In response to a critical shortage of certified home health aides (CHHAs), one Home Helpers franchise has launched a new program to increase its pipeline of care workers.
Home Helpers Home Care in Freehold launched a program in partnership with Ocean County Vocational Technical School (OCVTS) in Toms River, New Jersey, to develop a new certified home health aide (CHHA) program for adults interested in entering the health care field.
Home Helpers and OCTVS launched the program after identifying a need for quality care in the community, according to Melissa Magabilin, nursing director for Home Helpers.
“Home Helpers needs highly skilled CHHAs and OCTVS has the resources to help get these folks trained and into the community,” Magabilin told Home Health Care News. “By joining forces, both organizations are helping fill the gap between at-risk populations in our community, not having qualified caring people available and training the right people to fill those needs.”
Founded in 1997, Home Helpers Home Care in Freehold, New Jersey, offers in-home personal care and companionship to older adults and individuals with disabilities.
Students must complete 60 hours of classroom instruction followed by 16 hours of clinical practice. The curriculum encompasses several modules, including safety, body systems with related care, as well as home care and hospice-specific training. The clinical segment provides students with the opportunity to practice and gain hands-on experience in a modern clinical setting.
After completing the program, students are equipped and certified to apply for positions within home care organizations or may be hired directly by Home Helpers.
Students are also trained to comply with all state and health department protocols, ensuring the highest standards of care and safety for both patients and aides. In addition to personal care, certified home health aides may be asked to perform homemaking activities, depending on patient needs and under the supervision of a registered professional nurse.
Magabilin said she would love to see the program implemented on a state or national level, given the nationwide shortage of CHHAs.
“The biggest challenge home care agencies in our area face today is the lack of qualified and caring professionals who want to continue their careers in today’s health care setting,” she said. “By collaborating with OCTVS, Home Helpers can train new CHHAs from the beginning and ensure that by the end of class, they have the knowledge to enter the home care world as a skilled professional.”
Both Home Helpers and OCVTS say they help students succeed by walking them through the application process, completing the class, passing their exam and starting to work almost immediately, according to Magabilin. Students have full access to school resources as well as additional resources through Home Helpers.
“OCVTS strives to prepare our students for work as authentically as possible using problem-based learning,” Jeremy Dusza, principal of adult education, told HHCN. “Partnering with industry provides the most current lessons in meeting the needs of its consumers. It also creates a short pathway from classroom to career by establishing relationships with hiring personnel and the people they serve. Educational institutions partnering with businesses to provide community services sustainably have proven to be a model for success, and we aim to do our part.”
Magabilin acknowledged that health care is constantly evolving as people age, retire later in life and require more care than in previous decades. She said the future of each CHHA lies within each state’s acknowledgement that they are skilled and qualified health care professionals.
“We need to prepare for this increase with medical professionals now,” she said. “If we can assist in keeping the at-risk populations safe and healthy at home, we are doing our part in keeping the resources freed up for others with more complex health issues in nursing homes, clinics and other facilities. We know through science that people thrive at home when given the right tools and help.”
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