Ottawa Home Care for Seniors Who Want to Stay at Home

1st Home Health Care provides home care in Ottawa for seniors who want to keep living in their own homes. Our caregivers help with bathing and dressing, meals, light housekeeping, rides to appointments and company through the day, and they give family caregivers a well-deserved break. This is non-medical care: we do not give medication, change dressings or do nursing procedures. Our office is on Talcy Crescent in Orleans, and we work across Ottawa and the towns within about 50 km of the city.

Talk to Our TeamCall (343) 644-3431

Senior Home Care Ottawa Families Trust

Most families call us after something has changed. A parent has had a fall, come home from hospital, started forgetting meals, or a spouse who has been doing all the caring is worn out. Senior home care in Ottawa is about solving that problem without moving anyone out of the home they know.

In 2021, Ottawa had 172,150 residents aged 65 and over, about 17 per cent of the city, and the City expects one in five adults to be over 65 by 2030. Most of them want to stay where they are. Home care makes that possible by bringing help into the house for a few hours a week, a few hours a day, or more as needs grow.

It is not always obvious when a parent needs help. Families often notice small things first: spoiled food in the fridge, the same clothes worn for days, unopened mail, bruises from a fall nobody mentioned, or a parent who has stopped going out. In an Ottawa winter, icy front steps and long weeks indoors make every one of these harder. None of these signs means a care home is next. Often a few hours of help a week is enough to put things back on track.

We treat every client like family, not like another appointment on the schedule. That means the same caregiver whenever we can, enough time on each visit to do the job properly, and a care plan written around your parent's routine, not ours.

In-Home Care Ottawa Families Can Count On

In-home care works best when it is simple to arrange and easy to change. You talk to a real person at our office, we come to the house to meet your parent, and the plan can grow or shrink as life changes. Some families need two visits a week to help with bathing and groceries. Others need someone every morning and evening. Either way, care is built around the person, the house and the family's own schedule.

Adult daughter hugging her smiling mother on the sofa at home

Our Six Home Care Services

Every service below is non-medical. Our caregivers do not give medication, change dressings, give injections or do any nursing procedure. If your parent needs that kind of care, we will tell you and point you to Ontario Health atHome, the provincial agency that arranges publicly funded home care, including nursing. Many families use both: nursing visits arranged through the province, and our caregivers for the everyday help in between.

Caregiver kneeling beside a senior woman on her living room sofa, holding her hands

Personal Care and PSW Support

Personal care is hands-on help with the tasks of daily living: bathing or showering, dressing, grooming, shaving, toileting and continence care, and moving safely from bed to chair. A personal support worker, or PSW, does this work with patience and respect for privacy, so your parent keeps as much independence as possible. It is often the first service a family needs after a fall or a hospital stay, when getting in and out of the shower or up the stairs suddenly feels risky. A regular morning or evening visit can make the hardest part of the day safe again. Read more about PSW services in Ottawa.

Companion Care

Companion care is for the parent who is managing physically but spends too many hours alone. A companion caregiver visits for conversation, cards, a walk, a coffee out, a trip to the library or a hobby they have stopped doing on their own. Companion care involves no physical help with the body, which is what makes it different from personal care. Loneliness is more than a mood. Older adults who are isolated tend to eat less, move less and lose interest in things they used to enjoy. Many families start with companion care when a parent insists on living alone, because it is easier to accept a visitor than to accept help. See our page on senior companionship in Ottawa.

Two women looking through a photo album with a smiling senior woman
Senior woman in a wheelchair raising her arms outdoors, a caregiver smiling behind her

Respite Care for Family Caregivers

Respite care gives the family caregiver a break. A spouse or adult child who provides care every day needs time to rest, see a doctor, go to work or simply sleep. We cover a few hours a week, a full day, or a longer stretch while you travel, so your parent is looked after and you can step away without worrying. If you are feeling worn down, the Ontario Caregiver Organization also runs a free 24/7 helpline for family caregivers at 1-833-416-2273. Our page on respite care for family caregivers explains how it works.

Dementia and Alzheimer's Care

People living with dementia do best with routine and a familiar face. Our caregivers keep the day predictable, help with meals and personal care, offer gentle reminders and redirect when confusion or late-afternoon restlessness sets in. Care at home can also give the family a break from constant supervision. Learn more about Alzheimer's home care in Ottawa.

24 Hour, Overnight and Live-In Care

Some seniors need someone there through the night or around the clock. Overnight care means a caregiver is in the home while your parent sleeps, to help with bathroom trips and prevent falls. Round-the-clock care is usually covered by caregivers working in shifts. We will talk through which option fits and what it involves. See live-in caregivers in Ottawa.

