Home Health Aide Specialist

Hours: 260 / Access Length: 12 Months / Delivery: Open, Mentor Supported
Retail Price: $2,495.00

Course Overview:

A Home Health Aide (HHA) may also be known as a Home Caregiver or Residential Assistant (RA). An HHA provides basic, personal care and health-related services to a variety of individuals (patients) who require more assistance than family and/or friends are able to provide. HHAs are part of a category of occupations that is commonly referred to as "direct care workers." The services/care that a Home Health Aide provides depends upon their specialty area.

If you've ever thought about becoming a home health aide, our in-depth curriculum could help you learn important fundamental, practical skills involved in a career as a home health aide. For each patient, an HHA is responsible for recording services performed, as well as the patient's condition and progress. They also record and report any changes in a patient's condition to the case manager or supervisor and also discuss observations with them.

The types of patients with whom a Home Health Aide may work include:

• the elderly
• physically disabled
• terminally ill
• convalescent persons
• hospice patients
• individuals with long-term illness
• adults with mental disabilities (e.g., Alzheimer's disease)
• children with mental illness

After completing this course, you should be able to:

• Define the skills and qualities of the home health aide
• Comprehend stages of human development
• Identify strategies for infection control and disease prevention
• Define systems of the body and their common diseases
• Identify methods for assisting clients with special needs

Quickly master the basics of medical terminology and begin speaking and writing terms almost immediately! This course omits time-consuming, nonessential information and helps you build a working medical vocabulary of the most frequently encountered suffixes, prefixes, and word roots.

Medical terms are introduced in the context of human anatomy and physiology to help you understand exactly what they mean, and case studies, vignettes, and activities demonstrate how medical terms are used in practice. With all this plus medical animations, word games, and flash cards on the companion website, you'll be amazed at how easily medical terminology becomes part of your vocabulary.

After completing this course, you should be able to:

• Identify and apply basic word structure
• Identify body systems, body cavities, and planes of the body
• Define common prefixes
• Identify diagnostic and procedural suffixes
• Comprehend medical specialists and case reports

Course Outline:

Home Health Aide Module 1
Becoming a Home Health Aide

• Development of Home Health Services
• Types of Home Care Workers
• Long-Term Care Facilities
• Skills and Qualities of the Home Health Aide
• Responsibilities of the Home Health Aide
• Understanding HIPPA
• Ethical Behavior
• Cultural Diversity
• Communication in the Workplace
• Effective Listening Skills
• Reporting & Documenting
• Common Hazards
• Safety Checklist
• Household Management
• Maintaining a Clean Home Environment
• Changing Bed Linens

Home Health Aide Module 2
Stages of Human Development

• Infancy to Adolescence
• Pregnancy & Delivery
• Normal Infant Growth and Development
• Common Childhood Illnesses
• Developmental Disabilities and Learning Disorders
• School-Aged Children
• Adolescence
• Early Adulthood
• Middle Adulthood
• The Aging Population
• Physical Changes Due to the Aging Process
• Pain & Medication 

Home Health Aide Module 3
Preventing the Spread of Infectious Diseases & Understanding Health

• Principles of Infection Control
• Causes of Physical Illnesses
• Infection Control Measures
• Personal Protective Equipment
• Transmission-Based Precautions
• From Wellness to Illness
• Internal Health
• Observing Signs and Symptoms
• Vital Signs
• Dangers of Extreme Body Temperature
• Understanding Emotions
• The Effects of Stress
• Mental Disorders
• Effects of Emotions on Health

Home Health Aide Module 4
Body Systems and Common Disorders - Part 1

• Digestive System
• Common Disorders of the Digestive System
• Nutrition
• Developing Good Eating Habits
• Diet Therapy
• Urinary System
• Common Disorders of the Urinary System
• Common Disorders of the Lower Intestines and Rectum
• Measuring and Recording Fluids
• Integumentary System
• Common Disorders of the Integumentary System
• Client Hygiene
• Personal Care and Grooming
• Musculoskeletal System
• Understanding Arthritis
• Principles of Good Body Mechanics
• Applying a Transfer or Gait Belt
• Turing or Moving a Client
• Transferring a Client from Bed to Wheelchair
• Emotional Aspects of Rehabilitation

