One of the hardest decisions a family can make is determining if their loved one requires additional senior care. Each family wants the best for their aging loved one, and providing this can be a challenge, especially if they have to balance their family, jobs, and caring for a senior.
There is no tried and true way to determine the best senior care for a loved one. Most families resort to hiring a professional caregiver to come and help their loved one at home, or move them into an assisted living home where they are cared for.
Senior care plays a crucial role in the life of older adults when they receive excellent care. They will be able to have a quality life and, at the same time, have less to worry and stress about. On the other hand, families will have peace of mind knowing that their loved one is comfortable and receiving the best care available.
As a professional caregiver, this is where you come in. Your skills and expertise in providing quality care will help you stand out when seeking caregiver jobs in Carson City, Nevada.
Whether you have been a caregiver for a while, or you’re just getting started keep reading to learn more about the necessary qualities you must possess as a caregiver, and how you can provide quality care to seniors and their families.
Importance of Qualified Caregivers
The significance of qualified caregivers cannot be overstated, as these professionals play an essential role in ensuring seniors lead a better quality of life and their families have peace of mind knowing their loved one is in safe hands.
As with every industry, competence and quality is now the gold standard. Therefore, as a caregiver, you must be willing to embody whatever it takes to ensure you provide exceptional care to seniors and their families. This could be taking relevant courses to upgrade your skills or adopting the 11 must-have qualities discussed in this article.
The Caregiver Job Market in Carson City
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the caregiver job market will grow immensely in the next decade. The caregiver demand will rise as the population of people over 65 will double by 2050. This means that the demand for caregivers, whether personal or healthcare aides, will have a 25% increase by 2030, creating about 1.1 million new jobs.
Availability of Caregiver Jobs
The good thing about caregiver jobs is that some do not require certification, and there is room for growth once you start.
Carson City is fast growing, and as most seniors want to age from the comfort of their homes, they will need caregivers and companions to help them achieve this dream.
Requirements for Caregiver Jobs
A caregiver assists seniors, people living with disability, or someone suffering from a mental or chronic health condition, in carrying out their activities of daily living, such as bathing and dressing, meal preparations, companionship, and medication management, among others.
As a caregiver, you can work at your client’s home, an assisted care home, or a nursing home.
The following requirements may qualify you for a caregiver position:
- High school diploma,
- Certifications
- CPR training
- Drivers license, especially if you will be driving a person to their hospital appointment or helping them with their grocery shopping
- A professional attitude
- Passionate about the job
- Be friendly
- Be flexible and ready to work different shifts.
What To Consider When Choosing Caregiving As A Career?
Choosing a career can be both exciting and challenging. You should consider how this career would affect your life and those around you, especially your family. Sometimes, you may decide to go with what you want if you are passionate about it and believe it will positively impact the quality of life of someone else.
With caregiving, you will have an opportunity to touch people’s lives through your work. However, when choosing a career, you should check how it will affect you in the long and short term.
A career path in caregiving should leave you feeling fulfilled. It should be something you wouldn’t mind doing even in your golden years. Most careers will leave you stressed and feeling unfulfilled, making it imperative to choose a career that will be easy to maintain a work/life balance.
Caregiving Benefits
The caregiver job market in Carson City is rapidly expanding, and some of the benefits you will reap include the following:
- Competitive wages
- Short shifts
- Room for career growth
- Cancellation pay
- Flexible working hours
- Insurance
- Working in high in demand career
- Easy access to training and resources
- Emotional health
- Room for social growth
- Have an expanded worldview
- support
Qualities of a Good Caregiver
To succeed as a caregiver, you must have some of the following qualities.
Compassion
Being compassionate means, you can tune, see, or understand another person’s distress and pain and be willing to alleviate it.
Kindness
Having a caring heart and being kind will help you as a caregiver, as these are the cornerstones of caregiving.
Patience
Caregiving involves assisting someone who may take longer to complete some simple tasks. Sometimes you will have to answer the same question severally. This calls for patience to answer these questions or to wait until the care recipient completes a simple task. It’s crucial always to remain calm and avoid frustrations at all costs to succeed as a caregiver.
Attention to Detail
Whether you are a professional or a family caregiver, you must be an excellent manager. You must create a routine schedule for the care receiver and ensure they follow it.
Plan for emergencies, organize activities, and care for their medical condition.
Excellent Communication Skills
Excellent communication skills will be helpful, especially when dealing with family and friends. You will need to update them on the status of their loved ones regularly.
You need to possess this quality as it will make your work easier and, at the same time, give the family some much-needed peace of mind.
