Frequently Asked Questions

Right at Home Salem Marblehead has been in business since 2002 and remains independently owned and operated by Rosaleen Doherty and Jay Kenney, local Marblehead residents. Our local office is situated in the heart of downtown Salem at 16 Lynde St.

Right at Home Salem Marblehead provides in-home caregiving services delivered by our professional CareTeam members. We provide customized care to your loved one’s exact care needs and all of our care is overseen by our clinical nursing team. Our office can provide as little as 1 hour per day to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You are in control over the schedule that you decide to put in place, or if you would like assistance our staff is glad to provide a suggested schedule to meet your family’s needs. Additionally, our on-call coordinators are available nights, weekends and holidays so if an emergency arises, you can rest assured that our team is there to support you and your loved one. Furthermore, we can support your loved one with hospice supportive care, personal care and ambulation assistance, maintaining nutrition and hydration, transportation to medical appointments and errands, light housekeeping, Alzheimer’s and cognitive supportive care, respite care for family caregivers and skilled nursing care. To see how we may be able to help your family, view our full list of available services can be found on our services page.

Our office is situated in the city of Salem adjacent to Front Street Coffee House shopping center, and is just a couple of feet from the Salem Council on Aging. We can provide care to adults living in the following areas: Beverly, Danvers, Essex, Gloucester, Hamilton, Lynn, Lynnfield, Marblehead, Middleton, Nahant, Peabody, Rockport, Salem, Saugus, Swampscott, Topsfield, Wenham.

Every caregiver is a Right at Home Salem Marblehead employee. To help ensure the safety and wellbeing of our clients, we perform a criminal history background clearance, office of inspector general check to review credentials, and then cover each of our caregivers with general liability and workman’s compensation insurance-this protects your loved one in case a CareTeam member becomes injured. We also professionally supervise our CareTeam members to ensure your loved one is receiving the best care possible. Bonded in case of theft. We provide our certified home health aides, certified nursing assistants, personal care attendants, homemakers and companion caregivers with continuing education as well as ongoing training and support. Our training programs include: Hospice Supportive Care, Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care, as well as monthly in-services through our online education program--Right at Home University.

We will take the guesswork out of matching the right caregiver to you and your family. CareTeam members are matched to your loved one based on the following: clinical assessment, service type, care-plan, CareTeam member availability and logistics. However, the satisfaction of our clients and families are of utmost priority and you must be satisfied. Our office will always do our best to accommodate any requests you may have for a change in caregivers (as allowed by law).

We will work to find the best CareTeam to possible to assist your loved one. Continuity of care is very importance to us. We understand that a strong rapport and trust with a caregiver is vital to a successful home care experience. We take into consideration the schedule and hours per week to determine how many CareTeam members are assigned to the case. If your loved one receives care for many hours in a day or at different times of the day throughout the week, it may be necessary to schedule more than one caregiver in a given week. If your family requires multiple caregivers, our goal is the same: we want you to be satisfied and happy. We'll do what it takes to make sure we achieve that goal.

Our local office can assist in reminding our clients to take their medications. In fact, medication reminders are one of our most requested services. We can also report any side effects and assist with pre-measured medication packages (bubble packs etc.), this is all part of our RightMeds program. Medication non-compliance is one of the major factors of hospitalization in our elders due to multiple psychological and physical challenges and the amount of medications being prescribed per individual. Contact us today to determine if we can provide the exact service that will best support your needs.

Yes, you can change the number of hours or type of service we provide your loved one whenever it's necessary. We understand the care situation can quickly change, so we're as flexible as possible with your loved one's care. Plus, you're never bound to a long-term contract, so you can discontinue your relationship with Right at Home at your discretion.

Our office uses several tools to track our caregivers. First, we use daily activity sheets which are filled out by each caregiver and signed by you or your loved one. In addition, we use a combination of Internet-based solutions to verify time and attendance. This allows you to have a written record of services within the home where care is provided and the time in which our caregiver was present in the home. Also, our itemized invoices are always sent after services are complete. This lets you ask any questions about time or date of care, and it allows us to make any schedule adjustments before your invoice is sent.

No, you don't need pre-authorization, pre-qualification, certification or even a prescription for Right at Home's services. You choose the services you want, when to start those services and how often those services are used. If you require assistance with billing a private insurance policy (such as long-term care insurance) for our services, we're happy to help with the entire "benefits coordination" process.

