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Care at Home Despite Employment
For a long time, Silvia L. took care of her own mother herself, even though she worked full-time. "We lived together in a house with an apartment, and my mother was quite fit until her mid-80s," recalls the 55-year-old daughter, who works in the Human Resources department at Tectrion. But then the 91-year-old fell in September 2014 and never really recovered.
I was so lucky with my employer Tectrion. It was absolutely no question that I could complete parts of my work from home," praises the HR clerk her employer for its family-friendliness. Initially, Silvia L. still commuted 5 hours a day to the office, but later she reduced her presence to 2 hours in consultation with her boss. "At home, I logged in right away and completed my work from there, but I could simultaneously be there for my mother when she needed me," explains the Tectrion employee about her workday at the time.
Of course, this double burden was exhausting, Silvia L. openly admits. But it worked thanks to the good structures in the company, and because she continued to reliably perform her job as an employee. “Unfortunately, my mother became bedridden in January 2015, and from then on it became really difficult,” says the 55-year-old.
She found the seemingly endless correspondence and the many phone calls with the health insurance particularly burdensome when she wanted to organize medical equipment to improve quality of life: “I had previously bought many things myself, even though I didn't have to. And now my application for a proper mobility aid was rejected. They would have been really important for my mother! I fought a lot with the health insurance about this point and got really upset.” Additionally, the caseworker was worried whether her mother might be dehydrated because she was occasionally confused—although it could just as well have been dementia. “I was unsure how to handle it. Should I have involved the family doctor? I felt quite alone and was very tense,” describes the Tectrion employee of her condition at the time.
In this situation, Silvia L. remembered receiving an internal company newsletter that introduced famPLUS's consulting services and offered them to employees. She got in touch to receive advice. "It was great, I immediately felt so deeply relaxed, and I received good tips on dealing with the health insurance," Silvia L. reports happily. She also received prompt, expert information on dehydration and dementia, and her questions about the reimbursement of care costs were clarified.
I had the good feeling that I was well taken care of when I didn't know what to do. There was simply someone at famPLUS who listened, understood my problems, and encouraged me not to give up with the health insurance," Silvia L. summarizes her experiences with famPLUS. In the meantime, she is working full-time in the office again, as her mother passed away peacefully in her bed in the summer of 2015.
And the HR employee only has good things to say about her employer, Tectrion—though as a specialist she naturally knows that it pays off for the company to support employees who are currently involved in family caregiving, as this preserves their workforce and expertise and keeps their motivation at a high level. That Tectrion covers the entire consulting costs for employees when they need support and knowledgeable tips on balancing family and work through famPLUS is a great thing, says Silvia L.