Home Help, Meals and Transportation

Daily living support covers the jobs that pile up when getting around becomes harder. Our caregivers do light housekeeping and laundry, plan and cook meals, help with grocery shopping and errands, and drive or accompany your parent to appointments and stay with them through the visit. A full fridge and a clean kitchen can make the difference between coping at home and not. In winter, when snow and ice keep many seniors indoors for weeks, a caregiver who does the grocery run and gets your parent safely to the car for appointments matters even more. Read more about light housekeeping for seniors in Ottawa.

Caregiver bringing a meal tray to a smiling senior woman resting in bed

Where We Provide Care Around Ottawa

Our office is in Orleans, and we serve communities across Ottawa and up to about 50 km beyond it. Homes vary a lot across that area, from post-war bungalows in Alta Vista and Gloucester with narrow bathroom doors, to two-storey houses in Nepean where the only full bathroom is upstairs, to rural properties near Manotick and Greely with long driveways. Our caregivers plan around each one. Drive times below are from our office.

Caregiver walking beside a senior woman in a wheelchair on a sunny park path

How Our Care Starts

Starting home care should not take weeks of paperwork. This is how it works with us:

  1. Call us. Phone (343) 644-3431, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Tell us what has changed and what worries you most.
  2. We visit the home. We meet your parent, look at the house, and talk about routines, likes, dislikes and what help is needed.
  3. We write a care plan. The plan lists the days, hours and tasks, in plain language, so everyone knows what to expect.
  4. We match a caregiver. We look for someone who lives nearby and suits your parent's personality, and we introduce them before care begins when we can.
  5. Care begins, and we check in. We stay in touch with you and adjust the plan as needs change, up or down.

If your parent is in The Ottawa Hospital, the Montfort or the Queensway Carleton and a discharge date has been set, call us before they come home. Having help ready for the first few days back is one of the best ways to avoid a second fall or a return trip to emergency.

How We Screen Our Caregivers

Before you let someone into your parent's home, you should know who they are. Here is what stands behind every caregiver we send:

  • Police Vulnerable Sector Checks for our caregivers
  • Certified personal support workers. Our PSWs are PSW certified. Sitters, who take on lighter duties, are CPR certified.
  • Insured and bonded, with caregivers covered by WSIB
  • A familiar face. We send the same caregiver wherever we can, so your parent is not meeting someone new each visit.

It also helps to know how the rules work in Ontario. Personal support workers are not a regulated health profession like nurses. Since December 1, 2024, the Health and Supportive Care Providers Oversight Authority (HSCPOA) has registered PSWs, and the registration is voluntary. HSCPOA keeps a public register that families can search to check a caregiver's registration status.

What Home Care Costs

Our rates run from $35 to $45 per hour, depending on the care and the hours booked. We confirm the exact price before care begins, so you know what to expect. We work with private-pay clients and with clients funded through Ontario Health atHome.

Two things can help with the cost. Ontario Health atHome assesses people for publicly funded home care, and if your parent qualifies, the province pays for those hours. Many families then add private hours on top. The Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit can also help lower-income seniors aged 70 and over, covering 25 per cent of eligible medical expenses up to $6,000, including certified attendant care. Our home care cost guide explains rates, funding and tax credits in detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between home care and home health care?

Home care is non-medical support with daily living: personal care, companionship, meals, housekeeping and transportation. Home health care is clinical care from regulated professionals such as nurses and therapists. 1st Home Health Care provides non-medical home care. For nursing or medication management, Ontario Health atHome can arrange publicly funded clinical care.

What is non-medical home care?

Non-medical home care is help with everyday life that does not involve medical treatment. It includes bathing, dressing, toileting, mobility, meals, light housekeeping, errands, rides and companionship. It does not include giving medication, changing dressings, injections or any nursing procedure.

What are the benefits of home care for seniors?

Seniors stay in a home they know, keep their own routines and get one-to-one attention from a caregiver who knows them. Families stay closely involved, and care can start with a few hours a week and grow as needed. For many people it also delays or avoids a move into long-term care.

What are the downsides of home care?

Home care gets expensive at high hours, especially for round-the-clock coverage. A senior who gets only a few hours a week can still be lonely the rest of the time. And if needs become heavily medical, a nursing home may be safer. A good agency will tell you honestly when home care is no longer enough.

How quickly can home care start?

It depends on the hours and the area, but we aim to visit and set up care as quickly as possible once you call. Tell us if your parent is coming home from hospital on a set date, so the plan is in place before discharge.

Do you provide care outside Ottawa?

Yes. Besides Ottawa itself, we serve Rockland, Embrun, Russell, Casselman, Carleton Place, Almonte, Arnprior, Kemptville, Winchester and Morrisburg, roughly 50 km from our Orleans office. For the farther towns, ask us about visit length when you call.

Talk to Us About Care for Your Parent

If you are worried about a parent or need a break from caring, call us and tell us what is going on. We will listen, explain your options and, if home care in Ottawa is the right fit, set up a visit to meet your family.

Talk to Our TeamCall (343) 644-3431
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