| Anyone considering working as a professional | | | | training for caring for seniors with memory loss, |
| caregiver for a senior home care agency, assisted | | | | hospice and age-related diseases, such as Parkinson's |
| living community or nursing center, must participate in a | | | | Disease, can be obtained from local hospital |
| training program provided by the senior care company | | | | community outreach programs and from the |
| or complete a certified nursing aide or certified home | | | | advocacy associations for the various diseases. |
| health aide program to be qualified to provide care | | | | Some associations providing specialized seminars and |
| services. | | | | training information for caregivers are: |
| What type of senior care training is available? | | | | - Alzheimer's Association |
| The department of health in each state regulates the | | | | - Alzheimer's Foundation of America |
| certification process for nursing assistants. All states in | | | | - American Parkinson Disease Association |
| the U.S. provide certification for nursing aides and | | | | - Parkinson's Disease Foundation |
| some states also provide the additional certification for | | | | - Hospice Association of America |
| home health aides (caregivers who work only in | | | | You may also learn senior caregiving skills by taking |
| homes) and New York state has an additional | | | | nursing aide classes and practice nursing aide skills test. |
| certification for pesonal care assistants. | | | | By reading about age-related illnesses and taking a |
| Is certification required to work as a caregiver? | | | | practice exam for certified nursing aides or a sample |
| Working as a companion caregiver in the home does | | | | test, you can quickly gain more caregiving skills. You |
| not require certification in most states. Some states do | | | | may also gain caregiving skills by working as a senior |
| require caregivers who are staffed in senior's homes | | | | caregiver for a senior home care agency and may |
| to be certified as a home health aide or a presonal | | | | want to apply for a position in your area to begin |
| care assistant. Senior home care agencies usually | | | | developing your areas of expertise. |
| provide training for companion caregivers. Specific | | | | |