TERMINALLY ILL


About Polonia In Home Care

"Maria lived with and cared for my mother - a victim of Alzheimer's disease and ovarian cancer. Maria is a wonderful woman with a kind, kind heart. Considerate, honest and hard working. A great cook, great housekeeper. Affectionate, and compassionate; Maria was my mother’s companion, her nurse, and her friend."

                  C.K. Medical Doctor


"Wanda proved to be the mainstay in keeping Ms. L.G. in her home until her death. Not only was Wanda a real gem, in providing care, she is a definite asset to your organization. We especially appreciated her strong work ethic and honesty while she was in the home. Should any other family member or friend be in need of 24 hour care, I will certainly inform them of your agency."

                        R.H. Registered Nurse


"I wanted to compliment you on your choice of caregivers. Around the beginning of January, we contacted Polonia to request a home caregiver for my mother who was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. The caregiver you selected for our family could not have been better. Alina B. was the best. She not only took care of my mother, but also gave support and comfort to the rest of our family. In times of great need, Alina always had encouraging words for my father, sister and myself, always took the time to see how WE were doing. She was much more than a caregiver to our family, she was a close friend and family member. I won’t go on and on about how wonderful Alina was to us, but I wanted to thank you, Alina could not have been better."

                  K.F. and Family


"Ida was a caretaker for our Dad who had cancer. She was always pleasant and joking with dad, keeping up his spirits at all times, even when times were bad. They had a good relationship and dad liked her very much which was very important to us as children, as we live in New Jersey. Upon meeting Ida we knew why Dad was so fond of her. We surely were blessed to have found someone like Ida to care for our Dad. She spent one year and 3 months with him. Not only did she care for Dad, but also kept his home clean and tidy at all times. She also is a very good cook ,making dad all kinds of special things. He loved her fussing over him. She showered him with undivided attention. He was always first. The last week of his life she also worked with Hospice to make dad as comfortable as possible. They were also pleased with how she cooperated with them and followed their instructions at all times."

      L.P.


"Josephine took care of our Mother, for six months. She not only cared for our Mom, but she truly "cared" for her too. Mom suffered from lung cancer as well as dementia. For the first several months, Mom was mobile, but near the end she was bedridden. Josephine fed her home cooked meals and Mom ate better than she had for a long time. Besides that, Josephine fixed her hair every day, dressed her in color co-ordinated clothes and made sure Mom looked the best she could. (Mom loved to dress nice) Josephine gave Mom all medications and took her out for long walks making sure that Mom was dressed for the weather in her wheelchair. Josephine did all this as well as keeping the house immaculate with much patience and good humor. Mom often said that she loved Josephine and thanked her for her daily care. The Hospice staff who visited mom were constantly impressed with the care Mom was getting from Josephine.

            C.B's Children


"We employed Jadzia to live in our home in order to take care of our very sick parents. As it turned out she cared for both of them in the last month/year of their lives, right up to the day of death. Jadzia is the ideal caretaker. Our parents’ doctor reassured us that our parents could get no better care in a nursing home than Jadzia was giving them in the comfortable and familiar surroundings of their home. The nurses and social workers from the Visiting Nurses Association and the Hospice Program marveled at her skill, her devotion to our parents. We, ourselves, on many visits home witnessed her care and heard from our parents how much they came to love and cherish Jadzia. Jadzia is a hard-working woman. She was often kept busy all day and during the night, responding to our parents’ needs. What endeared her to them and to us, was the manner in which she carried out her responsibilities. She is warm and naturally affectionate person. Thus it was natural for her to approach Mom and Dad gently and kindly, to coax them (and they did need coaxing as death drew closer) to eat the nourishing soups she cooked, to drink liquids, to take their medicines. She engaged them in conversation about their rich and full lives; she encouraged them to share and re live their treasured memories. She got them to smile, to laugh. She helped them with the reassurances of their religious beliefs to accept the final months of slow decline. One of her greatest gifs in caring for two elderly and sick people was her human touch. She touched their bodies affectionately and gently, to lift them, to massage them, to bathe them, to support them, to make them feel comfortable on a chair or in the bed. She kept their clothes and surroundings immaculately clean. She helped them to maintain their human dignity at all times.

      L.B. Ph.D.


"Lina came to my home for the purpose of acting as a caregiver to my mother, who was terminally ill. First and foremost, I can say without reservation that Lina is one of the most honest people I have ever met. I was understandably apprehensive about having a stranger live in my home and I was under a good deal of stress, knowing I would be leaving my frail mother in someone else’s care 12 hours a day while I was working. Lina’s honesty and integrity reflect traditional values. She immediately put us at ease and integrated herself into our home and routine. My mother was very much family-oriented, but she became so close to Lina, I once heard her refer to her as her "other daughter". I had nurses and therapists coming to my home when my mother first arrived and they all told me how lucky I was to have Lina, as their previous experiences with some caregivers were not always so positive. Lina was always willing to help with exercises or in any way she could. I would be remiss if I did not remark on Lina’s conscientious nature. When I came home from work each day, I would get a detailed verbal report from Lina regarding my mother's food consumption, liquid and pill intake, exercise or anything else that had happened that day. Diet and liquid consumption is crucial to the elderly and the ill, and Lina was adamant that my mother always had fresh water, tea, fruit, etc. available to her at all times. Lina is hard working and self motivated. In fact, I would often ask Lina after dinner to please sit down read or watch TV, as she was always cleaning or finding a project long after we had relaxed for the day. Instead, she always took the initiative to perform miscellaneous household tasks that were in no way her responsibility in her role as caregiver. One of Lina’s finest qualities is her compassionate attitude. Lina is kind-hearted and treated my mother with a respect that is too often denied the sick and elderly. I could not possibly itemize every instance in which Lina's empathy resulted in increased comfort and well-being for my mother. She was also extremely cognizant of my mother's emotional health and took it upon herself to help maintain my mother's optimism under very trying circumstances. Lina took great pride in my mother's personal appearance, knowing how important self-esteem is to the ill. To this day, I do believe it was an act of God the Lina came into my life on that day. My mother was extremely ill and for a good part of the last 10 months of her life, she was not even mobile. I could never have survived that 10 months without Lina, practically or emotionally speaking. I would not have traded Lina for the most skilled nurse of professional therapist. She supported my mother in her illness and stood by my side during the most difficult year of my life. She proved herself a reliable friend and has become like a sister to me."