A mum of two from Dudley has earned Home Instead Senior Care’s highest accolade, as a result of her commitment to caring for older people. One client described Lynne Higgins, the newly crowned Caregiver of the Year, as having given them a reason to live.
When this client first came to Home Instead she was housebound, had low self-esteem and lived in poor conditions. Sadly, she did not have any living family and no friends. Fortunately for this lady, Lynne became her caregiver and she made it her business to win the client’s trust and help bring more joy to her life.
Three years ago, as Christmas approached, Lynne discovered that the lady had never had a Christmas tree, not even as a child, though she thought they were pretty. Lynne immediately rallied the team back at the office, receiving donations of decorations and even a beautiful tree. Lynne then spent an afternoon of her own time decorating the client’s flat.
Described by her employers as consistently going above and beyond, Lynne even asked other caregivers to donate gifts so that the client would have something to open on Christmas morning. The lady went on to describe it as the best Christmas she had ever had and Lynne has arranged a repeat of this for the past three years! This same client described Home Instead as having given her a reason to live, singling out Lynne’s work as she did.
It is little wonder that this compassionate and committed lady caught the attention of the judges, beating over 8,000 other caregivers to receive this top award.
Lynne was incredibly humble about her fantastic achievement, saying: “I don’t feel like I’m doing anything special, I just treat clients like they are my family – if you don’t treat them like family then they’re not getting the best care.”
Lynne works for Ian and Julie Williams who own Home Instead’s office in Dudley. Speaking about the award, Ian said: “’Above and beyond’ are the words that describe Lynne’s work ethic. In fact, I’m not sure she has any other level.
“Julie and I know that Lynne would crawl on broken glass to get to a client if they needed her.
“We are incredibly proud to that Lynne has been recognised from thousands of others, as she believes so passionately in the care she delivers.”
