Agency vs. Private Hire:
What Families Need to Know

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When a family starts looking for help at home, one of the first instincts is to search online, ask around, and try to hire a caregiver directly. It can feel like the simpler, more personal option. But there is quite a bit most families don't realize until something goes wrong.

This guide walks through what you are actually taking on when you hire privately, what working with an agency provides, and what makes VivaPath caregivers different from what you will find elsewhere.

What You Take On When You Hire Privately

Hiring a caregiver independently might seem straightforward, but it comes with more responsibility than most families expect.

• Background screening falls on you. There is no standard vetting process when you hire privately. You are responsible for verifying who this person is, what their history looks like, and whether they are who they say they are.
• You become the employer. In most cases, privately hired caregivers are classified as household employees. That means payroll taxes, workers' compensation, and employment law compliance are your responsibility.
• Liability is yours. If a caregiver is injured in your home, or if something goes wrong during care, you may have limited protections without agency coverage in place.
• There is no backup. If your caregiver calls out sick, has a family emergency, or simply stops showing up, you are left to figure it out on your own. There is no support system behind them.
• No one is overseeing the quality of care. Without clinical oversight, there is no one checking in to make sure care is being delivered correctly or catching problems before they become serious.

What Changes When You Work With an Agency

A reputable home care agency handles the infrastructure so families don't have to. That means the vetting, the backup planning, the oversight, and the accountability are all built in.

• Caregivers are screened before they ever enter your home. Background checks, reference verification, and skills assessments happen before placement, not after.
• Backup coverage is part of the plan. Life is unpredictable. A good agency has a plan for when caregivers are unavailable so your loved one's care is never interrupted.
• The agency is the employer of record. Taxes, workers' compensation, and employment matters are handled. Your family is not on the hook.
• There is accountability at every level. If something is not working, there is a team to address it, not just a single individual with no one overseeing them.

What Makes VivaPath Different

Not all agencies are built the same way. VivaPath is nurse-led, which changes the level of clinical oversight your loved one receives.

But what truly sets VivaPath caregivers apart isn't only the process. It's who they are.

Our caregivers are selected not just for their skills, but for their character. Their patience. Their ability to make someone feel genuinely cared for rather than just assisted. We look for people who understand that caregiving is not a job listing. It's a calling.

Questions to Ask Any Agency Before You Hire

• Who conducts your background screening process, and what does it include?
• What happens if my caregiver is sick or unavailable?
• Is there clinical oversight of care, and who provides it?
• Who is the employer of record for the caregivers you place?
• How do you handle concerns or changes in care needs?

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The right choice depends on your situation, but knowing what you are comparing makes all the difference. If you have questions about what home care looks like through VivaPath, we are happy to walk you through it.