Caregiver Certification Course provides comprehensive online training for in-home, assisted living staff

This month has been proclaimed National Family Caregiver Month. It's also the month that our team at aQuire Training has completed and launched the new Caregiver Certification Course.

Caregiver training is a nationwide issue as the number of seniors needing some sort of assistance balloons in the coming years. Just a few days ago, in fact, Washington State voters approved a new bill which would more than double current caregiver training requirements.

PHI, the direct care worker's advocacy and support organization led this week's newsletter with this bold headline: "PHI Project finds less turnover with more training." Turnover is one of the biggest challenges in providing uninterrupted quality care to the most vulnerable citizens.

These issues reflect the growing awareness that caregivers must have more than just minimal training to provide the quality of care we all want for our aging loved ones.

aQuire Training's Caregiver Certification Course, designed for in-home and assisted living caregivers, includes training in ethics, client’s rights, and elder abuse as well as training in emergency first aid, personal care and assistance with daily living tasks like mobility, bathing, and toileting. Throughout the course students are taught to respect the individual’s rights to privacy and dignity and provide care in such a way that the person’s independence is enhanced and supported rather than removed. The entire course provides a comprehensive program of more than 40 hours of caregiver training.

What a perfect gift to give a family caregiver. I know that if someone was caring for my mother in her home, I'd feel much more confident if I knew that the caregiver had extra training and skills.

This course has been endorsed by Casualty and Surety of New York, a company providing liability insurance to senior care providers, as a course that “is comprehensive and yet provided in an easy-to-understand presentation,” says David G. Condon, President of the company. Caregiver training is a known approach to reducing liability risks for senior care communities like nursing homes and assisted living facilities, Condon notes.

The course will also be used in parts of Canada as a tool to train respite caregivers. Respite caregivers provide much-needed relief for family caregivers through a government supported program there.

It's a privilege to join in the celebration during National Family Caregiver Month of some of the hardest working individuals, whose labor is too often unnoticed and unappreciated.