What skills doe a home health aide require?

• In addition to the basic education qualifications it is compulsory for the candidate to have excellent skills sets to handle this job profile.
• One of the primary skills set required is high levels of patience.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills are required.
• Must perform multitasking duties at a time.
• To be very friendly with the patient or client.
• Good understanding and listening skills are mandatory.
• Must converse with the client effectively and regularly.
• High motivation skills are required to motivate the patient positively.
• Good time management with presence of mind is required.
• Must respond very quickly when the patient or client requests for help.
• Good sense of humor.
• Good managerial skills are necessary.
• Must be adequately computer literate.
• Able to prepare all the types of patient foods.
• Sound knowledge on the medication procedures to be followed as per the guidance from the doctor.
• Must be passionate about the job.
• Must be willing to work in shifts and late hours especially in the nights.

How much does home health aide earn as salary?

• Salaries and bonus for these home health aide professionals are based on several factors such as their past work experience in years, location of their work place, size of the employer, certification and also based on their area of specialization or specialty.
• Excellent bonus and over time packages are offered by the employers to these professionals by the health care centers in addition to the basic salary pay packages.
• The total pay salary range package after inclusion of bonus and overtime is in the range of $16,109- $31,706 per annum in United States.
• Mostly these professionals are paid salaries on hourly basis instead of salary per month or per annum.
• The basic hourly rate for a home health aide professional is in the range of $7.76- $14.62 in United States.

Male versus female salary rate

• Salaries also vary based on the type of gender.
• As mentioned before mostly these professionals are females and few males are also seen in this profession.
• For females the salary range per hour is $8.36- $11.01 and for males it is in the range of $8.85- $12.05 per hour in United States.
• Though the female’s number is more than the males who are working in this profession the hourly salary rate of males is somewhat better than the female’s hourly salary rate.

Salaries based on number of years of experience

• Experience is very much important for any professional for his/her career growth in the future.
• A home health aide professional must have prior work experience to handle this designation effectively and efficiently.
• Number of years of work experience of the candidate is directly proportional to the salaries and bonus.
• A candidate with experience in the range of one to four years gets an annual salary of $9,397- $42,041 per annum.
• A candidate with experience in the range of five to nine years gets an annual salary of $10,744- $81,860 per annum.
• A candidate with experience in the range of ten to nineteen years gets an annual salary of $12,200- $74,880 per annum.
• With twenty years of experience and more than it the candidate is expected to get a salary range of $17,687- $39,604 per annum in United States.
• From the above readings it is clear that the salary packages are mainly based on their number of years of work experience.

Bonus based on the number of years of experience

• Similar to the salary range packages even bonus pay packages are also based on the candidate number of years of work experience.
• With less than one year experience the candidate can expect a bonus of $300.00 in addition to the basic hourly salary rate.
• One to four years of work experience the candidate is expected to have a bonus of $100.61 in United States.
• With five to nine years of experience range the candidate is expected to get a bonus of $200.
• With ten to nineteen years of work experience the candidate is expected to get a bonus of $250.00 in United States.
• A home health aide professional with twenty years of experience and more than it get a bonus of $160.

Salaries as per the popular industries

• One of the other important factors that vary the salaries packages of home health aide professional are the type of industry the candidate works in.
• Almost all these professionals work in health care centers and home settings.
• The hourly salary range in home health care is $7.83- $14.63, for health care services the hourly salary range is $8.14- $14.64, in residential care or assisted living facility it is of the range $8.16- $13.12 per hour, for the day care and private home it is of the range $7.81- $13.59 per hour and in health care staffing it is $8.06- $15.40 per hour in United States.
• Out of all the industry types the highest hourly salary rate is offered by health care staffing industry.

What does a home health aide do?

Duties and responsibilities are almost similar for a home health aide professional in all the types of home settings and may differ if they work in hospitals and private health care centers.

