If you're considering hiring a home caregiver for your loved one, you may feel anxious or simply curious about what type of training and certification a caregiver might have. There are many different types of home healthcare that range from an aide providing companionship and running errands, to a registered nurse providing wound care after surgery. This article focuses on typical home caregivers for the elderly.
CPR
Many home caregivers are CPR certified, although it is often not required in many circumstances. In some cases, home care aides have worked in various areas of the medical field such as nursing homes or doctor's offices and were exposed to CPR techniques. If your home caregiver is not familiar with CPR, you can print off instructions and hang them with emergency contact numbers for easy access.
Nursing Assistant
Not all home caregivers have worked as certified nursing assistants, but many have. The CNA program normally takes a couple of weeks to a month to complete, and provides training in basic healthcare such as proper sanitary techniques, changing an ostomy, and properly assisting the elderly to safely walk, bathe, and dress. If your home caregiver is not a certified CNA, that is acceptable because much home healthcare for seniors involves fairly simple tasks like cooking or changing bedding. The home healthcare agency will provide training for specific tasks.
Alzheimer's or Dementia
If your loved one has Alzheimer's or dementia and you are keeping them at home, your home healthcare aide will most likely have some experience with Alzheimer's patients or formal training. If your loved one has fairly advanced Alzheimer's and you are worried for their safety, you can request a home care assistant with prior experience. The most important quality to look for in a home care aide is a kind and gentle demeanor that puts your loved one at ease. While certification is nice, nothing compares to someone who genuinely cares for other people and can deal with difficult situations effectively.
Special Needs
If your loved one has special needs such as an oxygen tank, ostomy or toileting issues, or assistance with bathing and dressing, your home healthcare aide should be capable and confident in dealing with these tasks. While no formal training is required to adjust an oxygen tank or change an ostomy appliance, most home care agencies are well versed in these issues and train their staff accordingly.
While no certification is required for basic home healthcare aides and assistants, rest assured that most individuals who work in this type of job do so because they have a strong desire to help others. Background checks and thorough screenings are performed to ensure that only high caliber individuals are hired to provide care to your loved one. Click for more information.
Share19 November 2014
My parents taught me healthy eating habits and I played outside a lot as a kid. Once I was old enough to work, I got a job as a waiter at a restaurant and kept waiting tables throughout high school and college. After college, I got my very first desk job, and my health started declining. I soon realized that even though I had never stepped foot in a gym, I was living a sedentary lifestyle for the first time in my life. I wasn't getting exercise playing outside or running around at work, so I decided to commit to going to the gym. My health began to improve and I now greatly enjoy bodybuilding. I know many other people are in ill health and can't figure out why, so I decided to start a blog to share my health tips and inspire everyone improve their health!
