Home Care Aide

Position Summary

The Home Care Aide will provide assistance with household tasks such as cleaning, planning, and preparing meals, doing laundry, and shopping & running errands. Home Care Aides also assist participants with personal care tasks such as dressing, bathing, grooming and following special diets with a focus on ensuring high quality in-home services to participants. The Home Care Aide must be able to travel throughout the Greater Metropolitan Chicagoland Area with the purpose to deliver and provide In-Home services to participants. The purpose of providing in-home service is to maintain, strengthen and safeguard the functioning of individuals in their own homes in accordance with the authorized Plan of Care.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities*

• Creates and maintains an atmosphere of warm, personal interest and positive emphasis by treating all participants and staffing personnel fairly with kindness, dignity, and respect.
• Maintains the confidentiality of all participants' personal and medical information.
• Follow a client's written Plan of Care.
• Providing necessary receipts and documentation in the conduct of essential shopping/errands.
• Maintaining records of daily activities, observations, and direct hours of service; and
• Attending pre-service training, in-service training sessions and staff conferences.
• Performance of specific service components of in-home services authorized under CCP's Administrative Code Title 89: Section 240.210(a), including, but not limited to:
• Personal care tasks for participants that are not medical in nature:
• Teaching/performing of meal planning and preparation; routine housekeeping skills/tasks (e.g., making and changing beds, dusting, washing dishes, vacuuming, cleaning floors, keeping the kitchen and bathroom clean and laundering the client's linens and clothing); shopping skills/tasks; and home maintenance and repairs.
• Performing/assisting with essential shopping/errands may include handling the client's money (proper accounting to the client of money handled and provision of receipts are required).

These tasks shall be:

• Performed as specifically required by the Plan of Care

• Monitored by the homecare supervisor.

• Assisting with self-administered medication, which shall be limited to:

• Reminding the client to take his/her medications.

• Reading instructions for utilization.

• Uncapping medication containers; and

• Providing the proper liquid and utensil with which to take medications.

• Assisting with following a written special diet plan and reinforcement of diet maintenance (can only be provided under the direction of a physician and as required by the Plan of Care).

• Observing client's functioning and condition and reporting to the supervisor and as defined by the Plan of Care.

• Performance/assistance with personal care tasks that are not medical in nature such as: Shaving, hair shampooing, drying & combing, bathing & sponge bath, shower bath or tub bath, toileting, dressing, nail care, respiratory services, brushing and cleaning teeth or dentures and preparation of appropriate supplies, positioning/transferring participant, and assisting them with exercise/range of motion.

• Ability to assist in the use of specific adaptive equipment, if the Home Care Aide will be working with clients who use the devise.

• Basic hygiene and basic infection control practices

• Maintain of a clean, safe, and healthy environment

• Basic personal and environmental safety precautions

• Recognizing emergencies and knowledge of emergency procedures

• Confidentiality of client's personal, financial, and health information.

• Knowledge and understanding of abuse and neglect prevention and reporting requirements

• Escort to medical facilities, or for essential errands/shopping, or for essential client business with or on behalf of the client, as defined by the Plan of Care. This escort/transportation service may be provided by the homecare aide using any form of public transportation.

• Other duties as assigned by Supervisor and/or Program Director or Director of Long-Term Services & Supports.

Required Skills or Abilities*

• Communicating with participants and/or caregivers/legal representatives, coworkers, and supervisors: Providing accurate, clear, and concise information by telephone, in writing form, e-mail, or in person.
• Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking: Talk to others to convey information effectively.
• Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Making Decisions and Problem Solving: Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution to solve problems.
• Time Management: Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work: Develop specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish tasks.
• Assisting and Caring for Others: Providing personal assistance, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as participants, caregivers/legal representatives, and coworkers.
• Good physical stamina and an ability to stand most of the day.

Required Knowledge, Experience, or Licensure/Registration

Knowledge:

• Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Administration and Management: Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resources allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Public Safety and Security: Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and Lawndale Christian Health Center and all its affiliations.
• Cultural Sensitivity: Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history origins.
• Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules or composition, and grammar.
• Knowledgeable of the aging process, dementia, chronic illness, developmentally delayed, elderly and frail.

Experience, Licensure/Registration:

• Valid IL drivers license
• A high school diploma or general education diploma (G.E.D.); and, A combination of skills and experience that indicate that the applicant has the ability to perform the supervisory activities; and,
• Certification of completion of Department sponsored CCP training required by Joint Committee on
• Administrative Rules Title 89, Section 240.1535
• Certified Nursing Assistant (C.N.A.)
• CPR and First Aide Certification.
• Clear criminal background checks (fingerprinting)
• State of Illinois (required by law) Certification through Health Care Worker Registry of the Illinois Department of Public Health) that is administered by the State of Illinois.