What people say about us

Our experiences with Marianne Gissler:

After Marianne was very highly recommended to us, we quickly engaged her, and have not had the slightest regrets, only a continuing series of pleasant surprises and positive re-enforcements.

Marianne continues to impress us with her positive and imaginative thinking. She constantly invents new and stimulating situations and activities to challenge and motivate the individual in her care.

Marianne identifies, approaches and solves problems on the basis of evident and broad experience. At the same time she is sensitive and adaptable to the individual needs of the person in her care. On several occasions, with her intuitive forward thinking, she has anticipated potential problems, discussed them with us, and intuitively solved them before they actually became problems. At the same time, she has greatly and noticeable enhanced the quality of life of the person in her care.

Marianne is not only punctual, but very reliable. We have found that this greatly helps to easy the stress of uncertainty for the person in her care and enhances the feeling of a secure routine, so necessary in elderly people. Marianne approaches life with a lot of humour. She has a talent for seeing the funny side of life and her infectious laugh will soon have you laughing with her. At the same time, her obvious sensitivity is reflected in her ability to deal with the serious aspects of life, when necessary.

As a result of her all-embracing compassion, everyone in our family, young and old, has experienced a great sense of relief from the stresses of uncertainty, interpersonal tensions and practical planning. She has truly shown, not only that care matters, but also that she is a true professional in care matters.

Sincerely and Gratefully

Michael W. Budde

Marianna looked after our Father for 2 very difficult years.His personality changed as his health deteriorated but Marianna was able to adapt to this and work with him to help him maintain his dignity as his control over his life changed. We knew we could always count on Marianna for updates and concerns. She constantly encouraged him and took him on long walks which he loved.

She stayed with him right to the end. She showed concern and empathy one would show a family member. I would recommend Marianna again to anyone with a loved one in need.

JM Ottawa

My name is Steve Doswell and I was fortunate enough to have Marianne Gissler care for a dear friend of mine. My personal situation was complicated by the fact that:

I was not a family member of the patient;
The patient had no living family to care for him:
I live in Toronto and the patient was convalesced in Ottawa;
I travel frequently and was often out of the country for extended periods.

Marianne was able to respond to my profile in a way that far exceeded even my highest hopes. She was, nothing short of fabulous in so many ways.

Firstly, she is very knowledgeable and diligent in ensuring the highest possible standards in physical care and safety. I never had to worry for one second that my friend was not being well-cared for or was being exposed to unsafe conditions. One only has to know Marianne for a short period of time to realize that nothing slips and nothing is ever missed in this area. She is a "bull-dog" in confronting the Care Services and Care Facility with issues, shortcoming or opportunities for service improvement and she has no reservations about fighting hard for the patient's dignity and quality of care. This "ease-of-mind" was so important to me when trying to ensure proper care and safety from a distant location: I simply never worried that anything was lacking while on Marianne's watch.

Secondly, even though I was remote from the Nursing Home, I was always confident that I would be immediately informed in any situations of changing status or assistance requirements. Marianne is proactive and an excellent communicator. Wherever I was, be it Asia, Africa or somewhere in-between, Marianne would call me to let me know of any personal condition changes with the patient, any issues with the Nursing Home, when the patient required a support call or an entertainment/care item, etc. As a result of her thoroughness, I did not have to frequently check on the patient or think of what I might be able to do to help; I could wait until she informed what needed to be done.

Lastly, is Marianne's ability to personally bond with the patient and understand the way that they think and thus their intimate needs. It is one thing to understand a patient's physical care needs, but it is another to truly understand their psyche and their emotional needs. It is in this area that Marianne is absolutely unique. I thank her forever for being able to give my friends(I witnessed her engage in this bonding process with two separate patients) this dignified, personal-level care on an emotional level. How comforting it was to me knowing that she was engaging them and befriending them when they were otherwise all alone (and I was too far away to be able to provide this friendship on an ongoing basis). I saw great friendships develop between Marianne and her patients, and they were real, sincere and absolutely mutual. In my mind, Marianne is one-of-a-kind in this dimension of personal care!

Steve Doswel

Marianne Gissler and her staff at Care Matters have been part of our family’s care team for five years. I first met Marianne when I observed her engagement with fellow residents at my father’s retirement home. For me to be able to provide my father with the care and advocacy that he needed was going to take a lot of time and effort, as well as working full time and having travel and family commitments over and above my father. Care Matters has provided me with peace of mind that they are aware of my father’s needs, advocate on his behalf, provide companionship to him as well as social and intellectual stimulation.

