An HHA is a home health aide who works at a client’s home or in an assisted living community. Home health aides work with individuals in their homes who need some help with activities of daily living or who need assistance with other tasks. A HHA is often assigned to an individual with chronic health problems. Home health aides also frequently work with individuals who have recently been released from a hospital and are still recovering from a health condition or illness. Many elderly individuals who are still able to live at home (but who need a little help) will have a home health aide assigned to them.
Home health aides often work for nursing agencies. They work under the supervision of a nurse. The nurse will check in on them periodically and evaluate their work. Sometimes a home health aide is hired directly by an individual’s family to provide care for loved ones. Home health aides often provide companionship services and/or some help with light household duties.
Home health aides often receive their training “hands-on.” It really depends as to whether a home health aide is working for a Medicare certified company and whether they are working as a certified aide or simply a home care aide. They learn as they go along by working with their clients directly. Sometimes a home health aide will need to work with another aide for a few days until they learn about the needs of a particular patient. In other cases, the aide will receive some basic instruction from an individual’s family members.
A HHA can be required to be CPR certified or to have other first aid and related training. Individuals can search for programs that are at little or no cost through a local chapter of the Red Cross in their area. In some cases a hospital or other type of healthcare facility will have CPR courses that are open to the public.
If an individual is required to receive some type of formal training before working as an HHA, there could be costs associated with this training. This is especially true if an individual is asked to attend a course that is offered by a college or university. Fortunately, there are many options to receive HHA training for free. Anyone who is interested in becoming a home health aide should keep in mind that there are opportunities available to receive help paying for any costs related to training for this career. No one should give up his or her goals by worrying about the cost to become a home health aide.
Employer Offered
Usually home health aides work for Hospice Agencies. Hospice agencies are the first place where people go if they are looking for a HHA. You can get free HHA training from a hospice agency if you commit yourself to working for them after your training for a specific amount of time, this will depend on the agency and they will mention the period to you before you start. Ask around at a couple of employers to make sure you get the best training and a good pay.
If a family is hiring a home health aide directly, they might have certain training they want that aide to attend. For instance, they might decide they want the HHA to have Basic Life Support Training. There can be fees associated with training even if they are offered by a local organization. The family might be willing to pay for those costs when they hire someone new to work with their loved one
Health Service Providers
Sometimes a health service provider offers training programs for individuals entering into entry-level medical related jobs. They often offer programs for individuals who wish to work as nursing assistants or even as home health aides. For example, a hospital might periodically offer a training program for prospective CNAs or even HHAs. The same is sometimes true of large healthcare insurance companies.
Individuals who are hoping to become home health aides should contact hospitals and health insurance companies in their area to determine if there are any programs. These programs offer require individuals to apply. Applications are considered carefully to find individuals who would benefit from starting a new career and who might not otherwise have the opportunity to do so. These programs can be competitive and might only be offered at certain times each year.
Public Assistance Help
If an individual is receiving public assistance benefits or unemployment benefits, they might very well qualify to receive some assistance paying for HHA training. There are often programs to help men and women train for new careers that are in high demand. There is often a high need for well-qualified home health aides and other type of nursing assistants. Some local public welfare and job placement groups might every well have partnerships with healthcare agencies to help individuals to gain the knowledge they need to work as home health aides. If an individual does qualify for help to receive training to become a home health aide, they might also qualify for some programs to help cover the cost of uniforms and other work related expenses.
Financial Aid
Sometimes a program for home health aides might be offered at a college or university. In an instance such as this, the program might be for credit hours. Men or women who will be attending one of these programs should contact the financial aid office. They might find that the program is eligible for grants or scholarships. In a case such as this, an individual should always apply. They might very well receive enough help to cover the entire cost of their tuition for a training program.
Reimbursement
Even if an individual cannot find free HHA training, there might still be some financial help available to them. An individual can ask for reimbursement for the cost of their training if they become employed soon after their training. Some home health agencies provide this benefit to their aides.
Tammy says
I am looking to study for HHA. I am researching but cannot find where one could take these classes, either in the classroom or online.
Any suggestions?
Thank you.