Hourly home care, booked for the hours you need
A kind, dependable caregiver for a few hours a day or a few days a week, for the parts of the day that have become hard.
From our office in Cranford, serving Union County, NJ.
Care for part of the day, on your schedule
Hourly home care means a caregiver comes for a set number of hours on the days you choose, and you pay for those hours. It suits someone who manages most of the day but needs help with part of it: bathing in the morning, getting dinner on the table, a ride to appointments, or companionship while the family is at work.
Schedules are built around the times your loved one needs help most. One person needs help every morning; another needs a long shift three days a week while a daughter works. A shift typically runs four, six, eight or twelve hours, and as needs change, the hours go up or down.
Shifts around appointments and Paratransit pickups
Hourly care tends to get built around the fixed points in your parent's week: help with bathing in the morning, medications at noon, the cardiology appointment at Overlook or the follow-up at Trinitas. Tell us what those are, and we'll set the shifts around them, with the same caregiver coming back whenever we can.
If your parent rides Union County Paratransit, the county asks riders to book appointments between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. when they can, to be ready 15 minutes before a half-hour pickup window, and to expect a shared ride with other stops along the way. Its drivers don't come to the door. A four-hour shift around that appointment gets your parent ready, down to the curb, through the visit and home again in time for lunch.
Common hourly schedules
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Mornings
Arriving around seven or eight for the bathroom, a shower, getting dressed, breakfast and the morning medication reminder.
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Evenings and bedtime
Arriving late afternoon for dinner, the evening reminder, a wash and a safe trip into bed.
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Workday cover
Weekday shifts while the family member your parent lives with is at work.
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A few afternoons of company
Conversation, a walk, errands and an early dinner, for someone who is lonely more than frail. See companion care.
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After a hospital stay
Longer daily shifts for the first weeks home, then fewer as strength returns. See hospital to home care.
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Appointments and errands day
One long shift a week for the doctor, the pharmacy, the bank and the groceries.
When hourly care is no longer enough
Hourly care works while your parent is safe in the hours nobody is there. It stops working when the falls happen at night, when memory loss means they can't be left alone, or when the family member covering the rest of the day is running out of strength. That's the time to look at overnight care or 24-hour home care.
How hourly care gets started
Care can often start within a day or two, and sometimes the same day.
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Tell us which hours are hard
Someone answers day or night. Tell us which days, which times and what needs doing in them, and we'll suggest a schedule and explain how billing works.
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We visit the home
A free visit to meet your parent, see the house and write the care plan the caregiver will follow.
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We match a caregiver
Chosen for the work, the schedule and your parent's personality, and the same person each visit whenever we can.
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Adjust as you go
Add hours, drop a day or change the times with notice. There's no long-term contract.
What every hourly shift comes with
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A written care plan
So every visit covers what matters, even when a different caregiver fills in.
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Our own employees
Background-checked, bonded and insured, and treated like family, which is why they stay. You're never anyone's employer.
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Cover when a caregiver is out
We send someone else who knows the plan.
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No deposit and no long-term contract
You pay only for the hours that are worked.
What families are saying
As the daughter of an Always Responsive Home Care client, I'm grateful for the compassionate caregivers who helped my mom maintain her independence and dignity at home. Their attentiveness to her needs and warm rapport made a world of difference.
Questions about hourly home care
Still have a question? Call or text us. Someone is here to talk, any time of day.
(908) 691-3660 What is hourly home care?
Hourly home care is non-medical help at home booked and paid for by the hour. A caregiver comes on the days and at the times you choose, typically for shifts of four, six, eight or twelve hours, and helps with personal care, meals, medication reminders, housework, errands and companionship. Schedules range from a few hours a week to full days, and change as needs do.
What can a caregiver do in a few hours?
In a four-hour morning visit, a caregiver can typically help with the bathroom and a shower, dressing, breakfast and a medication reminder, a load of laundry, changing the bed, making lunch for later and a short walk. Afternoon or evening visits often cover errands, appointments, dinner and getting ready for bed.
Does Medicare cover hourly home care?
No. Original Medicare doesn't pay for non-medical home care by the hour. It covers home health care, which is part-time skilled nursing and therapy visits that a doctor orders for someone who is homebound. Our hourly care is private pay, billed to you, and when there's a long-term care policy, we file the claims so it pays you back. Some veterans use VA benefits too.
How quickly can hourly care start?
Hourly care can often start within a day or two of your call, and sometimes the same day. We visit the home, write a care plan and match a caregiver. The more notice we have, the more choice we have in matching someone to your parent's schedule and personality.
Can we change the hours later?
Yes. Hours can go up after a fall or a hospital stay and come down as things settle. There's no long-term contract, so you can add or drop days with notice.
Can an hourly caregiver take my parent to appointments in Union County?
Yes. A caregiver can drive your parent or ride Union County Paratransit with them, wait through the appointment, write down what the doctor says and get them home. Tell us the appointment time when you book, so the shift covers the whole trip, including the wait.
Let's talk about care for your family
Send the form and our Union County team will call you back to talk about your loved one and set up a free in-home assessment. There's no cost and no obligation.
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