Updated November 23, 2022
Of all the roles in the healthcare sector, none is as broad and diverse as "caregiver" and the reason is that, technically, all healthcare workers are caregivers since they all care for patients and assist them in different ways. However, in this article we will discuss all caregiver jobs, focusing on trained and paid caregivers such as personal support workers (PSW), developmental service workers (DSW), nurses, and clinical aides.
Let's get started.
A caregiver's job is to provide support and assistance to individuals suffering from chronic illnesses, people with disabilities, and the elderly. Caregiving entails many duties and responsibilities, but the main ones are usually assisting with personal care, ensuring patients take their medications on time, providing companionship, and transportation, as well as providing homemaker services.
Caregivers play an invaluable role in society as they enhance the quality of life of those who need care and provide the companionship and compassion they need to maintain a healthy body and mind.
Even though not all caregiver jobs require workers to perform the same tasks, as each patient has different needs, there are several duties and responsibilities that are assigned to almost all caregivers. These are some of the most common ones:
Personal care is very common for the elderly and disabled patients to struggle with everyday tasks and their self-care and self-hygiene, as a caregiver it is your responsibility to assist your patients with their day-to-day tasks and their self-hygiene by providing as much help needed for them to be able to keep up with their day-to-day personal care routine.
A caregiver’s role is to provide a better quality of life for your patients by assisting them with their basic needs and assisting them with all the daily tasks they need help with, you should always be careful and not overdo it and always let them feel independent which will help to grow a stronger relationship with your patients.
The list below has all the personal care services that you may provide for your patients:
Related:An Inside Look At A Day In The Life Of A Caregiver
As a caregiver, you might be required to help maintain the house environment and do some light housekeeping to ensure that the client lives in a clean and safe environment.
Light housekeeping tasks may include vacuuming, cleaning the kitchen and bathroom, washing the dishes, washing the linens, making the bed, removing any objects lying on the ground that could be a potential risk for your client, and overall general house cleaning, and make sure to keep a safe environment and to ensure that you organize your client’s home according to their needs and make sure that safety measures are in place.
Transportation can be a huge concern for the elderly and people with disabilities, driving or taking public transportation might not be a safe option for them, so as a caregiver you must provide your client with what they need.
As a caregiver, it is your responsibility to transport and take care of your clients. If the patient is no longer able to transport themselves, it is your duty to help them transfer from the wheelchair to the car. You might have to drive them to their medical appointments to make sure they don’t miss them, help them run their errands, and drive them to and from any activities they might have.
Companionship
Seniors tend to struggle with feelings of isolation, loneliness, and disconnection from society which can cause a huge negative impact on their health, mental health, and quality of life. Caregivers spend a lot of time with their clients which gives them the ability to offer emotional support and provide comfort and company for their clients. In most cases, the caregiver provides the primary source of emotional support for their clients, which is why this role is important.
To ensure that the seniors have a great quality of life and are in good health caregivers support them by:
Caregivers are responsible to administer medications and remind their patients to take their medication as often many seniors forget about the time of their medications. The main responsibility of a caregiver is to make sure the client's health is cared for and other tasks including:
Caregivers help clients maintain a healthy and nutritious diet by assisting them in planning and preparing their meals, and grocery shopping to ensure that their clients eat healthily and properly.
This may all vary from patient to patient as some of them may live with their families and you won’t need to get involved with preparing their meals. However, if a client lives alone, it is more likely that you will be the one assisting them with their meals and grocery shopping.
If you’re a caregiver and looking for a job and have the patience, compassion, and knowledge to care for elderly and disabled people, you’ve reached the right place - click here to sign up with Caring Support to find your dream job.
Caregivers can find employment in private settings such as home care agencies, nursing homes, long-term care facilities, acute care centers, community centers, and more. These jobs differ from publicly-funded healthcare settings in the fact that caregiving staff can enjoy higher salaries, however, they lack the stability that those other jobs offer. Caregivers can also choose to be self-employed and provide their services independently to clients' in their houses, but this usually only happens over time, once a caregiver has been in the field of home care for years and has built a database of reliable clients.
