Home care assistants (also referred to as caregivers or HCA) are supportive workers who look after the injured, disabled, sick or the elderly in the privacy of a patient’s home. Most commonly, they have a high school diploma, and they are trained by nurses or fellow caregivers. When it comes to home care assistance jobs that focus on helping the elderly, here’s a concise, must-read guide to the essential job requirements, coming from one of the best home care West Hollywood referral agencies.
We know you want to act in the best interest of your senior loved one, which is why you have to be familiar with the essential senior care services and home care assistance jobs. It is the only way to feel confident you’ll choose the best senior service in LA County.
Home care assistance jobs: the fundamentals
A home care assistant can offer various caregiving services, depending on a patient, a situation at hand or a referral agency and their policy. However, there are several services that are elemental for caregivers who help the elderly.
- Personal care is the first elementary service and it includes a few obligations for the caregiver, such as: helping an entrusted elderly person with their personal hygiene routine, getting dressed, grooming, taking a bath, taking their medications as prescribed.
- Companionship is another very important basic element of caregiving. It is a common conviction that caregiving is all about physical care aspect, but nurturing a person in need also requires tending to their emotional needs. A good caregiver must be willing to be a patient and loyal companion, participating in activities like talking, taking a walk, reading and exercising with a patient.
- Helping with the housework is the third pillar of caregiving profession. Depending on the patient’s abilities and their family’s requests, it can be more or less demanding, but a good caregiver should be ready to help with some of the basic house chores: dusting, vacuuming, taking out the garbage, replacing the bed sheets, and preparing healthy, nutritious meals for a patient.
- As many seniors aren’t very mobile, it is important that a caregiver is able to secure transportation for the patient, whether it is just driving them to the park, or taking them for a doctor’s appointment. That is why having a driver’s license and a personal vehicle is important for home care assistance jobs.
What makes a great caregiver?
Like in any other profession, there are basic requirements for home care assistance jobs, but there are also personal traits that make the best caregivers stand out. Great home care assistants are genuinely emphatic and positive people, ready to go the extra mile to help and support the entrusted seniors. For them, caregiving is more than just a job, it is a way to change someone’s life by offering a helping hand. They will always do their best to make a personal connection with their patient, they have credible experience in caregiving, and they are reliable and honest individuals.
In caregiving, we go the extra mile
A special bond forms between a great, nurturing home care assistant and a senior when the match is right, and that’s what drives us to help make that connection, that meaningful change in someone’s life. Whether you need help to choose the right caregiver for your elderly loved one, or you are interested in pursuing a caregiving profession, A Better Way in Home Care referral agency is a place to call. We are always ready to go the extra mile.