Be willing to Set Boundaries
You have to be willing to set boundaries and respect them. You have to learn to say no to demands that are unnecessary or that make you uncomfortable.
Caring for someone doesn’t give them or their family the right to walk all over you, set boundaries, and let them know what will happen if they don’t respect your boundaries.
Be Present
To succeed as a caregiver, you must respect a senior’s abilities. Rather than focusing on what a senior can no longer perform, try to focus on what they are currently able to do. Be in the moment with them, listen to their favorite music, look at their photos, garden together, prepare meals together, and remember they weren’t always like that.
Be Willing To Accept Help
Caregiving is a demanding career, and being willing to ask for help is not a sign of failure or weakness. You must realize that you can do it alone and let family, friends, and professionals help you when you need a break.
Be A Good Team Player
Caregiving calls for great teamwork. You’re part of the team that cares for the seniors, like the healthcare providers, family, and friends. You will need to understand and be accommodating to your team members.
Empathize
Empathy will go a long way, especially when caring for someone who tends to be abusive. Understanding the person you care for and their condition will help you empathize with them.
Be Humorous
Humor has a way of smoothening embarrassing moments and lighting situations. It would help if you found humor to make some situations bearable for you and the person you care for. For example, if your loved one has incontinence, they may be embarrassed, but you can find humor in it as you help them clean up.
Importance of Quality Care for Seniors
Quality senior care is more than meeting an older person’s basic needs. It involves providing a nurturing environment while offering much-needed support to the person receiving care. Doing this will help them maintain their dignity and independence.
Quality care is vital to seniors and their loved ones, as it can help them lead a quality life and offer peace of mind to families.
Providing quality senior care is essential in your caregiving career. Be sure to tailor personalized care to suit seniors’ needs and personalities.
Ways Of Providing Quality Care As A Caregiver
Provide Personalized Care
When planning your care receiver’s schedule, consider their medical care and social activities. Providing personalized care ensures the individual receives care which will help them thrive.
Ensure They Remain Socially Active
Another way of providing quality senior care is by ensuring seniors engage in social activities. Older adults need to be active, and one way of achieving this is by ensuring they are involved in their care centers and participate in social and recreational events.
Most senior programs keep them involved in the community and provide opportunities to connect with other seniors.
Encourage Participation in Exercises
Providing Quality senior care includes encouraging your care recipient to keep their exercise routine going. For instance, if your client is recovering from an illness, injury, or surgery, rehabilitation exercises will help them heal quickly and remain independent.
Training and Certification Requirements
When considering caregiving as a career, you must understand its training and certification requirements. The National Caregiver certifying organization offers several online courses with certification that will empower you with the necessary caregiver skills.
Taking caregiving courses will help you gain skills and certifications quickly. You only need to know the course or skill you want to acquire, then opt for an online or physical course.
Some online courses are self-paced and allow you to incorporate learning into your daily routine.
What types of Caregivers in Nevada require a Certificate?
Not all caregiving positions require training and certification, but the following positions require certificates. The caregiver training and certification will help you provide better services and appeal to most employers:
- Personal Care Aides,
- Home Health Aides,
- Certified or Licensed Nursing Assistants,
- Skilled Nursing Providers,
- Registered Nurses.
The Cost of Caregiving Courses
State caregiver certification in Nevada is around $59, while nationally-valid certificates go up to $99. You don’t have to worry about the cost as these courses are marketable, and you’ll recover your expenses once hired.
Benefits of Completing Training and Certification Programs
- It helps you provide excellent care.
- Seniors and their families will rely on your training and experience to provide the best care to their loved ones.
- You may be able to provide specialized care like dementia care, making you more marketable.
- You will be well prepared for emergencies and difficulties as you care for a senior with health issues.
- Caregiver training and certifications reaffirm your desire to help older adults.
Conclusion
Providing excellent and quality services should be your top priority as a caregiver. You want the seniors under your care to thrive, maintain dignity and independence, and lead extraordinary lives.
To achieve this, you need to understand that the key to providing quality services lies in creating a conducive environment, providing personalized care, and supporting a senior in their activities like exercises and attending to their rehabilitation programs.
At Amy’s Eden, part of our mission is to help our caregivers thrive in their careers. We know providing quality senior care not only benefits older people but their loved one’s as well. Our caregivers are a great example of providing quality and excellent senior care in Carson City, as we truly understand our residents’ needs.
We may have some availability if you’re interested in caregiver jobs in Carson City, NV. Contact us today to apply and join our growing team of caregivers.
