Are you interested in becoming a Personal Care Assistant? If so, congratulations for taking a great step toward your career! You might be interested in learning how to enter this profession. Right? We are here to clear your doubts regarding this position.
Personal care assistants are healthcare professionals who are required to perform various personal care tasks for people who cannot do them independently. They can form personal and professional relationships with their clients. So, you can say it’s a rewarding career option. Those who enjoy assisting others and doing everyday care activities may find a job in personal care assistance rewarding.
Before we jump on “how to become a personal care assistant,” it is good to understand- who they are and their job responsibilities
PCAs are health care professionals who provide personal care to elderly, disabled, or mentally impaired people. They are also known as personal care aides or caregivers. Private customers, care facilities, nursing homes, and other care-based businesses are common places for them to work.
Their primary role is to help clients with all their basic care tasks. In addition, they need to provide general companionship. Responsibilities also vary from the workplace. As some clients may need more care than others, a PCA might need to perform more care tasks. For example, if a PCA works at a hospital along with doctors and nurses at a hospital, his role might not involve handling medicine or health-related responsibilities. On the other hand, if a personal assistant is trained to help a private client at his home, he may need to assist with health care responsibilities or recommended exercise
In general, a PCA may perform the following duties-
Now, come to the point- how to become a personal care assistant? If you are interested in becoming a PCA, you can consider these steps:
Most employers prefer hiring a personal care assistant with at least a high school diploma. A PCA rarely needs any higher or formal post-secondary education to enter this profession.
Getting training and earning a certification in personal care assistant can increase your chances of getting hired at a better salary package as compared to others who don’t have any certification. So, if you have passed your high school education or diploma, you can enroll in the best PCA certification program available with us at Joyful Career Center. This program will help you learn the required skills and jumpstart your career.
As a PCA, you can work in a variety of settings. However, it is best to consider your desired location before you apply for jobs.