Home Health Aides: When Your Loved One Needs Help With Personal Care
When to look for a home health Aide
When your loved one is no longer able to care for himself or herself or a family caregiver's ability to help has been exhausted, it may be time to consider a paid caregiver. Signs to look out for include these:
You may get some pushback from those who say they don't want or need help. Every situation is unique and everyone's needs are different, but when you feel your loved one can't be safe without help, discuss the options and allow the recipient of the care to help determine what he or she is most comfortable doing.
Health aide's Duties, Responsibilities
Home health aides are considered health care paraprofessionals and must meet state-set training requirements. (Other types of home health workers are sometimes lumped together under the title of home health aides; see the box).
They might live with the care recipient or work regular shifts. Along with doing routine chores the care recipient can no longer manage, such as laundry, cooking and shopping, the aides must be able to:
- including bathing, dressing, eating, grooming, moving from one place to another, toileting and cleaning up afterward.
- such as blood pressure, respiration and pulse.
- and mental condition; level of exercise; and how much they are eating, drinking and going to the bathroom.
such as an accident, heart attack or stroke.
Home health aides do not provide services such as physical and occupational therapy or skilled nursing care. But they often are tasked with observing the care recipient's physical and mental health, and reporting on conditions to a registered nurse or other health care professional.
Traits to look for in a home health aide include compassion, good communication skills and attention to detail, says Christian Steiner, owner and operator of the Manhattan office of Home Instead Senior Care, a national provider of home health services. Flexibility, honesty, patience, physical stamina and some medical knowledge also are required to do the job well.
Training requirements for home health aides vary by state. Under federal law, home health aides must get at least 75 hours of training through a state-approved program, including at least 16 hours of hands-on practical and clinical training.
Most states follow that standard, but some set a higher bar. Thirteen states and the District of Columbia require 100 or more hours — up to a high of 180 in Maine — and 11 states and the District mandate at least 30 hours of clinical training, according to PHI, a nonprofit organization that works to improve direct-care services for older and disabled people.