They may also be known as attendants, sitters, homemakers, companions, and caregivers.
Duties
Personal care aides provide routine personal care and general housekeeping services; not health care related services. They plan meals and cook, do the laundry, change linens, and perform general light housekeeping.
The personal care aide may also help to bathe, groom and dress their clients. S/he may drive them or accompany them to medical appointments and on routine errands.
Personal care aides are often hired privately by the client or client’s family, but they may also work through an agency. Frequently family members hire personal care aides to care for their elderly parents while they are at work, or if they do not live near by.
The personal care aide may work a shift from four to twelve hours one or several days a week, or s/he may be hired as a live-in caregiver.
Training and Education
Some states require no formal training to be a personal care aide, but some require a certification from NAHC (National Association for Home Care) or completion of a personal care aide program from a community college, vocational school, home health agency or elder care program.
At the very least, a personal care aide should have instruction in safely assisting patients to transfer and ambulate (walk). S/he should also have First aid and CPR training.
Most formal personal care aide training includes information about nutrition, special diets, cooking, basic housekeeping chores, safety, hygiene and sanitation.
In addition, specific on-the-job training can include special instructions for care of the individual. This might include more specialized means of transferring or assisting the patient, very specific dietary needs or feeding, pet peeves, and special requests.
Qualifications
Being a personal care aide can be very hard work both physically and emotionally. The aide should be prepared for this. Personal care aides need to be emotionally stable and have a strong desire to help others, be patient with others, tactful, compassionate and discreet. They need to be responsible, honest and trustworthy.
Agencies employing personal care aides may require a TB test and a physical to ensure they are in good health. A background check may also be required to ensure the aide has no history of abuse or other criminal activity. A credit check and verification of driving record may also be required.
Job Outlook and Salaries
In 2006, personal care aides held 767,000 jobs in the U.S. This number is expected to continue to grow by 51% as the population grows and ages from 2006 through 2016.
Personal care aides made a median hourly salary of $8.54 (USD) in May 2006. Salaries typically range from $7-10 per hour.
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