In-Home Caregivers in Westwood, CA
Want a parent to keep living in their own Westwood house with some help? Posting a request is free: give ZIP code 96137 and the hours you need, and applicants who live nearest see it before anyone farther out.
- Free to join, browse and post
- Hire directly, no agency mark-up
- You stay in control of screening
How to find an in-home caregiver in Westwood
Westwood is an unincorporated town of roughly a thousand people (the census survey estimate is 1,063, with a wide margin), so most families hiring here are choosing among a small number of local applicants and people willing to come from Chester or Susanville. The Lassen Rural Bus West County Route links all three, with a stop at the Westwood Business Center, but it runs only three times on weekdays and twice on Saturdays. If the shifts are early, late or on Sundays, say in the post that the caregiver needs a car. Almost every Westwood household has one; the census survey finds only 1.8% without a vehicle.
Plenty of Westwood homes have an older person in them: 41.2% of households include someone 65 or over, and among residents of that age, about a third report a disability, though that estimate has a wide margin. English is the language of nearly every home here, with 5.6% of residents speaking another language at home. Much of the housing is old: ACS counts 57.1% of housing units as built in 1939 or earlier. Mention stairs, a tub without a grab bar or a long driveway in the post, so applicants know what the work involves. The profile list below starts with whoever lives closest to 96137.
Private in-home caregivers near Westwood, CA
Independent caregivers with profiles on CaregiverConnect whose home base is within 50 miles. You agree on duties, schedule and pay directly with the person you hire.
No caregivers within 50 miles of Westwood have joined yet
We do not pad this page with distant profiles. Posting is free, and caregivers who join in Lassen County see it immediately.
Counts come from live caregiver profiles on CaregiverConnect. Sample and test profiles are never shown here.
Are you a caregiver in Westwood?
Open postings and a free profile.
Types of in-home care families in Westwood arrange
All non-medical. For nursing tasks (injections, wound care, catheters) you need a licensed home health agency, not a private caregiver.
Senior care at home · Personal care · Companion care · Dementia care · Respite care · Overnight and live-in · Post-surgery recovery · Part-time and flexible
Evaluating caregivers in Westwood
Every credential an applicant names can be checked. A nurse assistant certificate is issued by CDPH after a state exam, and Seneca Healthcare District in Chester runs its own paid course, so a local applicant may have trained there. A person already working for Lassen County IHSS has been through the state's enrollment steps, and the Public Authority keeps a list of such providers for recipients who ask. The county adds a caution of its own: the recipient is the employer and should interview and screen anyone from that list as well. The Home Care Aide Registry covers agency staff; an independent caregiver may never have joined it. Phone at least two past employers, ask the applicant to walk you through one difficult week with an earlier client, and book a single paid trial visit first. CaregiverConnect checks no one's identity, record or license.
Questions families here ask at interview
- Which town do you live in, and if your car would not start one morning, could you still reach us on the West County bus?
- Could you drive my mother to Westwood Family Practice on Birch Street, or to Banner Lassen in Susanville for tests?
- The fire district asks every home to keep a kit with medicines. Would you help us put one together and keep it current?
- Suppose an evacuation warning is issued during your shift. Walk me through the first ten minutes with my father.
- Have you looked after anyone in the weeks after a stay in Seneca's nursing unit or at Banner Lassen?
- Would you take my father to the Wednesday senior lunch at the Blue Ox Cafe once it starts?
- Is your Lassen County IHSS enrollment already done, and if not, would you start it this month?
What in-home care costs in Westwood: hourly rates and schedules
Start-of-day visits. A short shift to help a parent out of bed, washed, fed and through morning pills, easiest for someone who lives in Westwood. Town days. One long day a week built around the drive to Susanville or Chester for groceries, blood work and appointments. Night cover. For a parent who should not be alone after dark; budget for overtime, since these shifts run past nine hours.
| Reference point | Hourly | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Employed aides, North Valley-Northern Mountains nonmetro area (includes Lassen County) | $16.50 median | BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| IHSS provider wage, Lassen County | $17.55 | CDSS; effective January 1, 2026 |
| California minimum wage | $16.90 | effective January 1, 2026 |
| Agency non-medical home care, California median (CareScout 2025) | $40.00 | CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025 |
Who is the employer. When you hire a caregiver directly, you are a household employer under California's Domestic Worker Bill of Rights. The state minimum wage ($16.90 an hour from 1 January 2026; some cities set more, for example $17.75 in the City of San Diego) is the legal floor, and a personal attendant earns overtime at 1.5× after 9 hours in a day or 45 in a week. The main exceptions are IHSS recipients and an employer's own parent, spouse or child. Source: California DIR, Domestic Worker Bill of Rights FAQ.
Nothing in local law lifts the private floor in Westwood above California's $16.90 minimum; Berkeley's Labor Center finds no wage ordinance for the town or for Lassen County. To put that figure in context, employed aides across the ten-county BLS region earn a median of $16.50, Lassen County IHSS pays $17.55, and California home care agencies charged a $40 median in CareScout's 2025 survey. A personal attendant hired by the family directly must get one and a half times the rate for hours beyond 9 in a day or 45 in a week, a cost that builds fast on night cover. Where the person needing care is on Medi-Cal, call the county to ask whether IHSS can carry part of the load, because the county, not the family, pays a provider for any hours it approves.
No agency tracks private rates. A caregiver you hire directly will usually expect more than the employed-aide median and less than an agency rate; every caregiver on this site lists an hourly rate on their profile, and the hiring guide covers taxes and overtime.
