(417) 234-8494 What to expect as a client We’re hiring caregivers →

Getting Started › What to Expect

What working with us looks like

Nothing about your care should be a surprise.

Still deciding? That's normal. Here is how home care with Caring Companions works: what it costs, what caregivers can and can't do, and how we keep you in the loop. You can even read the same Client Handbook and Client Care Agreement our clients get. There's no rush.

Read the Client Handbook (PDF) Read a sample Client Care Agreement (PDF)

Questions? Call or text (417) 234-8494.

A family talking through a care plan at the kitchen table

Still deciding?

A few things families usually want to know first.

The assessment is freeWe visit, listen and answer your questions. There's no obligation to start care.
No depositYou're billed weekly for the visits that already happened.
No long-term contractYou can stop care when you need to. If you know about a change ahead of time, a heads-up helps us plan.
Billed from real visit timesInvoices come from the caregiver's clock-in and clock-out times, with a 4-hour visit minimum.

Checked before they start. Every caregiver has federal, state and county background checks and a driving record check, and checks are repeated.

Bonded and insured, including to drive clients.

Our employees, never contractors. We handle their payroll and taxes, so you never become anyone's employer.

Family owned since 2017. Not a franchise, with an office right here in Springfield.

The three levels of care

On the phone we may have talked about which one sounds right. Each one includes everything in the level before it.

Getting started

Your first week, and beyond.

Starting care is a big step. Here's how it usually goes, so nothing comes as a surprise.

1. Your free assessment

We visit the home, get to know your loved one, and learn their routines, what they enjoy, and what's gotten harder.

2. Your care plan and agreement

We write your care plan together and go over your Client Care Agreement, including your notification and photo choices.

3. Meet your caregiver

We match a caregiver by skills, personality and schedule, and share their profile with a friendly photo before the first visit, so you know who's coming.

4. The first visits

Your caregiver follows the care plan and writes a note after every visit. Call us any time with questions or changes.

Dramatization. People shown are not actual clients or caregivers.

Watch how it works

Never a stranger at the door.

Before the first visit, we share your caregiver's profile with a friendly photo, so you know who's coming. If there's ever a change in which caregiver is coming, the family members who chose text updates get a text with a link to the new caregiver's profile.

When needs change

Your care grows with you, without changing agencies. If more hands-on help is needed, we can move you from Wellness Care to Personal Care or Advanced Care. If things get easier, we can step back down. Add hours, add overnight care when nights are the worry, or move to 24-hour care when someone needs to be there all the time.

Going into the hospital or rehab

Please call the office as soon as you can so we can pause visits. Before care starts again, we'll check the care plan with you, because needs often change after a hospital stay. If a family caregiver needs time off, respite visits can fill the gap, scheduled or as needed.

Staying in touch

How we keep you in the loop, and keep watch between visits.

Your Family Circle

The people you choose to be part of your care. To protect your privacy, we only share care updates with people you've authorized in writing, and you can add or remove people at any time.

Text updates you choose

If you tick the boxes, we'll text your chosen contacts when a caregiver is running late, or when there's a change in which caregiver is coming, with a link to their profile.

Your calendar, notes and invoices

The contacts you choose get their own sign-in to AxisCare, our care and billing system, to see the care calendar, care notes from each visit, every invoice and your payments.

Every shift note is read

Caregivers write a note after every visit. Our office reads them, and anything that needs attention is followed up quickly, often the same day.

Clock-in alerts

If a caregiver hasn't clocked in a few minutes after a visit should start, our office is alerted right away and follows up.

Care plan reviews

We review your care plan at least every 90 days, and often more than that. When we see needs change, we update the plan and the whole care team right away.

Clear pricing, no surprises

Billing and payment.

Your hourly rate depends on your level of care: $30, $32 or $34 an hour. Your rate is written in your Client Care Agreement before care starts, and we give at least 4 weeks' written notice before any rate change.

Estimate a week of care

Pick a level and a schedule to see what a typical week could cost. It's only an estimate; we'll confirm the right level with you at the free assessment.

4 hours
3 visits

Estimated weekly invoice

$360

12 hours of care$360.00

Billed weekly, Monday through Sunday, from clock-in and clock-out times. Cancelling with less than 24 hours' notice is billed at 2 hours. Ask us about long-term care insurance, VA benefits and Medicare GUIDE.

Visit minimums

Scheduled visits are at least 4 hours, with at least 8 hours a week. If you send your caregiver home early, the visit is still billed at 4 hours. If the office approves a shorter visit ahead of time, it's billed at $5 more per hour for each hour under 4.

Weekly invoice and autopay

Your invoice week runs Monday through Sunday. After each week, you get one invoice by email showing every visit. Autopay then pays it from the card or bank account you keep on file. Credit cards have a 3% processing fee; debit card and bank (ACH) payments don't.

