Senior caregiving services are continuing to grow as more seniors, especially seniors living in developed countries, are living much longer lives than previous generations. Why are seniors living longer?
- Better Nutrition
- Better Healthcare Access
- Better Emergency Treatment (Heart Attacks, Strokes)
- Caregivers
All of these impact the ability for a person to live a longer life. And one of the biggest reasons is the availability of someone to provide caregiving services. We aren’t living in a little house on the prairie anymore. Because adult children very often do not live within a 1 hour drive of their parent’s home, the need for paid caregiving services has skyrocketed in the last decade.
Now that senior caregiving has become a licensed profession in many states, training requirements have been created to protect both the senior and the caregiver.
California’s new home care services law requires all California caregivers to be trained in 2 hours of orientation training, 3 hours of safety and infection control training and 5 hours in core competency training. Knowing how to effectively communicate with a senior and manage daily activities makes a huge difference in the success of the caregiving services.
- Here is what you need to know about senior caregiver training:
- Some states require specific training (See California’s caregiver training requirements to be a certified caregiver).
- Some states require training but do not mandate the exact type of training (See Basic Caregiver Skill training).
- Unlike Certified Nursing Aide (C.N.A.) training, which is required by federal law, caregiver training is regulated by each state.
Companion caregivers often assist seniors with memory loss, who may need a caregiver for several years (former President Ronald Reagan had caregiving services for more than 10 years as his memory loss progressed). Caregivers assisting seniors to recover from a major medical event such as a stroke or hip replacement, need additional training to learn how to safely transfer the senior, dress the senior and maintain a safe environment. In addition, understanding what to do as a caregiver, if an environmental emergency such as an earthquake or blizzard happens, also is part of caregiver training.
Just as with any profession, being properly trained allows quality care to be delivered. Digital caregiver training now assists caregivers to easily become trained and certified to meet their state’s requirements.
