What does an elderly caregiver do?

Home health aides provide care and assistance to patients who have chronic illnesses, injuries, disabilities, or age-related challenges inside the patient's home. They monitor the patient's condition and help them in any activity they may need assistance in. They provide support to both the patient and the family to manage the patient's condition. Home health aides care for the patient by providing personal services like bathing and basic grooming, designing nutritional plans, cooking and preparing meals, running errands, maintaining the cleanliness of the home, managing medication intake, and ensuring the home is safe and secure for the patient.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an elderly caregiver are more likely to require skills like "adaptive," "compassion," "dr," and "light housework." On the other hand, a job as a home health aid requires skills like "home health," "patients," "hha," and "good judgment." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Direct support professionals are responsible for taking care of patients with physical or mental limitations. They do a variety of tasks for their patients, such as doing household chores, running errands for them, cooking for them, feeding them, bathing and dressing them, and helping them with their medication, among others. They also provide their patients with companionship, accompanying their patients to appointments, providing emotional support, and being with their patients for the most part of the day. They should be familiar with their patients' prescribed medicines, meal plans, therapy schedules, and other items related to the betterment of the patients' condition. Direct support professionals help the patients overcome their challenges and assist them in acclimating themselves with their current environment.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real elderly caregiver resumes. While elderly caregiver responsibilities can utilize skills like "adaptive," "oral care," "companionship," and "cpr," direct support professionals use skills like "direct support," "developmental disabilities," "autism," and "direct care."

A sitter is responsible for assisting medical needs under the supervision of an attending physician, registered nurses, and other health professionals. Sitters monitor the patients' daily activities and perform medical duties such as taking the patient's temperature, administering medications, monitoring food intake, helping with bathing needs, and responding to the patients' inquiries, concerns, and requests. They also keep track of medical charts to report the patients' health condition and progress to the senior staff.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from elderly caregiver resumes include skills like "adaptive," "oral care," "in-home care," and "compassion," whereas a sitter is more likely to list skills in "patients," "kids," "patient safety," and "home health. "

Aides are personal employees of their clients who commonly have health issues that render them unable to do certain tasks. They help out their clients with activities they may need assistance in. They may do personal errands such as grocery shopping, cleaning, and cooking. They also provide care for their clients by helping them bathe, dress, brush their teeth, and other personal hygiene activities. Aides also help their clients walk, sit, and eat if their clients' motor functions are compromised. Aides are expected to be patient, caring, and trustworthy.