See it all in AxisCare

The family members you choose on your Contacts & Permissions form get their own sign-in to AxisCare, our care and billing system. They can see the care calendar, the care notes from each visit, all of your invoices and your payments. To sign in, go to 16485.axiscare.com, choose Activate account, and use the email we have on file.

Cancelling a visit

There's no fee to cancel with at least 24 hours' notice. With less than 24 hours' notice, the visit is billed at 2 hours, because your caregiver counted on that time for their pay.

Insurance and benefits

If you use long-term care insurance, VA benefits or Medicare GUIDE, ask us how billing works for your plan. We can bill many long-term care insurers directly.

Read the details

Care on New Year's Day, Easter Sunday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day is billed at time and a half. If you ask a caregiver to work more than 40 hours in a week, the extra hours are billed at time and a half.

Caregivers can drive you in your car or theirs. In your car, there's no mileage charge, but your auto insurance must be current. In the caregiver's car, mileage is billed at $0.69 a mile.

Shared household help for a couple is billed at the standard hourly rate. If both people need personal care, dementia care or hands-on supervision, care is billed at 1.5 times the hourly rate.

A returned payment has a fee; the office can tell you the current amount. If an account goes four weeks without payment, someone from the office will call you, and care is paused until the account is current.

Non-medical home care

What caregivers can and cannot do.

Our caregivers can assist with daily activities, mobility, and medication reminders, but cannot administer medications, fill pill organizers, change dressings, or perform nursing procedures. For everyone's safety, caregivers cannot perform unsafe lifting, move heavy furniture, climb ladders or stools, or complete outdoor maintenance. All assistance must follow your care plan.

Can a caregiver help with...?

Tap a question to see the answer.

Pick a question above.
With medicines, caregivers can
  • Remind you to take medicines as prescribed
  • Read the label to you
  • Hand you the medicine container
  • Open the container or blister pack
Caregivers can't
  • Give or set out any medicine, including over-the-counter
  • Fill a pill organizer
  • Apply creams or ointments, or give eye, ear or nose drops
  • Check blood sugar, flush tubing or a catheter, or change oxygen settings

A family member or another responsible person can fill the pill organizer. If you need help beyond these guidelines, please contact our office. We're happy to help find a solution.

Questions?

Ask us anything. There's no pressure, and no question is too small.

Call or text (417) 234-8494Book a free in-home visit

Working together

A few things that keep care running smoothly.

The everyday rules our clients and caregivers follow. Tap any one to read it.

Schedule changes go through the office, whether it's one visit or a permanent change. We'll let your caregiver know.
Caregivers don't give out their personal phone numbers. The office can always reach them for you.
Asking a caregiver to stay late? Call the office first so we can approve it.
Severe weather: we never ask caregivers to take unnecessary risks, and we'll call if a visit may not happen.
Outings with a cost: please pay for your caregiver's admission as well as your own, plus any parking or tolls.
Checks and money: a caregiver may help you write a check, but will never sign one. Cash for shopping always comes back with a receipt and your exact change.
No gifts or tips, please. Caregivers aren't allowed to accept them. A thank-you card, or a call to the office, means the world.
Your caregiver can't be hired privately, even for a few extra hours. Every caregiver is our employee, and your agreement includes a $5,000 direct-hire fee.

Your rights

Your rights, your privacy, and how to raise a concern.

Among them: to be treated with dignity and respect, to help create your care plan, to know what your care costs and be told in advance of any increase, and to make a complaint without fear of retaliation. All 18 rights are in the Client Handbook.
We keep only the information we need for your care, and we share it only as our Notice of Privacy Practices describes. You can see your records, ask for corrections, and contact our Privacy Officer or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, at 1-800-368-1019.
Call the office any time, or write to us. Every concern goes to the agency administrator. We look into it right away, tell you what we found, and your care continues as normal while we work it out. Still not right? Call Samantha directly.
To report abuse, neglect or exploitation, call the Missouri Adult Abuse and Neglect Hotline at 1-800-392-0210, and please tell us too. In an emergency, call 911.
You can end services when you need to. If you know about a change ahead of time, two weeks' notice helps us plan for your caregivers, but we understand that many times there's no notice at all. If we ever need to end or transfer your care, we'll give you reasonable notice and help you find other care when we can.

Read it all before you decide

Our client documents

These are the same documents our clients get. The agreement here is a sample for reading only. We go through and sign your Client Care Agreement together.

Book a free in-home assessment → There's no obligation.

Client Handbook (PDF, 23 pages). Your care, billing, your rights, privacy, the medication policy and home safety.

Client Care Agreement, sample (PDF, 23 pages). The agreement and its rate sheet, exhibits and forms.

VA Community Care Addendum, sample (PDF). For veterans whose care is authorized by the VA.

Medicare GUIDE Addendum, sample (PDF). For families receiving GUIDE respite visits.

What families & caregivers say

Real, verified Google reviews from the families we care for, and the caregivers on our team.