I'm looking to hire a domestic helper to take care of my elderly parents, what are some things I should be considering?

I think it's really up to the individual, and your interaction with the maid during interview.

Eg. when you are about to hire the maid, ask few questions, prepare her for any kinds of discomforts and held a proper meeting session to ensure if she is patient enough or not. If you are a good observer, you can know in a first meeting, or you can hire her for a few days to know her well enough to trust with an older parent.

I don't have any recommendation of maid agency, but good luck with the search for a suitable one!

Personally, I don't quite believe in a live in domestic worker, because many people really treat them like slaves, not giving them passports, phones, day offs etc. If your employer did that to you, you won't be happy with it either.

Having said that, I understand for some it's a necessity to take care of dependents etc. For maid agencies, don't go to the prominent ones at the front of the shopping malls etc. Those at the corner in less accessible corners are usually better since they rely on word of mouth to build and maintain their business.

Do understand also that today's helpers are very unlike past years, so ensure you communicate clearly to her your expectations and do remember she cannot read your mind and might do things differently at home.

Interesting question. As what Junus has said, it is more about the Maid's character. One way to check is to see the maid's resumes, if she has frequently changed employer then pherhaps no. If a maid is good, the employer would have kept her for a long time, and that will be a good sign

If this is a new maid then the second thing to check is their ability to communciate. This is simply because you are inviting another human being into your family to care for your parents. If they have poor communciation skills, there will be friction between the maid and the rest of your family members and that is not good

It's really not so much the maid agency, or even where they are from, but how they are as individuals.

One thing you could look out for is the duration ie. Number of years they were with their previous employer.

Some households are super good with imparting skills. I have a friend who imparted all her cooking skills to her two helpers, and the food they cook is absolutely delish.

Also another important thing is to try to know them first and see if communication is an issue. Communication is not just language, but also how your personality goes with theirs.