Who are the home health aides?
The home health aide is a dedicated professional whose job it is to provide companionship and comfort care to those who are home bound by either sickness or injury. The patients who are in need of a home health do not necessarily have to be elderly. They could be a young adult who was injured and now needs assistant in their home.
What do Home Health Aides do?
The purpose of home health aide is to help people regain the skills that they need to become independent once more. Independence is taking for granted each time we wake up in the morning, do our chores and get ready for work. Unfortunately for some, they have lost their independence from injury or a disease. Imagine their frustration at not being able to do even the simple things that they were used to, such as brushing their teeth or making a cup of coffee.
Why would I like being a home health aide?
It has been proven that people heal faster when they are a comfortable familiar environment such as the safety of their own home. The home health aide should always remember that they are a guest in their patient’s home and that their job is to foster encouragement and hope. In stressful times, families cannot always take time off from work to care for their loved ones. The home health aides job is to make sure that their client is well cared for, fed and is comfortable as they can be. There will always be a need for home health aide, due to the fact that hospitals cannot keep patients longer than a few days at the most. Families are not always open to the idea of sending their loved ones to a long term care facility and as such, they opt for the home health aide.
Is it hard to become a home health aide?
The home health aide must go through a rigorous background clearance and training.  They are the people who come to a patient’s home and care for them. Their shifts or hours of work depend on the needs of the patients. Sometimes they are there twelve hours a day and some spend two to three nights. Their duties are quite varied but in many ways their jobs are similar to a certified nursing assistant. The home health aide helps prepare meals for their patients, make their bed, helps them with their hygiene such as cleansing their dentures, shaving, washing their face, getting them dressed and doing light housework. The home health aide basically is the care partner for their patient.
The needs of the patient dictate the duties of the home health aide. The registered nurse who opens the case must first make the determination that the patient will benefit from having a home health aide in their home.
Once the registered nurse documents this the physician must sign off and the paperwork is then sent to medicare or medicaid insurers.
Upon approval, the agency will assign a trained certified nursing assistant or a home health aide to go to the patient’s home and interview with the patient.
This is a very important step because the patient must like and get along with the home health aide. Sometimes, not always the patient may refuse a particular home health aide. But usually the agency keeps trying.
Once the patient has found their ideal home health aide the two will form a long lasting bond. Many home health aides remain with their patients daily until either the patient becomes self sufficient or eventually passes.
It is not unusual for home health aide to be with their patients for years. The become members of the family. The patient relies on seeing them daily and looks forward to their company and help. Depending on the duties of the home health aide they may take their patient out to lunch or dinner, go shopping together and assist them with the daily medication.
With respect to pay, the home health aide can make in excess of $20 dollars per hour in some circumstance with additional pay for overtime.
The hardest part of being a home health aide is losing a patient, especially if the home health has been with that patient for years.
Caring for someone goes both ways. Not only does the home health aide become attached to their patient, but the patient also becomes attached to the home health aide.
Health care providers in this field are very special people. These are the people who donate their lives and time to others day after day. They share in the joys and sorrows of their patient and listen for hours as their patient tells them about their life and loves, work and children, hopes and dreams.
The desire to help others is a gift. Sharing that gift by being a home health aide will have a lasting impact for the better on peoples lives for years to come.
Nancy L. Kimmel obtained her PhD in Environmental Engineering in 2002, then went on to teach Physics and Mechanical Engineering at Lawrence Technological University, Henry Ford College and Oakland University. She obtained her Associate in Nursing from Henry Ford College and then went on to earn her Master Degree as a Family Nurse Practitioner and became Board Certified working as a licensed FNP in the State of Michigan. She then went on to Medical School where she is now in her 3rd year, and is also in the process of obtaining her Doctorate in Nursing Practice through Chamberlin University. She has authored the NET Study Guide, as well a several books on subjects of Math, ECG/EKG and Phlebotomy. She holds a patent on an Air Filter through the U.S. Patent Office.