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29
The work of a Home Help changes with the introduction of more
mechanical aids. In this field there may well be an unexplored avenue for
helping the aged and handicapped to perform more tasks for themselves.
Relating the cost and availability of staff to the cost of provision of
modern equipment could prove an interesting equation. The conception
that a Home Help's duties should consist mainly of all the unpleasant
tedious tasks in the home should be dispelled as soon as possible. No
emergency request for the Service should be cut to a bare minimum number
of hours because of a public misinterpretation that the Service is provided
to polish floors and furniture every week. Some recruits to the Service are
lost, not because of the difficulties and responsibilities of the work (in
fact most Home Helps respond to a challenge) but because they do not
get "job satisfaction". They rightly object to being considered itinerant
floor cleaners.
Many women enter the Home Help Service not simply for the sake of
earning some pin money but from a real public spirited desire to bring
comfort and inspire hope and confidence amongst sick and aged people.
The Home Helps' training programme nurtures and encourages this spirit
and demonstrates through the practical work the simplest way to tackle the
many and varied tasks concerned with homemaking.
For detailed figures see Appendix page 117.