Anitra Camargo’s Refined Home Care Brings New Meaning of Comfort and Humanity to the Elderly

Anitra Judith Camargo is the franchise owner of Home Instead Windsor, whose career has unfolded at the edge of consequence, shaped by the moments that demanded decisiveness in the face of uncertainty. Today, she has held an Outstanding Rating from the Care Quality Commission for 9 years, and for the third time, has been awarded the five-star Employer Award by Work Buzz. Camargo has implemented the Home Instead premium model of home care that embodies compassion and empathy, driven by her lived experiences.

Armed with an MBA, she left London for New York and rose quickly into a vice-presidential role just off Wall Street, operating in high-pressure and high-performance environments. Yet the forces that would ultimately inform her work today emerged from encounters with mortality that shifted her sense of purpose and responsibility.

She notes that in 2001, she almost lost her life, yet a stroke of luck left her unharmed. Years later, after returning to London and taking a senior European role, she was faced with an unwinnable battle. She shares, “I was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer, and the doctors said I didn’t have very long to live. It’s truly in those moments where you decide that you want to make a difference.”

For Camargo, that answer existed in the service of others. “Instead of making rich people richer, I realized I could leverage my skills to enhance the lives of those who need help,” Camargo explains.

In pursuit of that purpose, Camargo began to lead the franchise, focused on empowering the elderly to live independently at home through companionship, home health support, personal care, and specialist dementia care. “I’ve always been passionate about helping seniors. So many of them are often discarded as they get older, as if their opinions no longer matter,” she says. When she found Home Instead, it resonated with her immediately. “Home Instead stands for changing the face of aging, and that just agrees with me,” she says.

Camargo has curated a culture that intentionally counters ageist notions, as she focuses on helping the elderly to be independent individuals, capable of self-care. “I want to change the later stages of their lives to be the best version that they can be,” she says. During client consultations, Camargo emphasizes addressing seniors directly, even when family members dominate the conversation. “They’re often surprised that I ask what they want,” she says. Empowerment, for her, carries through every layer of the business, especially in dementia care.

Keeping education at the forefront, she regularly conducts sessions for families, ranging from brief, interactive introductions to in-depth one-on-one discussions that walk through real-life scenarios. Dementia, she explains, does not follow a uniform progression. Techniques must be adaptive, grounded in empathy, and responsive to emotional cues. “For someone with dementia, one of the last things to depart is how they feel,” she says. “If they feel safe and happy, that’s what stays with them. They need love, support, care, and for you to go with them into their reality.”

Rather than correcting or confronting realities, Camargo advocates for meeting clients where they are. She points to an interaction with a client who believed her long-deceased husband was returning home each afternoon. Instead of disputing that belief, Camargo validated it. “We went through that routine every day, but I would never tell her that her husband passed away 20 years ago. I just went into her reality. That kept her happy and healthy, that’s what matters,” she explains. “You don’t fragment their world, you have to protect it.”

Camargo extends that philosophy to her leadership style, which she notes is honest, transparent, and consistent, with a strong emphasis on listening. Recruitment, too, is handled with equal care. Camargo personally meets every Care Professional and insists on a pre-service introduction between caregiver and client to assess compatibility. “We carefully match our clients with a Care Professional that we know will make a difference in their lives. If it’s not right, we change it. I will always find the right fit,” she says.

Ultimately, Anitra Camargo’s ambition is rooted in compassion and expansive vision, seeking to reach people who are still unaware that they can receive care that empowers them, not confines them. Her work in community awareness and advocacy reflects that goal. Anitra’s proactive approach led Home Instead Windsor to winning the Community Champion in the National Business Women’s Award, and was runner up for the British Franchise Association Community Focus Award, 2023. “Every care visit should make a difference,” she says. “If we can keep the elderly safe, happy, and truly seen, then we’re doing what we’re meant to do: give them a reason to keep going.”