Duties of a home health aide professional

• Main duty is to perform all the operations requested by the patient or client.
• Help and assist patient while bathing, grooming and while changing the dress.
• Replace the old bandages on the injuries with the new ones.
• Wash the clothes and regularly change the bed sheets and pillow covers of the patient.
• Provide all the pills as suggested by the physician necessary on time to patient
• Assist the patient to visit the bathroom to avoid any falls.
• Must prepare meals for the patient as per the diet prescribed by the doctor.
• Take care of the disabled parents of young children.
• Massage patients with ointments as per their request.

Responsibilities of a home health aide professional

• Major responsibility of a home health aide professional is to quickly respond to the patient as soon as he/she requests for help.
• Ensure that the surroundings of the patient are hygienic with a pleasant environment.
• Don’t be in a hurry or worry the patient.
• Take utmost care while bathing, dressing and grooming the patient.
• Always keep an eye on the patient’s condition.
• If any problem rises alert the family members or call the doctor immediately.
• Cook the food as per the guidelines of the doctor.
• Gently remove and replace the old bandages with the new ones.
• Must be very careful while transferring patient from the bed on to the wheelchair.
• Ensure that the clothes of the patient are very clean and neat before helping them to wear it.
• Must regularly change the dress of the patient.
• Entertain and converse with the patient regularly.

Does a home health aide require any certifications?

• Certification is very important for these professionals.
• Certified candidates are given first preference by the employers.
• Certification ensures that the candidate is mentally and physically fit to handle this designation effectively.
• One of the major factors that the salaries of home health aide professionals are based on the candidate certification program.
• Certification programs include like Certified Home Health Aide (CHHA) for a home health aide professional.
• The salary ranges for a certified home health aide and home health aide professional vary a lot.
• Licensure is also compulsory for the candidate to work in the particular state where the candidate desires to work in.
• Licensure is obtained for the candidate after passing the exam conducted by the licensure board of the state.
• Licensure requirements vary as per the states in America.
• It is compulsory for the candidate to have both licensure and certification to work as home health aide professional in United States.
• After completion of the high school diploma the candidate can undergo training in home health aide services from vocational or community colleges then can undergo certification program and get licensure to work in a particular state of America.

How to be trained for the job of a home health aide?

• The minimum educational requirement for the candidate to become a home health aide professional is at least a high school diploma or its equivalent.
• Educational qualifications requirements changes for these professionals as per the state the candidate works in.
• A candidate can apply for a certification program in home health care after completion of her high school diploma degree.
• So many vocational and other community colleges provide training in home health care which covers subjects like anatomy, nutrition, body language, effective communications, body language, behavior, personal skills and physiology.
• Certified and trained home health aide professionals are employed and also given much preference by the patients.
• It is better for the candidate to have at least a bachelor’s degree to attain great heights.
• Mostly these home health aide professionals after gaining some work experience also tend to become a nurse to enhance their career opportunities in future.
• Minimum education is compulsory to apply and handle this position.

Introduction to the job of a home health aide

Home health aide is a person who provides in-home care to people who are affected and suffering from illness, injuries or diseases. There are plenty of other names for these professionals such as home health care provider, home attendant, home health provider and resident aide. Mostly these professionals work in home settings because of this they are named as home health aide professionals.

A home health aide must take special care of the patients by performing various duties and roles like bathing the patient, dressing and grooming. These professionals play a very important role in the field of health care sector. Mostly elderly and disabled patients employ these professionals in their homes since, it is costlier to hire a private nurse or nurse assistant in the home.

Home health aide professionals are in great demand these days and the number goes on increasing to meet the future requirements. Almost all these professionals are females and very less males are seen working in this profession since this job profile requires a high degree of patience to serve and help the patient happily. They are not only restricted to helping and serving the elderly/aged people but also patients suffering injuries after accidents and disabled persons who cannot perform their activities by themselves.

Mostly the roles and responsibilities of these professionals are same in all the types of home settings with slight variations. Certified home health aide professionals are given first preference than non certified home health aide professional. These professionals also work in hospitals, nursing homes and health care centers.