FOR FAMILY CAREGIVERS

You are already doing this work. The system just hasn't been paying you for it.

If you are a parent, sibling, grandparent, adult child, or other relative providing daily care for someone in your family, you already know what most agencies have to be taught: what a bad day looks like before it happens, which words work and which don't, what the plan says versus what actually helps.

In Colorado, that care can be a paid position. Under the Family Caregiver and Individual Residential Services and Supports models, a family member can be employed as the person's direct support professional, through an approved agency, and be paid for the care they are already providing.

Independence By Design can be that agency.

WHY FAMILIES CHOOSE US

We are not going to send a stranger into your home, unless you want or need us to!

You are the primary support for your loved one, advocate, and caregiver. We do not replace you, reassign you, or quietly try to convert your relative into a case for our own staff. We listen to your and your family and work to identify the needs to ensure quality of life for everyone. We ask questions, we develop plans and understand that the system can work for the individual vs the individual working for the system. 

You keep the say. 

Nobody knows this person better than you do. We build the plan with you. We do not arrive with a schedule you have to fit into or a philosophy about how your family should run. Where the state requires something specific, we will tell you plainly what it is and why, and then we will make it as easy as possible.

Backup, so you can stop being on call forever.

Family caregivers burn out because there is no relief. We can help arrange respite* and coordinate additional supports so that you can be sick, attend your own appointment, take a weekend, or go to your other child's game. Being paid for this work shouldn't mean being trapped in it.

You work directly with the Administrator.

Not an intake queue. Not a rotating coordinator. Our Administrator is a Board Certified Case Manager and the parent of a young person with significant support needs. She has sat on your side of this table, and she built this agency because of it.

WHAT THIS ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE

You keep providing the care. The daily support, routines, and relationship stay exactly where they are.

We employ you. You become a paid employee of Independence By Design, with the training, credentialing, and oversight the state requires.

We document and bill. Service notes, supervisory visits, incident reporting, and everything the audit will eventually ask for.

Your case manager stays your case manager. Eligibility, the service plan, and authorized hours are determined by your Case Management Agency — not by us. We work within what they authorize and advocate alongside you when something needs to change.

HOW TO START

You do not need to have this figured out first. Most families we talk to are not sure whether they qualify, which waiver applies, or what the difference is between the models. That is a normal place to begin.

Step one — call us, or call your case manager. Either order works. If you already have a case manager, tell them you are interested in a family caregiver arrangement. If you don't, we will help you find your Case Management Agency and make that first call.

Step two — we walk through your situation together. What care is being provided, by whom, how many hours, and what the person actually needs. No cost, no commitment.

Step three — we tell you honestly whether this will work. Including when it won't, or when another agency is a better fit for your situation.

Call or text Mellisa — 720-988-3445

HONEST ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS YOU'RE ACTUALLY ASKING

Can I really get paid to care for my own family member?
In many situations, yes. Colorado's rules differ by waiver, by the relationship, and by whether the person receiving care is an adult or a minor. Eligibility is determined by your Case Management Agency and the waiver your family member is enrolled in — not by us. We will tell you honestly what we see, and we will not promise you something we cannot deliver.

How many hours will be approved?
That is set by your case manager based on assessed need, and no agency can promise you a number. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something.

What if I've never worked in this field?
Most family caregivers haven't. Training is provided, and no prior experience is required.

Is there really this much paperwork?
Yes. Medicaid-funded care is documented care. The difference is whether you face it alone or with an agency that has built its systems properly. Our first state survey was completed with zero deficiencies.

What if it doesn't work out?
You can change agencies. Your relationship with the person you care for is yours, and it does not belong to us.