Almost every home care agency says its staff are trained. Far fewer say what the training covers, who teaches it, how often it repeats, or whether you can see a record of it. That gap is a finding. Treat the training line as a claim you are entitled to test, the same way you would test any other promise in a contract.
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.
Ask what is taught, in plain words
Ask for the list of training topics in writing. A useful list names things you can picture in your own home: safe moving and transfers, handwashing and glove use, how to write a visit note, how to report an accident or a slip the same day, how to notice a change in how your family member is doing and tell the office, and how to keep a home safe around the stove, the door locks, and loose rugs. If the answer is that the agency covers everything, ask for the page that says so. Vague topics cost an agency nothing to promise and nothing to break.
Ask who teaches it
Ask whether the training is taught by a named supervisor, an outside instructor, or a video the caregiver watches alone. Each one tells you something different. A supervisor who visits homes can see whether the training shows up on the floor. A video tells you the agency has a library. Ask who will check the caregiver after the training, and how often that check happens. If nobody checks, the training is a box to tick, not a skill you can count on.
Ask for the record
Ask whether training is logged for each employee, how many sessions the caregiver has attended, and what happens when a caregiver misses one. Ask when the most recent refresher ran and what it covered. Ask whether you can see the sign-in sheet or the completion log for the specific person who would be sent to your home. A capable agency answers these without fuss, and it can usually produce the record or explain why it cannot.
What a real answer sounds like
A real answer names the topics, names the teacher or the role of the teacher, describes how the caregiver is checked afterward, and offers to show the record. It also tells you what the agency does not train on, so you know where your own household rules must be written down and handed over. Ask the agency to put your house rules in writing as well, and ask how the caregiver receives them. A good agency treats your written rules as part of the training for your home.
What a silent answer means
If the agency will not name the topics, the teacher, or the record, write that down plainly on your comparison sheet as not published. Do not fill the gap with what you hope is true. An agency that is quick to say it cares about training but slow to show what it is will cost you the same time later, when something goes wrong and you need to know who was taught what.
How to score it
Use three marks for each agency: topics named in writing, teacher named with a check afterward, and record shown or offered. Give each one a plain yes, partial, or no. Then compare the three marks side by side across every agency you are considering, using the same questions for each one. The method behind the site's scoring is explained on the How We Rate page, and the questions to ask about any quote are covered in How to read a home care quote. Health questions go to the family's doctor, not to the training binder.