|
Personal and Home Care Aides
|
|
|
“Tender Loving Care”
Help people who are elderly, disabled, ill, and/or mentally disabled to live in their own homes or in residential care facilities instead of in health facilities or institutions.
|
|
|
Average Pay: $7 - $10/hr Qualifications: Usually on the Job Training
|
|
|
The Job
Personal and home care aides-also called homemakers, caregivers, companions, and personal attendants-provide housekeeping and routine personal care services. They clean clients' houses, do laundry, and change bed linens. Aides may plan meals (including special diets), shop for food, and cook. Aides also may help clients get out of bed, bathe, dress, and groom. Some accompany clients to doctors' appointments or on other errands. The personal and home care aide's daily routine may vary. Aides keep records of services performed and of clients' condition and progress. They report changes in the client's condition to the supervisor or case manager.
|
|
Work Environment
Aides may go to the same home every day for months or even years. Aides often visit four or five clients on the same day.
|
|
College Majors
You can obtain personal and home care certification
|
|
Minimum Qualifications
In some States, the only requirement for employment is on-the-job training, which generally is provided by employers. Other States may require formal training, which is available from community colleges, vocational schools, elder care programs, and home health care agencies.
|
|
Personality traits helpful for this career
a desire to help people and not mind hard work
|
|
Quick Facts
- Job opportunities are expected to be excellent because of rapid growth in home health care and high replacement needs.
- Skill requirements are low, as is the pay.
- More Info: National Association for Homecare and Hospice, Internet: http://www.nahc.org
|
|
Compensation and Outlook
Median hourly wages of wage-and-salary personal and home care aides were $9.22 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $7.81 and $10.98 an hour. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $6.84, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $12.33 an hour.
|
|
Comments and Updates
If you are a professional in this field please post comments so we can make
this section the best and most relevant. Comments and updates are reviewed by our staff prior to posting. Post your comments
Name:
Comment or Update:
|