November 4, 2026

What a Good Home Care Agency Looks for in a Caregiver

When you hire a home care agency, you are really choosing the person who will walk into your parent's home. So it is fair to ask: how does the agency decide who that person is?

The quality that does not show up on a résumé

At Mint Home Care, co-owner Niran Gunaratnam or his business partner, John, is directly involved in about 90% of caregiver hiring. It starts with a phone call and a few qualifying questions.

What Niran listens for is not a list of certificates. He wants to know "whether they have a real interest in what they're doing, whether they have a passion, whether they have their heart in the right place." His reason: "Because it's not like a nine-to-five type job."

Valerie VanBooven, RN BSN, compares it to the pull that brings people into nursing or teaching. Caregiving is a calling. People who treat it as just a job tend to burn out fast, and a family feels that turnover.

Questions to ask any agency

You do not have to take an agency's word for it. Ask how they hire:

Who interviews caregivers, and does an owner or manager take part?
What do they look for beyond experience and certification?
How do they decide which caregiver to send to your parent?
What happens if the match is not working?

An agency that has thought about these questions will answer them easily. For a fuller checklist, see our guide on how to choose a home care agency.

Find a Home Care Provider Near You

Search the Care Across America directory to connect with trusted home care agencies serving your city and state.

Browse the Home Care Directory

Why the calling matters at home

Skills like safe transfers and meal preparation can be taught. Patience, warmth and genuine interest in an older person's life are much harder to train. Those qualities decide whether your parent looks forward to the caregiver's visit or dreads it, and whether that caregiver is still there next month.

Watch the full conversation

This clip comes from Valerie VanBooven's Care Across America interview with Niran Gunaratnam, co-owner of Mint Home Care in Fairfax, Virginia. Watch the full interview on YouTube or read the episode notes.

About Mint Home Care

Mint Home Care is an independent, licensed home care agency (License HCO-0002198) in Fairfax serving Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties, Alexandria, Arlington and the rest of Northern Virginia. It offers companion and personal care with no weekly minimums, from a few hours a week to 24/7. Call (703) 828-0011 or visit Mint Home Care's profile.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who hires caregivers at Mint Home Care?

Co-owner Niran Gunaratnam or his business partner, John, is directly involved in about 90% of Mint Home Care's caregiver hiring.

What should I ask a home care agency about its caregivers?

Ask who interviews caregivers, what the agency looks for beyond experience, how it matches a caregiver to your parent, and what happens if the match is not working.

Written By

Valerie VanBooven RN BSN

Valerie VanBooven RN BSN is a registered nurse, wife, mom, and published author of several books on long-term care and elder care. She is the Founder and Co-Owner of Approved Senior Network® and the founder of Care Across America®.