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“Is it time to get Mom some help at home?”
If you're asking, something has already changed — a fall, a missed medication, a fridge that isn't as full as it used to be. You don't need a sales pitch right now. You need honest answers, and a plan that keeps the person you love safe, independent, and home. SCI Home Care has been doing exactly that for Chicago families since 2002 — and our founders have been managing care since 1989.
Instant AI answers 24/7 · Prefer a person? Call (773) 733-0772 · Free consultation, no obligation
Care looks different depending on where you're standing.
Tell us who you are, and we'll speak to what you're actually feeling — not what a brochure thinks you should feel.
“I can't be there every day, and the guilt is eating at me.”
You're not failing anyone by asking for help. An SCI caregiver isn't a replacement for you — they're the extra set of hands that lets you go back to being a daughter, a son, a spouse, instead of a full-time coordinator.
“I don't know what level of care they even need.”
Neither do most families at first. Our free in-home assessment walks through daily routines, medications, mobility, and memory — and gives you a written care plan whether or not you hire us.
“I'm afraid of making the wrong choice.”
Home care isn't a lock-in. Schedules flex week to week, caregivers can be changed if the fit isn't right, and there are no long-term contracts. You can start with four hours a week and adjust as you learn.
“I don't want to lose my independence.”
Good home care is how you keep it. A few hours of help with the hard things — bathing safely, driving, heavy housework — is what lets you stay in your own home, on your own terms, for years longer.
“I don't want a stranger in my house.”
Fair. That's why you meet your SCI caregiver before care ever begins, and why we match on personality and interests, not just availability. If it doesn't feel right, we re-match — no awkward conversation required.
“I don't want to be a burden on my kids.”
Many of our clients call us themselves for exactly this reason. Arranging your own care is one of the most generous, clear-eyed decisions you can make for your family — and it keeps you in charge of it.
Why SCI
Four promises that make us different.
Home care agencies can look the same on the surface. These are the commitments we're known for — ask any family we serve.
The right-match guarantee
If the personality match isn't right, we switch caregivers immediately — no awkward conversation, no hard feelings, no charge for the change.
Same-day emergency response
Hospital discharge today? Call us — for urgent discharges we can often place a caregiver within hours, not days.
Dedicated backup care
If a caregiver is sick, we send a qualified backup. You will never be left stranded without care — that's a promise we've kept since 2002.
Caregiver continuity
Whether live-in or hourly, you'll see the same caregiver or small, familiar team — not a rotating door of new faces at your parent's home.
What we do
In-home care services for the everyday things that keep life at home working.
Personal care
Respectful help with bathing, dressing, grooming, and mobility — provided with the dignity you'd insist on yourself.
Companion care
Conversation, meals together, card games, walks, rides to appointments. Loneliness is a health risk — company is care.
Memory care at home
Caregivers trained in dementia and Alzheimer's support — steady routines, gentle redirection, and safety without confinement.
Homemaking
Light housekeeping, laundry, groceries, and cooking real meals — so the house stays a home, not a hazard.
Respite & overnight care
From a few hours so you can breathe, to overnight and 24-hour care when the need is bigger than one family can carry.
Hospital-to-home transitions
The first weeks after discharge are when readmissions happen. We handle medications, follow-ups, and recovery routines.
How it starts
From “I don't know where to begin” to a caregiver at the door.
Most families go from first call to first visit in under a week. Here's the whole process — no surprises.
A conversation, not a contract
Call or send a message. An SCI care advisor listens to what's going on, answers your questions honestly, and tells you if home care even makes sense yet. Sometimes it doesn't — we'll say so.
A free in-home assessment
An experienced care coordinator visits, meets your family, and builds a written care plan: what help is needed, when, and what it will cost. SCI is family-owned — one of the pioneers of home care in Chicago — and we work with nurses, doctors, and therapists to keep every plan aligned with your loved one's health needs. The plan is yours to keep either way.
Meet your caregiver first
We match on needs and personality, you meet them before care begins, and care starts on your schedule. Not the right fit? We re-match, no hard feelings.
Families don't just hire us. They refer us.
Roughly 90% of our clients come through referrals and word of mouth. Here's why.