Cost for private duty home care services at Right at Home Salem Marblehead can range from $29.00 per hour to $50.00 per hour for specialty 1-hour care services. We have a six hour per week minimum over a 7 day period. In addition, we charge a one time fee of $80.00 for the care-plan. Also, we require a two-week deposit which is held until the end of services and is 100% refundable at the end of services and invoices are generated weekly. Invoices are due upon the date they are received. Invoices can be received via email, regular mail or both. Every family we serve receives a Custom Care Plan specific to their needs. Several factors help to determine the exact cost, including:

• Number of hours of care per week
• Level of home care services provided
• Payment method

Our home care services are billed on an hourly basis which makes it easy to create a Custom Care Plan for you. You can read more about ways to pay for home care here. To discuss the services your loved one may need, give our local office a call 978-744-5151 or contact us online.

While Medicare will provide in-home skilled nursing services such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, or wound therapy services, they do not pay for hourly personal care services that Right at Home Salem Marblehead provides. Long-Term Care Insurance will typically reimburse for the services provided by Right at Home Salem Marblehead and if you complete an Assignment of Benefits form (A.O.B.), we will manage the invoicing and reimbursement process for you. We also support programs like the Veterans Aid and Attendance Program, which is an additional pension benefit paid directly to Veterans and/or surviving spouses who require our services. In addition, we are also approved vendors for the local state home care program through North Shore Elder Services, Greater Lynn Senior Services and Commonwealth Care Alliance.

We accept major credit cards such as VISA and MasterCard. We also accept checks and ACH which is an auto debit out of a checking or savings account. Using the ACH payment option allows families to receive a $1.00 per hour discount and we only require a one-week deposit as opposed to a two-week deposit. You can read about more ways to pay for home care here.

We adhere to all applicable federal and state guidelines related to privacy of personal and healthcare information. This starts once we have a formal services agreement, before a caregiver even comes to your family member's home. The written service agreement stipulates the exact restrictions on the use of your information, which clarifies that even unauthorized individuals will not be given access to information without a client's – or legally authorized representative's – formal consent. Your information is never sold to a third party under any circumstances. In fact, only the office personnel and caregivers who are directly involved in your services will have access to information related to the care of your loved one.

Referrals come in to our local North Shore office from a wide range of organizations, businesses and personnel. Most of our referrals come directly from local North Shore Area Hospitals such as North Shore Medical Center, Lahey Health Peabody, and Union Hospital. We also receive referrals from local rehabs and skilled nursing facilities, assisted and independent living communities, geriatric care managers and home health agencies such as visiting nurse.

To engage with Right at Home Salem Marblehead's services, please call us and a member from our team will come to meet with client, family and/or responsible party to set up services and discuss service options. To begin services, the client and or client responsible party will sign a Service Agreement with Right at Home and a HIPAA form. Based on the schedule, service type and type of payment, client and or client representative will give a two-week security deposit. Invoices will be generated to client and or client’s responsible party weekly via email mail or both. Never is there to be money or payment passed onto Right at Home caregivers. For questions regarding this process please contact our office directly at 978-744-5151.

You may call Right at Home Salem Marblehead during normal business hours: Monday-Friday 9:00am-5:30pm with any customer service questions including care, schedules, invoices, etc.. You may also call Right at Home Salem Marblehead after hours 5:00pm-9:00am, on weekends and on holidays for emergencies. our local office employs an emergency on-call support team to answer your questions, comments and concerns. Emergency on-call is for clients and caregivers with emergencies only. If you call after hours with non-emergency questions you may leave the inquiry in our general mailbox which will be answered during the next business day.

Selecting someone to care for your loved one can be an overwhelming task. We believe the process of selecting someone to care for your loved one should be simple and transparent. We believe the process of starting home care should be a comfortable transition for the person receiving care and for your family. We believe you should be part of your loved one's care, but not have to actively manage all aspects of their care. The main difference between an agency and a registry comes down to managing the caregiver. In addition, all of our office staff are specially trained in case management through Boston University School of Social Work to best be able to meet your needs. At Right at Home Salem Marblehead, you have our whole agency behind you supporting you every step of the way. We are experts in senior care services and can help your loved one age in place. From one hour per day to 24 hours seven days per week, we have the capability of providing excellent care with positive outcomes.

Give Right at Home Salem Marblehead a call, or contact us online. We will arrange a time to visit you, your family and/or any authorized representative to fully discuss your particular home care situation and how Right at Home Salem Marblehead might help. Together, we'll go over the care your family needs and the care we provide. We'll answer all of your questions regarding in-home care services and costs. Then, we'll begin putting together your Custom Care Plan and matching your loved one with the right caregiver. Usually, care can begin within a matter 24 hours or less!