If you are interested in the medical field, and you like to be out and about
instead of cooped up in a medical building, being a home health aide might be
for you.
Description
Home health aides travel to private homes to administer health related
services such as checking vital signs, giving medications, cleaning, bathing,
grooming, and moving elderly, sick or disabled people. Sometimes they may also
help with changing dressings or other medical equipment such as ventilators.
Home health aides work under the supervision of medical staff and they are also
required to keep records of their patients’ progress.
Setting and Conditions
Most home health aides work regular forty hour weeks, but the hours may be
at any time of the day or night since their services may be required 24 hours a
day. They visit several different homes a day and typically only get paid for
the hours they are working in a home, not while they are traveling to each
home. Workloads are typically heavy and the duties are sometimes unpleasant as
they are working with people who may be easily agitated or uncooperative due to
their maladies.
Training and Qualifications
Generally, only a high school diploma is required to gain employment as a
home health aide. However, many facilities require employees to complete 75
hours of training and then pass a competency evaluation within four months of
employment. Once they complete this program, they are placed on a State
registry of nursing aides.
Employers are looking for people who are very reliable, sensitive and have a
strong desire to help others. Furthermore, they should have great
communications skills and be emotionally stable. And, obviously, applicants for
this sort of position must be healthy and a physical exam is often required
before hire.
Money
In 2002, the median earnings for a home health aide were $8.70 per hour. The
range of hourly wages was between $7.54 per hour at the lowest and $12.34 per
hour at the highest. On average aides who worked for employment services made
the most money per hour.