Two homes means two sets of facts. A plan that fits one address often breaks at the second. This guide helps you size the help for a parent who splits time between their own home and a family member's house, or between two separate homes in the St. Louis area.

Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.

Name the base and the visit site

Pick the address where the person lives most of the time. Call it the base. The other address is the visit site. Write the base first, because the agency will build the plan around it. The visit site becomes an exception that needs its own sheet.

Write a fit sheet for each address

Each address gets its own sheet. Keep it short and factual.

  • Which rooms the caregiver will use, and which rooms are off limits.
  • Where supplies, linens, and the person's everyday items are kept.
  • Which doorways, floor changes, or steps the caregiver should know about before the first visit.
  • The tasks that happen at this address: meals, laundry, tidying, company, and errands.
  • Who the caregiver calls if something at this address does not match the sheet.

Decide who travels

Ask the agency whether one caregiver works both addresses or whether two people are assigned. Ask what happens on the days the person moves between homes. Write the answer down. If the agency has no answer, that is your finding. Do not assume the caregiver will also handle the trip.

Split the tasks that travel from the tasks that stay

Some tasks follow the person: appointment rides, errands, company on a trip. Others stay with the house: cooking from what is on hand, laundry, and keeping the place clean. Put the traveling tasks on one list and the stay-put tasks on the matching address sheet. A task that could go either way goes on the list where someone already checks it.

Plan the move day

The move day is where plans break. Decide in advance which address the caregiver starts from, what the caregiver brings, what stays behind, and who confirms the person has settled in. Put that confirmation on the sheet, with a name next to it.

Check which county each home is in

If the two addresses sit in different counties, local services may follow different rules. Call the county aging office for each address and ask which services apply there. Ask the local Area Agency on Aging the same questions in general terms. Keep the answers with the sheets. Do not assume a service at one address transfers to the other.

Test the sheets on a bad day

Pick the worst case for each address: a late caregiver, a day the schedule slips, a stretch when the person is alone longer than planned. Walk each sheet through it. If the sheet has no answer for the bad day, add one. If the agency cannot help close the gap, record it as a finding.