What was holding hiring back
HomeWell Care Services is a non-medical home care office serving Fort Myers, Naples and the surrounding communities of Lee and Collier counties. Owner Kevin Walters runs business development, client intake and care planning, while Karen Walters handles all caregiver recruiting. The office employs 20 to 40 caregivers depending on the season, hires mainly through Indeed, and runs scheduling and payroll in WellSky.
Recruiting took about half of Karen's day. Every Indeed applicant had to be checked against the office's do-not-hire list, sent a booking link and chased by phone, and most never answered. In the office's own count before go-live, only 14 of 41 applicants invited to a phone screen completed one, and 12 of the 26 who booked a call did not show.
Southwest Florida adds its own pressure. Demand swings with the snowbird season from October to April, new agencies keep opening in the territory, and applicants often ignore calls from unknown numbers. One applicant re-applied 19 times, so Karen spent time on the same people again and again.
What changed
Care Hero went live on January 20, 2026, plugged into HomeWell's Indeed postings without changing how the office hires in WellSky.
- Every applicant reached within minutes, 24/7. Indeed applicants get a message right after they apply and call in to a short AI phone interview whenever it suits them, evenings and weekends included.
- Florida questions first. The interview covers CNA or HHA status, driver's license and car insurance, work area, availability and hands-on experience, so dealbreakers surface before the recruiter spends a minute.
- A do-not-hire list stops past caregivers and repeat applicants from taking up interview time.
- A summary, score and recording after every interview, emailed to the office and kept in one dashboard, while Kevin keeps the final background review in his own hands.
What a Southwest Florida applicant has to clear at HomeWell: Level 2 background screening plus a check of Lee and Collier county arrest records before any offer; CNA or HHA status, with the Florida Home Health Aide exam; a driver's license and car insurance, since about 90% of clients need transportation to appointments and errands; availability and location that match shifts across Estero, Bonita Springs, Fort Myers, Cape Coral and Naples; and hours that rise in snowbird season and drop when clients head north.
The numbers
Before go-live, and in the nine months since, with the same owner-run team:
| Metric | Before (manual process) | With Care Hero (Jan 20 to Oct 29, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs first-round phone screens | Karen, by phone, about half of her day on recruiting | Care Hero, 24/7 |
| Phone screens completed after hours | Waited for the next business day | 45.6% |
| Completed within 1 hour of applying | Not tracked | 38.9% |
| Recruiter time on phone screening | About half of her day | About 20 hours a week freed |
What the team told us
Kevin no longer has to get on the phone several times for a single candidate. After seven weeks the office decided to continue and signed on for a full year.
Three weeks in, Karen rated the time Care Hero freed up 10 out of 10: instead of chasing scheduling calls, she was free to answer the phone for clients. Applicants liked calling in when it suited them.
Why this matters for Florida agencies
In caregiver recruiting, the agency that reaches an applicant first usually gets them, and most applications arrive after a shift, at night or on a weekend. In Southwest Florida the window is even tighter: demand peaks with the snowbird season, the requirements are strict, and applicants often ignore calls from unknown numbers.
HomeWell closed that gap without adding staff. Applicants now call in on their own time, nearly half of them after hours, and Karen starts the day with interviews already done, scored and recorded.
From first conversation to a full year
- December 2025: first conversations. Kevin tested the AI interview and mapped the office's hiring workflow.
- January 20: live. The first AI phone interviews ran with Florida questions and the do-not-hire list.
- February 20: week 5. Karen reported the first time savings from phone screening.
- March 12: decision to continue. About 20 hours a week freed, and the office signed on for a full year in April.
- October: nine months in. 45.6% of AI phone interviews happening after hours.