Every one of SCI's caregivers were incredible and treated our mother like she was their own. Mary Lou and the SCI team could always be relied on and never left us in the lurch. I could not recommend them more.— FAMILY OF AN SCI HOME CARE CLIENT
One SCI caregiver, Alicia, cared for the same client for fifteen years — until she reached age 101, at home. That's what continuity means to us.
The honest FAQ
The questions you're really asking — answered straight.
Families call us at their most stressed and least informed moment. These are the real questions we hear at kitchen tables every week, answered the way we'd answer for our own parents.
Don't see yours? Get an answer right now — chat instantly, call us, or have us call you.
What does home care cost, and does insurance cover it?
Non-medical home care in our area typically runs by the hour, and in our experience most families start with a schedule of 24–48 hours a week. Long-term care insurance usually covers it. Standard Medicare generally doesn't cover ongoing non-medical care. On your first call we'll walk through what applies to your situation, and after our free visit with your loved one we'll give you your exact rate in writing — every person's needs are different, and your care plan should fit them.
What are the ways to pay for home care?
Families fund home care in more ways than most people realize:
1. Personal funds — out-of-pocket payment using savings, retirement accounts (pensions, 401k), or income from selling or renting a home.
2. Long-term care insurance — dedicated policies purchased ahead of time that can help pay for ongoing in-home care.
3. Home equity — including a reverse mortgage that converts home equity into cash for care.
4. Life insurance — policy conversions and accelerated death benefits can turn an existing policy into care funding.
5. Family cost-sharing — siblings often split the cost of a parent's care; we can help structure a schedule that fits a shared budget.
Some home care costs may also qualify as tax-deductible medical expenses — worth asking your tax advisor. Every family's situation is different: call us at (773) 733-0772 and we'll walk through which options fit yours.
My parent refuses help. What do we do?
This is the most common obstacle, and it's rarely about the help — it's about pride, fear, and control. What works: start small (a few hours of “housekeeping,” not “a caregiver”), frame it as help for you (“Mom, do it for my peace of mind”), give them the choice of caregiver, and use a trial period — “just for a month, then you decide.” Most resistant clients bond with their caregiver within weeks. We coach families through this conversation every day; ask us for the script.
How do I know a caregiver is safe, qualified, and reliable?
SCI Home Care is licensed by the Illinois Department of Public Health, and every caregiver is covered by liability and workers' compensation insurance. Before anyone enters your home, they pass a criminal background check, Illinois Health Care Worker Registry check, sex offender registry check, reference and past work verification, driving history review, and random drug testing. You'll always know who is coming, and we keep your family informed about how every visit went. If a caregiver is ever sick, we send a qualified backup — you're never left uncovered.
Will the same person come every time?
That's the goal, and for most schedules the answer is yes — consistency is what builds trust, especially with memory care. Larger schedules use a small, consistent team of two or three so there's always a familiar face. You will never open the door to someone you haven't been introduced to.
Is home care better than assisted living?
Honestly: it depends. If your loved one needs round-the-clock skilled nursing, a facility may be safer and cheaper. But when the need is daily support — meals, medication reminders, bathing, company — most seniors do better in their own home, surrounded by their routines and memories, and most say it's what they want. In the assessment we'll tell you plainly which path fits, even when the answer isn't us.
How fast can care start? Can we change or cancel?
Care can usually begin within a few hours after the assessment — same-day in urgent hospital-discharge situations, or whenever the need arises. There are no long-term contracts: schedules adjust with a phone call, and you can pause or stop care anytime. You stay in control, always.
Family-owned since 2002 · managing care since 1989
Licensed by the Illinois Dept. of Public Health · liability & workers' comp insured
Rigorously screened, trained caregivers
24/7 on-call support for families
For hospitals, discharge planners & social workers
Refer with confidence: same-day response, bedside or in-home assessments, and expedited starts for discharges. Download our company profile for your files, or fax referrals to (773) 654-1088.
You found us at 2 a.m. for a reason. Let's answer it.
One free, unhurried conversation with an SCI care advisor. No pressure, no obligation — just clear answers about cost, options, and what to do next for the person you love. Or for yourself.