10/10/2026
Care Pro Julie: Connecting With Clients Is No. 1 Priority
In senior care, relationships are everything.
Julie Coker, Home Instead® Care Professional of the Month at the award-winning Collin County franchise in Plano, Texas, is quick to point out that building blocks of trust sometimes take time. And sometimes everything falls into place. No matter how it is reached, forming a Care Pro-client connection is a must. Julie discussed the anatomy of a great bonding experience that has helped her serve one of her clients:
Question: Tell us about this client.
Julie: “She’s 93, has dementia and uses a walker. I’ve been assisting her since January 2026. I am blessed with this client. She is like my grandmother. She loves me. She doesn’t want me to leave. She wants to go home with me.”
Question: How challenging is the dementia?
Julie: “She doesn’t remember my name or her other Care Pro’s name, but that doesn’t hurt our feelings whatsoever. After all, it is the dementia and not what she was like before it came on and started to progressively steal her mental capabilities a little bit at a time.”
Question: Who does she think you are?
Julie: “She sometimes calls me ‘the cleaning lady.’ She thinks I am a friend. She doesn’t know I am a Home Instead Care Professional. I think if she knew, she would say she doesn’t need the help. I think I’d be hearing: ‘I can take care of myself.’ She’s an old farm girl. She cooked for everyone and did chores. So, she was self-sufficient and responsible.”
Question: “What is her personality like?
Julie: “She is really funny, and I like to make her laugh. I got her a tablet of paper. She likes to write down phone numbers. More than that, we write positive things on the tablet that boost her spirits. We’ve had good days while working on the tablet.”
Question: In addition to that paper tablet, what does she like to do?
Julie: “She loves to watch birds. Her granddaughter bought a bird feeder, and I get the bird seed. We play Yahtzee. I try to get her mind engaged. We watch the ‘Price Is Right,’ and she remarks when she doesn’t like the contestants’ prizes. She also watches ‘Little House on the Prairie.’ As we talk, she is repetitive. I listen to her stories as if it’s the first time I’ve heard them. Some clients like to go for rides, but she wants to stay at home. I can get her to sit on the front porch.”
Question: What are her physical challenges?
Julie: “She says her hip hurts, and we’ve had it checked out by the medical professionals. It’s possibly arthritis. Her granddaughter and I go together with the client to the medical appointments. We take a wheelchair with us. My client wants me to be a standby assist when she goes to the bathroom because she wants me to make sure she does not fall. Of course, that’s one of the reasons why I am there. When she naps, I quietly work on the light housekeeping. We sometimes have a hard time getting her to drink water. We use flavored water. The client and I make it a competition to see how much water we drink.”
Question: What is her family situation like?
Julie: “Her husband passed away. She thinks her father is still alive. She misses him and wants me to take her back to her childhood home to see him. Nearly every day she asks about him. I redirect her a lot. Her mother died when she was 4. She does point to her mother in one of her photos and tells me about her. I encourage her to tell me about her parents but not in a way that makes her sad. Her granddaughter cares for her at night and on the weekends. Her granddaughter is a wonderful person. While you strive hard to connect with the client, it’s also important to do so with the family.”
Julie’s final word: “I love this kind of work. I receive fulfillment from helping others.”
Julie Coker, Home Instead® Care Professional of the Month at the award-winning Collin County franchise in Plano, Texas, is quick to point out that building blocks of trust sometimes take time. And sometimes everything falls into place. No matter how it is reached, forming a Care Pro-client connecti...