Caregivers may also choose to work only part-time and this is perfectly possible as well, especially in private healthcare settings. Work is considered part-time when it's below 30 hours a week. Some people in healthcare choose to work part-time to be able to go to school or perform personal caregiving for their own children or elderly parents. Others choose part-time caregiving jobs because full-time work is unavailable where they work and live.
Some patients require 24-hour assistance such as people with paralysis after injuries or strokes, or people with terminal illnesses such as cancer. In these cases, live-in caregivers, also known as in-home caregivers, will work at the patient's home, providing day and night care and ensuring their needs are met. Usually, these caregivers work 12-hour shifts or 24-hour shifts with an 8-hour break to rest.
Read More: All Types Of Caregiver Jobs
Being a caregiver is a challenging but competent job, to succeed as a caregiver you will be required to have a unique set of skills and maintain a balance of all the skills needed in a caregiver’s job.
Caregivers make a huge positive impact on their clients' lives and their families, with that being said this job isn’t meant for everyone. Caregivers need to have specific qualities and a set of certain skills to help them succeed and shine in their careers, and provide the best care they can for their clients.
The average hourly pay rate for caregivers in Ontario ranges between $15.65 per hour and $25.40 per hour, and the average yearly salary range between $34,197 and $54,265.
Read More: How Much Does A Caregiver Make In Canada?
Here's every single question you could ever have about caregiver jobs:
Yes, as the Canadian population grows old, the need for caregivers, especially live-in caregivers, is increasing steadily and, as a result, more jobs are opening in this field.
Professional caregiver jobs are unregulated in Canada, which means workers can become employable caregivers simply by completing a caregiving certificate or training, which usually takes between six to nine months.
Being a caregiver in any of its forms (family, professional, private, independent, volunteer, etc.) means taking care of an ill or disabled person in a home, agency, or long-term care setting. The type of care provided can be medical or non-medical care and its main purpose is to enable the patient to live as independently and comfortably as possible.
As previously stated, caregivers in Ontario and other parts of Canada can earn up to $25 per hour or $54,265 yearly, according to multiple sources.
The three major jobs of a Caregiver are assisting clients and patients with their day-to-day activities and household chores, ensuring they take all of their medications regularly at the correct dosage, and providing companionship and stimulating conversations to keep them mentally active and engaged.
Professional caregivers can find jobs on job boards or employment platforms such as Caring Support, where they can create a profile for free and access numerous opportunities with top employers across Ontario.
The job of a caregiver is to provide support and assistance to individuals suffering from chronic illnesses, people with disabilities, and the elderly. More on that at the beginning of this article.
The best way to get a job as a caregiver is through job boards or employment platforms such as Caring Support, where candidates can create a profile for free and access numerous opportunities with top employers across Ontario.
To apply for a Caregiver job in Canada, it is important to have all relevant documentation in order, including training certificates, certifications, updated resume, references, and more. Then, it's just a matter of looking for the right opportunities on job boards or employment platforms such as Caring Support.
Ottawa is a great city to live in and work where healthcare workers can find a wide array of opportunities to further their careers. To find a caregiver job in Ottawa, candidates can join job boards or employment platforms such as Caring Support, where they can see what employers and vacancies are available at the moment.
To write an effective resume for caregiver jobs, candidates should first choose a simple layout with neutral colours, and then organize their information to make it easier for recruiters to find what they are looking for. A simple way to do this is by using a resume builder the Caring Support Resume Builder, which allows you to create a resume in minutes.
Read More:
Sample Resume For A Caregiver Job
Caregiver Job Interview Questions And Answers
Some of the job duties of a caregiver include housekeeping tasks (house cleaning, changing linens, etc.), washing and folding laundry, meal preparation, grocery shopping, and accompanying clients to appointments or running errands.
In closing, we hope this article was educative and informative for you. Keep in mind that if you’re looking for a caregiver job, you can sign up with Caring Support, a platform dedicated to healthcare that has a ton of jobs. Who knows? Your dream job might be one of them so hurry up and click the sign-up button!
Read More: What No One Tells You About Being A Caregiver - A Conversation With Nicole Dauz
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