Home health aides are professionals who provide care and assistance to individuals who need medical care and attention in between periodic visits to their primary healthcare provider. They help people live independently at home by assisting with activities of daily living (ADLs) . Here are some of the duties of a home health aide:
- Assistance with personal care: Home health aides assist clients in their daily personal tasks, such as bathing, dressing, and grooming.
- Light housekeeping: They help with household tasks such as laundry, cleaning, and meal preparation.
- Companionship: Home health aides provide companionship for the patient and much-needed “time off” for exhausted family caregivers.
Aside from these daily responsibilities, home health aides may also perform some medical and healthcare tasks and services, such as administering prescription and over-the-counter medications, taking the patients vital signs and recording them, and collecting samples for testing. They may also interact with other healthcare professionals, such as patients’ doctors, nurses, and medical assistants.
To become a home health aide, one needs to complete state-approved health training, such as in how to take vital signs, provide basic care, infection control, and emergency procedures. The typical work environment for home health aides is their patients’ home, and they may spend a small portion of their time at their agency to meet with their supervisors, attend meetings, and do other administrative office tasks, as required.