Additionally, because they have so much experience in working with the elderly, they can bring things to the attention of me and the nursing staff so that we can get things addressed before they become an issue (pads on bed rails to prevent bruising).
As my father’s needs have risen (Alzheimer’s), their insight to the disease and familiarity with him has allowed from smooth transitions from retirement residence to nursing home. Not only has my father had the support that he needs to be able to be his best, I can’t imagine how our family could have managed without their support.

Patricia Masters
Contact information available through Care Matters

I engaged Marianne Gissler to provide support and assistance for my aunt Sheila Cottingham who was placed into a seniors retirement home. To add to the difficulty I live in Toronto and my aunt was in Ottawa.What I received from Marianne and her staff was a level of support and professionalism beyond what I could ever have expected.

Marianne and her staff became the eyes and ears for me that I could not do living in another city. She became part of my extended family. They provided 4 hours a day of care and companionship to for my Aunt. They also looked out for her making sure she received the services in the retirement home she was entitled to. Beyond that, Marianne helped to organize the business and financial affairs for my Aunt. It would be nothing for Marianne to make a trip to the bank or the hearing aid store to get supplies or financial information for my Aunt.

As my Aunt entered her last days in the hospital, Marianne and her staff seemed to be there 12 hours a day. Marianne provided such great emotional and professional support to me even picking me up at the airport when I flew in to visit my Aunt for the last time.

To summarize, you will never find any better support service for your family. Marianne is completely trustworthy, honest and professional in the way she approaches her clients. They become part of her family.

I highly recommend Marianne and her staff to meet the needs of your loved one.

Yours Truly,

Bryan Novak

Several years ago our father had a serious stroke which left him paralyzed on one side of his body. He was confined to a wheelchair and needed more care than his nursing home could provide and by great good fortune, Marianne Gissler was hired to provide that extra care.

Not only did she provide warm and competent care for Dad, she encouraged him in his rehabilitation exercises, enriched his days by taking him on extended explorations of the neighbourhoods and gardens along the Canal, and at all times insisted that he be treated with dignity and respect.

She also undertook to make sure that my sister, brother and myself were kept informed about his needs and also his progress or lack thereof. I was living about 1000 km away in Halifax and although I was able to visit him several times a year, it was very comforting to know that Maryanne would keep me updated on his health and care when I could not be near.

She took care of him and also of us and our families as if we were all part of her family.

James and Heather Stewart

When someone in your family is stricken with dementia and needs to be institutionalized, you go through a full range of emotions - sadness, despair, anger and guilt. Guilt because you can no longer look after your loved one. Guilt because you have your loved one institutionalized. My father was this person. He went to a private residence and then to a long-term care facility. I visited every day for more than a year until I could no longer do it.

My father was so confused. The staff, although caring and professional, have many things to do. Providing companionship and visiting with residents is not one of those things. Having Marianne and her team around for an hour or two on a regular basis, to keep my father company, to help him with dinner, to take him for a walk, was a wonderful support for me and my family.

Having someone who was familiar with the residence(s) and their practices and who could keep me informed about any changes that might affect his care and comfort was equally important. Marianne was our eyes and ears when we could not be with my father. I don't know what we would have done without her.

Caroline Mitchell

Director, Marketing Division/Directrice, Division du marketing

(613) 957-3532

Marianne Gissler came to us at the suggestion of the staff at the Colonel By Retirement Home. We could not have received a better recommendation. She supervised his eating which was difficult because of complications from a number of strokes. She took him on walks and made sure he was treated by everyone in contact with him with the respect we felt he was due. She showed compassion, kindness, and caring. Dad loved her. They were inseperable.

Marianne was with us for two years and came to be a real family member.

Dad's last two years were not easy, the strokes made him moody and irritable but she rose above it and I think made a difficult situation as good as it could have been. I lived on the West Coast and so only got to see Dad every two to threee months but I kept in touch with him several times a week by phone. Marianna would call me regularly to discuss his treatment or routine.

You could not ask for a better person to be with your loved one.

Alan Macnab

Since January 2008, we have retained the services of Marianne Gissler of Care Matters for assistance in the day to day activities of our elderly parents who reside at an extendicare facility here in Ottawa. Marianne has provided exceptional care and companionship for our parents. She has been very helpful in providing suggestions regarding their care and safety.

In addition she has given the family support and encouragement as she understands the complexities and demands of the elderly. Care Matters is an outstanding and professional company, one we would highly recommend.

Beverley & Stephen Carmichael