Founder & CEO CareFamily; Founder of Seniorcorp
10+ years experience in Senior Care industry
Member of the Society of Certified Senior Advisors
Served on the governor appointed Commonwealth of Virginia Council on Human Rights
Served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Regent University
Board member for the Alzheimer’s Association and Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia
Former VP Marketing CBN
Former Director of Operations Dish Network
Bachelor’s degree in international relations from George Mason University and studied at Oxford University in England
Married with 5 children
GUEST BIO
Affordable Home Health Care Solutions for the Elderly
The 700 Club
CBN.com – SEEING A NEED
Tom Knox was happily and successfully working in the CBN ministry as a vice president in marketing. About two-and-a-half years into his five-year tenure, Tom says he began to realize that, in spite of how well things were going, CBN would not be the place from which he would retire. There was something more for him to do. As the thoughts of what might be next for him would come up in his mind, Tom pondered some life events that seemed to be unfinished.
He recalled a painful event he’d witnessed concerning his grandmother’s care at a nursing home. One night, his grandmother rang her buzzer so someone would come help her to the bathroom. When no one came, she tried to go on her own and fell while getting out of bed. When her family discovered her on the floor nearly 13 hours later, she’d had a heart attack and was in bad shape. The family took her home. The task of providing care and working was overwhelming, even with all the companies and agencies involved in elder care; however, Tom knew she was better off with their family than in the existing, uncaring “system” for elderly care. Tom’s family cared for his grandmother to the end, though his mom suffered greatly under the responsibility of it all.
Tom knew that something wasn’t right with America’s elder care system. Before his time with CBN, Tom had lived and worked in Japan. He says it was in Japan that he saw how families were supposed to run. He says it was not uncommon to go to a home and discover as many as four generations living together under one roof, all of them caring for and helping one another. He saw how much respect they had for the elders. There was such a contrast between what he saw there and what his family had gone through with his own grandmother. Tom was aware that things just weren’t right.
ANSWERING THE CALL
Eventually, Tom felt called into the senior care business. He began by selling medical supplies, and then moved into home healthcare. He started a home healthcare company, called Seniorcorp, that has served more than 3,000 families, and hired and recruited thousands of caregivers. Tom realized, however, that agency care can be too expensive (especially in this economy) for many families, and more and more families are trying to hire caregivers privately. Although these families can save in the short-term, there are often negative consequences due to lack of support, protection, and management tools.
He created CareFamily to answer this need. It is a new and personalized way of arranging in-home care for seniors. CareFamily puts the power to make decisions about senior care where it belongs—in the families’ hands.
They supply the tools and support to make the right decisions about home healthcare. Their team pre-screens caregivers so families can find the most qualified, responsible professionals available. For the ninety percent of seniors who would prefer to age in-home, and the estimated 40 million Americans who are providing care for a relative or loved one, CareFamily is filling an important need. “We are providing all of the benefits that you need to find top quality caregivers in a safer and affordable way. We have taken over ten years of servicing seniors and put the best elements into creating CareFamily,” Tom says. “We focus on senior care because we know senior care. We understand your needs and are committed to helping you safely and affordably navigate care for your loved ones. Family satisfaction and peace of mind are our priorities. We strive to help provide a rewarding, hassle-free caregiving experience for you, your family, and caregivers nationwide.”
CareFamily is designed to help seniors who need assistance to remain independent and at home. They also assist the adult children of the seniors who need support in arranging care. Additionally, CareFamily serves caregivers who are looking to build their careers. CareFamily currently has 50,000 registered caregivers, nation-wide. Tom says not only is care generally cheaper through CareFamily by about 30-40%, but, on average, the caregivers are making more money too. CareFamily is not a home health agency. Unlike an agency, CareFamily allows families to choose the caregivers they want to meet, interview, and hire. Families have the flexibility to determine their loved one’s schedule directly with the caregivers they’ve selected. The CareFamily database has a wide range of high-quality caregivers, including companions and homemakers, licensed Nurse’s Aides or Nursing Assistants (CNAs,) Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs,) and Registered Nurses (RNs.) Caregivers post their licensing and certifications in their profile. CareFamily also provides other important information and services for families, including tax and payroll services.
Ultimately, CareFamily is a service to help seniors avoid a situation similar to the one Tom’s grandmother faced in the nursing home, and to help families enjoy their aging loved ones, rather than feel burdened by their needs. “We think the end result after families use CareFamily.com is that families can go back to their normal dynamic,” Tom says. “Daughters won’t be the caregivers of their mothers and they can really spend time in healthy dynamic because they know many of these things have been solved.”
Cost-Saving Statistics:
- Professional home care in America cost an average of $21 per hour. Caregivers average $9.75 per hour in pay.
- Nationwide families (seniors) with CareFamily pay an average of $15 per hour and caregivers are averaging $12 per hour in pay. CareFamily charges a $3 fee for their services which is what brings it to $15.
- That is a $6 per hour savings ($21.00 - $15.00 = $6.00). The average amount of home care delivered a week is 32 hours nationwide. 32 hours x $6 per hour x 52 = $6,144.
- Agency costs roughly $34,900 for annual care, but the same amount of care through CareFamily would be $26,650.
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