A new website plans to connect clients and caregivers to one another, exploiting the Internet’s direct access functionality that has enabled sites like EBay, Craigslist and Match.com to flourish. The Caring Space, and similar websites, could be perceived as a threat to private duty companies, but also open up new markets and to encourage the private duty industry to adopt new technologies that can help them grow.

Developed by David Kennedy, president of Kennedy Care, a home care agency, “the mission of TheCaringSpace is to provide a resource to connect compassionate caregivers to families and individuals in need of assistance and health services in their home,” according to the website. TheCaringSpace is the place the Caregivers and Careseekers connect. As a growing community for both CareSeekers and Caregivers, our goal is to provide a service unlike any care matching site around. With easy registration, powerful search tools, and a growing community of the best and brightest caregivers in the country, we think that you will like what you find,” says Kennedy.

An idea whose time has come

It may seem odd that a private duty agency owner would venture into the online world to offer potential clients a vehicle to bypass his agency in finding a caregiver, but, in fact, it makes good business sense. Although right now potential clients are not required to pay a fee to use the online service, eventually, they will be asked to pay a modest subscription fee -- $79.99 per year, or $29.99 for the first month, and $9.99 for each following month. Currently, independent caregivers can register for free. However, there also will be available a corporate membership option for multi-caregiver and multi-location private duty companies, for which registration will cost $300 per month or $2,500 per year. Clients and multi-center caregivers will provide Kennedy with a revenue stream, but more importantly the site will enable him to reach into markets he otherwise would not penetrate. There also exists the potential for networking with hosts of similar sites around the country to collectively build the credibility and reputation of the private duty industry. Kennedy believes that a virtual agency is an idea whose time has come. He explains that because private duty clients frequently have to balance paying for their family members care with their own financial obligations, a lower cost option for occasional home care services makes sense. Kennedy says he saw a niche for a company that could harness the Internet’s ability to connect clients directly to caregivers. Before TheCaringSpace, he said, “your options were newspaper classified ads or Craigslist,” if you did not want to use an agency.

How the site works

TheCaringSpace allows caregivers to post free profiles detailing skills, references, and contact information. For a fee, caregivers can add a background check to their profile through LexisNexis. The background check does not divulge specific details, but simply shows an icon, confirming that the person’s name, date of birth, and social security number are accurate, and that he or she has a clean criminal record. Careseekers also can post a profile that offers basic personal data, plus specific needs, what they are willing to pay, and the level of experience desired in a caregiver. TheCaringSpace also will arrange a conference call between careseekers and their family members and potential caregivers to ensure that the caregiver understand the clients unique needs and Plan of Care, and that there the match between client and provider is a good fit.

Small, but likely to grow

According to Kennedy, there some 2,300 accounts on TheCaringSpace– 60% of them caregivers; 40% careseekers. He says that the intention of the site is more to make a searchable database of caregivers than to have caregivers search through careseeker profiles. A search of the Washington D.C. area returns 19 caregivers with active profiles, and 5 careseekers. Similarly, a search of the New York City metro area yields 25 caregivers and 8 careseekers. Kennedy has plans to grow the site into a nationwide, searchable database of pre-screened caregivers, and to also offer free resources to providers and clients to attract more users, and eventually to offer discussion forums, industry information and articles by industry experts. Asked about the future of private duty, generally, and his site, specifically, Kennedy does not express concern. TheCaringSpace may be designed to “do everything you pay an agency for,” but Kennedy insists it is complementary to not competitive with the services an agency provides. Kennedy is exploiting the networking power of the Internet, and other private duty providers would be smart to do the same both as a way of increasing their business and as a means of growing the industry by sharing information and preparing for the inevitable era of a more closely regulated private duty industry.