Future Leader: Carla Martinoff, Division Director, Bayada Home Health Care

The Future Leaders Awards program is brought to you in partnership with PointClickCare. The program is designed to recognize up-and-coming industry members who are shaping the next decade of senior housing, skilled nursing, home health and hospice care. To see this year’s future leaders, visit https://futureleaders.agingmedia.com/.

Carla Martinoff, division director at Moorestown, New Jersey-based Bayada Home Health Care, has been named a 2021 Future Leader by Home Health Care News.

To become a Future Leader, an individual is nominated by their peers. The candidate must be a high-performing employee who is 40-years-old or younger, a passionate worker who knows how to put vision into action, and an advocate for seniors, and the committed professionals who ensure their well-being.

Martinoff sat down with HHCN to talk about leading with compassion and the importance of increasing wages for home-based care workers.

HHCN: What drew you to this industry?

Martinoff: I randomly, through a friend, was introduced to recruiting for nursing travel positions in hospitals across the country. I did that for a couple of years and really enjoyed it. I enjoyed connecting with health care professionals and learning about different skill sets and things like that.

I came across a position at Bayada that was kind of all-encompassing. I was able to build relationships with the other end, the clients that we take care of, not just the nurses. It’s just always been something that has been interesting to me. I had an aunt that I was super close with for many years who was a home health aide, and she used to tell me about her job. I’ve always just had a fondness for nursing health care and home care, in particular.

What’s your biggest lesson learned since starting to work in this industry?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned since working in the industry for the past 10 years is to always lead with your heart and use integrity when making decisions. Don’t focus as much on the business aspect of things, but really focus on the people. Always lead with what would be the best for everyone.

“What outcome are we hoping to achieve, and how would it have the most positive impact on all the people we’re affecting,” whether it be the nurses who we’re hiring or the clients that we’re taking care of. Always do everything thoroughly and the right way first instead of rushing through it and compromising quality. Always lead with compassion in the forefront and don’t look for any shortcuts.

If you could change one thing with an eye toward the future of home-based care, what would it be?

That’s simple: reimbursement for our employees. That way, they could be paid for the amazing job they do. It’s something we’re always advocating for. It’d be easier for us to keep our clients safe at home if we had higher reimbursement and we’re able to pay our employees more. That’s something that we’re really passionate about here and always trying to be involved in.

In a word, how would you describe the future of home-based care?

“Hopeful.”

If you could give advice to yourself looking back to your first day in the industry, what would it be and why?

I would tell myself that everything always works out and keep looking up at the big picture of helping people. Don’t become so overwhelmed with something that doesn’t go exactly according to plan. It’s people taking care of people, so we can always plan for the unexpected. Be a bit more flexible as to what to expect and just know that everything always works out in the end.

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