, healthy lives in the comfort of their own homes.

Some Right at Home employees may transport clients to the store or to medical appointments.

Others may be assist with personal hygiene, preparing meals or doing laundry. Still others may be play cards with clients or simply swap stories about their grandchildren.

'Right at Home provides non-medical home care to seniors and disabled adults wherever they call home,” franchise owner Stephanie Humphries said.

'It's a feel-good business, honestly. We're helping people. I see it every day in our caregivers.”

Right at Home got its start in 1995 in Omaha, Neb. Founder Allen Hager was a former hospital administrator who often saw elderly patients go home from the hospital despite being unable to care for themselves properly.

Now with more than 500 locations around the world, the business provides customized home care services such as transportation, home health care and companionship, as well as respite care services for family caregivers.

The Cedar Rapids location opened in early 2014, and Humphries purchased the franchise in September 2017.

As with Hager, Humphries has a health care background - she is a licensed physical therapist who previously worked in home health physical therapy.

'I looked at three or four other businesses over the last few years,” Humphries said of her decision to purchase the franchise.

'This one appealed to me largely because it related to my background.”

In her first year as a business owner, Humphries forged relationships with senior living centers and others in the community while boosting the business' online presence and marketing.

These efforts resulted in an increase in overall sales revenue of nearly 80 percent. Total caregiver hours worked per week increased from 850 to 1,500, and the staff grew from 45 to around 80 employees.

At the same time, Humphries focused on improving the Right at Home employee experience.

'It's not glamorous work, but it's very, very important,” she said. 'Our caregivers are the heart of what we do.”

Humphries implemented changes in hiring practices, employee training and mentoring, which she said have improved employee retention and job satisfaction.

'I want to find the people with the right personality, those with compassion and the motivation to care for someone else,” she said.

'We can train for anything they need to know, but we can't train for compassion and work ethic. So we revamped the interview process to identify the people who have the motivation and desire to help others.”

Another change involved promoting a caregiver into the role of mentor-trainer. That person works with new caregivers on the job to ensure they are comfortable doing certain tasks, Humphries said.

Quarterly lunch-and-learns and other training opportunities also are provided.

Humphries is supported by an office staff that includes a schedule care manager - her 'right-hand person” - who oversees the caregivers and manages scheduling, an on-call coordinator, two customer service employees and a human resource administrator.

They all have experience working as caregivers for Right at Home or elsewhere.

l Businesses chosen to be featured in 'A Day in the Life” were from those nominated for this year's Gazette Business Awards. For information on the Oct. 30 awards banquet, go to thegazette.com/2018businessawards.

At a glance

l Business: Right at Home

l Address: 3525 Center Point Rd. NE, Suite D, Cedar Rapids

l Website: www.rahcr.com

l Chief officer: Stephanie Humphries

l Number of employees: 80

l Years in operation: Four and a half