Home Based Personal Care Assistant

Occupational Certificate: Home Based Care Personal Assistant – NQF Level 02

ID Code: 104779

Credits: 68

Training Duration: 6 months

Home Based Care Assistants provide basic physical and emotional support to patients and their families/household members within a home-based care environment. They work under the direct supervision of a professional supervisor.

A qualified learner will be able to:

• Assess, plan and provide holistic (physical, spiritual, emotional and social) care and support for patients and household members.
• Capacitate patient and household/family members as participants in the patient care team.

This qualification will equip learners with the necessary skills and competence to operate as Home-Based Carer Assistant. The benefits of Home Based Care (HBC) to the patient, to the family, to the community and to the broader health care system are well documented. Evidence from many countries suggests that home and community-based health services are critical to good health outcomes.

Home Based Care is defined as the provisioning of health services by formal and informal care givers in the patient’s home to promote, restore and maintain a person’s maximum level of comfort, function and health, including care, towards a dignified death.

The national Department of Health Guidelines on Home-Based Care and Community-Based Carer suggests that HBC addresses several problems within the health care system including: shortage of hospital beds; inadequate number of medical, nursing and allied health professionals; lack of resources; overcrowded hospitals and overburdened staff which can result in an environment that is unsuitable for managing patients with terminal diseases and increase costs of institutional care.

COURSE OUTLINE

This qualification is made up of the following compulsory Knowledge, Practical Skills and Work Experience Modules:

         Knowledge Modules:

• 532904-001-00-00-KM-01, Fundamentals of Home Based Care, Level 2, 8 Credits.
  Total number of credits for Knowledge Modules: 8.Practical Skill Modules:
• 532904-001-00-00-PM-02, Identify and report on possible needs of patients and family/household members on an ongoing basis; Level 2, 5 Credits.
• 532904-001-00-00-PM-03, Implement delegated components of the care plan (Household and patient); Level 2, 20 Credits.
• 532904-001-00-00-PM-05, Capacitate patients/family/household members in basic practical care skills; Level 2, 5 Credits.
  Total number of credits for Practical Skill Modules: 30.Work Experience Modules:
• 532904-001-00-00-WM-02, Exposure to the processes of monitoring the implementation of the home-based care plans; Level 2, 24 Credits.
• 532904-001-00-00-WM-03, Exposure to the processes of ensuring the active participation of patients and households in the management of care at home; Level 3, 2 Credits.
• 532904-001-00-00-WM-04, Exposure to the processes of capacitating patients/family/household members in basic practical care skills; Level 2, 2 Credits.
• 532904-001-00-00-WM-05, Exposure to the referral processes; Level 3, 2 Credits.
• Total number of credits for Work Experience Modules: 30.