Meet Our Caregiver Gail

Gail has been caregiving for more than 16 years and dedicates herself wholeheartedly to the families she serves. She has spent 14 years with 24 Hour Home Care, and the last five years with her client Alice, a 94-year-old who experiences dementia and has had a stroke and several serious falls that Gail has helped her through. Gail spends 60 hours a week with Alice and serves as her primary caregiver, in fact, Alice unfortunately has no blood family, but Gail is family to her. 

Gail has cared for many other clients over the years too, including two hospice patients. She cared for an ALS patient named Julie for four years until the end of her life. Julie couldn’t move, speak, or use her hands or feet, but Gail would go the extra mile by getting her out of bed with a lift and pushing her in her wheelchair all the way to a park to read to her.  

Her second hospice client, Norman, had trouble sleeping at night due to having several strokes. Gail worked the night shift with Norman for a year and kept him busy with newspapers, games, and other activities. Because of challenges with his brain function, Norman would try to bolt out the front door in his wheelchair, however Gail always made sure he was safe inside. Gail was there when Norman passed and made sure he was comfortable.  

Gail goes above and beyond in her current caregiving duties too by taking Alice out for daily, hour-long drives. They’ve both memorized all the streets because they enjoy it so much. 

On the day Alice experienced her stroke, Gail remembers going to the kitchen to cook dinner. Usually, Alice comes with her and enjoys helping make the meal, but Alice was complaining that she could not get out of her chair. Gail realized that half of Alice’s face was limp and called 911. She followed the ambulance to the hospital and when she arrived, the hospital staff thanked her for catching the stroke early on. If she had not been there and acted so quickly, Alice might not have made it.  

 As a side effect of the stroke, Alice experiences episodes where she jumps out of her seat. Unfortunately, this initially led to several falls, one where she fractured her hip. On another occasion, Alice hit her arm badly on the kitchen cabinets, so Gail called 911 and the paramedics were able to assist. Today, Gail ensures that Alice is strapped into her wheelchair safely. Because of Gail’s diligent care, Alice has not had any accidents for a long time.  

 Gail is extremely patient and knows the right way to handle Alice’s dementia. Sometimes, Alice demands that she wants to go home because she forgets that she is already at home. She grew up in Switzerland and sometimes yearns for it as her “home.” Gail lets her know that everything is okay. She shows her old pictures of her current home to remind her where she is and makes sure Alice feels safe. 

 Gail carries out 24 Hour Home Care’s “why” daily, which is “impacting people’s lives by making a difference every day.” Day in and day out, Gail proves that if you give loving care, the client’s quality of life and happiness is increased —something that is invaluable.