November Caregiver Ambassador of the Month: Jamie Adair
For the month of November, we are proud to announce Jamie Adair as our newest Caregiver Ambassador of the Month. Jamie has worked with our Angels Senior Home Solutions office in Lafayette for almost seven years, starting during her sophomore year of college at Purdue University. Her standout dedication to clients made her an easy choice for this month’s honor.
Jamie always cares about her clients
Jamie was nominated by Debbie Nelson, the HR Coordinator at Angels Senior Home Solutions, who gushed about Jamie’s skills and the way she consistently goes above and beyond. “Jamie truly cares for her clients and always makes sure they have what they need,” said Debbie. “She always has a smile and kind words for all her clients. They truly love having Jamie as a caregiver.”
Jamie serves clients with integrity, effectiveness and compassion, working with some clients in the furthest reaches of Angels’ service area without a single complaint. “Jamie has amazing caring qualities, and has excellent communication with the office,” said Debbie. “She’s always willing to pick up shifts, even after working a full day. Truly a blessing to our company.”
Getting an early start to caregiving
Jamie got her start in the career of caregiving when she was in college. “My degree was in human services,” said Jamie. “I wanted to get my feet wet and figure out what population I wanted to work with.” Although she started out working with kids, she quickly learned that it wasn’t the right fit.
“I came across Angels, so I applied, interviewed and did a couple of assessments and was hired right away,” she said. “I absolutely loved it and I’ve been with the elderly population ever since.” As Jamie demonstrates, college students can be a perfect addition to the caregiving team, especially thanks to the flexible schedule and great experience for a future career.
Experiences on both sides of the career
After four years as a caregiver, Jamie moved into a recruitment role in the Angels Senior Home Solutions office for about two years. “It was definitely a new experience for me, and it made me appreciate Barb and Debbie and all of the Angels and Senior Home Companions staff a lot more,” said Jamie. “Just knowing what they go through with interviews, getting great caregivers and making sure that we are meeting all of the clients’ needs at all times.”
Today, Jamie reflects on her time in the office fondly and as a great learning experience, but she realized that her true calling was as a caregiver and has been back in that role for the past year.
Jamie’s personal experience with Alzheimer’s
As a part of the Caregiver Ambassador program, we are proud to make a donation in each honoree’s name to the local nonprofit of their choice. Jamie chose the Alzheimer’s Association, due to her experience with the disease from a professional and personal standpoint.
“I’ve seen a lot through my clients here at Angels how it can affect family members as well as the client,” said Jamie. “I’ve also seen it personally with family members in my fiance’s family. We do the Alzheimer’s walk every year, so it’s really important to us to make sure that we can help in any way possible.”
Celebrating with clients during the holidays
“The biggest thing that I’ve learned is to really listen to your client,” said Jamie. “A lot of them just want companionship, so a big part of my job is just sitting and talking with them.” And as the holiday season approaches, those companionship skills translate into celebrating with them as well. “This is the time of year to get together with family, but some clients don’t have family to do that with them,” she said. “So we just help them celebrate and be positive and upbeat so that they can be happy as well!”
If you are a client, family member or fellow caregiver interested in submitting a Caregiver Ambassador of the Month nomination, visit our Resources page or download the PDF form directly. Please email completed forms to Nicole Bieker at nbieker@shcindiana.com, or contact Human Resources at (317) 918-7168 for more information.