Caregiver resources for families in Westwood
- Dignity Health Connected Living senior lunch at the Blue Ox CafeAnnounced in January 2026: a Wednesday congregate lunch at the Blue Ox Cafe, 313 Birch Street, for anyone 60 or older regardless of income, with one hot meal on site and four frozen meals to take home. Contributions are welcome but not required. The start date was to be announced, so call (530) 226-3070 to register and confirm.
- Westwood Family PracticeNortheastern Rural Health Clinics' Westwood site at 209 Birch Street, weekdays 8 am to 5 pm, closed weekends; (530) 252-1212, which also reaches the on-call provider after hours. The clinic group accepts Medicare and Medi-Cal and offers a sliding fee for the uninsured.
- Westwood Fire Department and disaster planningThe community services district's fire department at 206 Third Street, (530) 256-3589, is mostly volunteer. The district urges every household to be ready for fire, keep a shelter-in-place kit with medications for at least three days and practice an escape plan twice a year.
- Lassen Rural Bus, West County RouteBuses between Susanville and Chester call at the Westwood Business Center on weekdays and Saturdays. Dial-A-Ride, $1.75 a trip with a needed attendant riding free, covers only the Susanville city limits. (530) 252-7433.
- Seneca Healthcare District long-term careSixteen nursing-home beds inside the Chester hospital at 130 Brentwood Drive, staffed day and night, worth knowing about if care at home stops being enough. 1 (833) 227-3743.
- Lassen County Adult Services: IHSS and APSBoth IHSS applications and abuse reports go to one Susanville office, 1400 Chestnut Street, Suite C, open weekdays 8 to 5, (530) 251-8158. The county says APS can send someone in person at any hour when an elder faces an immediate threat.
Hiring safely in Westwood
Before anyone starts, put the job in writing: tasks, days, pay, overtime and the notice each side owes, signed by both of you. Go over timesheets each week, keep spare cash and medicines under lock, and keep an eye on bank activity. If you think someone is mistreating or neglecting an elderly Westwood resident, phone Lassen County Adult Services on (530) 251-8158; California's statewide APS number, 1-833-401-0832, also takes calls. For payroll, taxes and contract wording, read how to hire a private caregiver, and county-wide services are on the Lassen County family page.
How to hire a private caregiver in Westwood (no agency)
CaregiverConnect is a marketplace, not an agency: you hire the caregiver directly, which is why there is no agency mark-up on their hourly rate. That also means screening is your responsibility, and we tell you how.
- Describe the care you need
- Your posting goes live
- Review caregivers and applicants
- Message and hire
- Agree terms and pay directly
What is free and what costs money
Browsing, posting and receiving applications are free. Messaging and confirming a hire are part of Family Premium ($24.99/month, cancel any time). No commission on what you pay the caregiver; see the pricing page.
Find caregivers near Westwood
Caregivers set a travel radius, so a caregiver based in a neighbouring town may well cover your home. These pages show who is nearby.
Westwood is part of Lassen County; the hub pages list every town and area they cover.
Useful reading
How to become a caregiver in California: requirements, HCA registry, IHSS and CNA explained · How much do caregivers make in California and Arizona? BLS, IHSS and minimum wage (2026) · How to hire a private caregiver: cost, screening, taxes and a written agreement · Imperial County caregiver resources: training, job centres, IHSS, senior services and transport
- Susanville Stuff, Dignity Health announces congregate meal program for Westwood seniors (January 23, 2026)
- Northeastern Rural Health Clinics, locations
- Northeastern Rural Health Clinics, insurance accepted
- Westwood Community Services District, Be Ready
- Westwood Community Services District, Fire Protection
- Lassen Transit Service Agency, routes
- Lassen Transit Service Agency, Dial-A-Ride
- Seneca Healthcare District, Skilled Nursing Facility
- Seneca Healthcare District, CNA Training Program
- Lassen County, Adult Protective Services
- Lassen County, IHSS Public Authority
- CDSS, IHSS wages by county
- BLS OEWS May 2025, North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
- UC Berkeley Labor Center, local minimum wage inventory
- California DIR, Domestic Worker Bill of Rights FAQ
- CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025, median cost data tables
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024 5-year profiles DP02–DP05, Westwood CDP
Hiring a caregiver in Westwood: frequently asked questions
Does Westwood have a lunch program for older residents?
One was announced for Wednesdays at the Blue Ox Cafe on Birch Street, run by Dignity Health Connected Living for people 60 and over. Each diner gets a hot lunch and four frozen meals. Call (530) 226-3070 to check whether it has started and to sign up.
Where is the closest clinic?
Westwood Family Practice, at 209 Birch Street, is the clinic in town. It is open weekdays only. For hospital care, the state list shows Seneca in Chester and Banner Lassen in Susanville; Westwood itself has none.
Can a caregiver live in Chester and work in Westwood?
Yes. The West County bus connects the two, but only a few times a day, so a caregiver coming from Chester for early or weekend shifts will usually need to drive.
Does Lassen County IHSS cover Westwood?
It does. Because Westwood lies in Lassen County, applications go to the Adult Services office in Susanville, and whoever the client picks as provider earns the Lassen rate, $17.55 an hour.
Will CaregiverConnect vet the person we hire?
No; that part is yours. The site runs no background, license or reference checks. You can post at no charge; messaging caregivers and settling a hire take Family Premium, $24.99 per month.
Post your care need in Westwood
It is free, takes about ten minutes, and caregivers in Lassen County can see it as soon as it is live.
Create your free family account