Home Health Aide Module 5
Body Systems and Common Disorders - Part 2

• Nervous System
• Disorders of the Nervous System
• Circulatory System
• Disorders of the Heart and Circulatory System
• Applying Elasticized Stockings
• Disorders of the Blood
• Respiratory System
• Major Respiratory Illnesses
• Assisting with Cough and Deep-Breathing Exercises
• Reproductive System
• Common Disorders of the Reproductive System
• Sexually Transmitted Diseases
• Endocrine System
• Hyperthyroidism and Hypothyroidism
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Testing Blood
• Diet, Exercise & Drug Therapy for Diabetes

Home Health Aide Module 6
Clients Requiring Special Care & Employment

• Caring for the Client Who Is Terminally Ill
• Hospice Program
• Advance Directives
• Stages of Grief
• Religious and Cultural Influences
• Caring for the Client with Alzheimer's Disease
• Alzheimer's Disease Behavioral Considerations 
• Alzheimer's Disease Interventions
• Caring for the Client with Cancer
• Cancer Treatments
• Types of Cancer
• Maternal Care
• Discomforts of Pregnancy
• Complications of Pregnancy
• Postpartum Mothers
• Infant Care
• Employment & Job-Seeking Skills
• Contacting Prospective Employers
• The Job Interview

Medical Terminology Module 1
Basic Word Structure

• Word Analysis
• Combining Forms
• Suffixes & Prefixes
• Pronunciation of Terms
• Exercises & Applications 

Medical Terminology Module 2
Organization of the Body

• Body Systems
• Body Cavities
• Divisions of the Back
• Planes of the Body
• Pronunciation of Terms
• Exercises & Applications 

Medical Terminology Module 3
Suffixes

• Introduction to Suffixes
• Suffixes and Terminology
• Diagnostic & Procedural Suffixes
• Pronunciation of Terms
• Exercises & Applications 

Medical Terminology Module 4
Prefixes

• Combining Forms & Prefixes
• Prefixes and Terminology
• Define Common Prefixes
• Pronunciation of Terms
• Exercises & Applications 

Medical Terminology Module 5
Medical Specialists & Case Reports

• Medical Specialists
• Combining Forms & Vocabulary
• Case Reports & Terminology
• Pronunciation of Terms
• Exercises & Applications 

Medical Terminology Module 6
Body Systems – Part 1

• Cardiovascular System
• Digestive System
• Endocrine System
• Reproductive System
• Lymphatic System

Medical Terminology Module 7
Body Systems – Part 2

• Musculoskeletal System
• Nervous System
• Respiratory System
• Skin & Sense Organs
• Urinary System 

All necessary materials are included.

Certifications:

Upon successful completion of our Home Health Aide Course, students may be prepared, in part, to sit for state certification. Each state has its own regulations. Visit the National Association for Home Care and Hospice (NAHC) to view a state requirement list.

System Requirements:

• Cable and DSL internet connections are recommended for the best experience.

• CPU: 1 GHz or higher
• RAM: 2 GB or higher
• Resolution: 1280 x 720 or higher
• Speakers / Headphones
• Microphone (Webinar / Live Online sessions)

• Microsoft Windows 7 or 10 (Home, Pro)
• Mac OSX 10 or higher.
• Latest Chrome OS
• Latest Linux Distributions

NOTE: While we understand that our courses can be viewed on Android and iPhone devices, we do not recommend the use of these devices for our courses. The size of these devices do not provide a good learning environment for students taking online or live online based courses.

• Latest Google Chrome is recommended for the best experience.
• Latest Mozilla FireFox
• Latest Microsoft Edge
• Latest Apple Safari

• Office suite software (Microsoft Office, OpenOffice, or LibreOffice)
• PDF reader program (Adobe Reader, FoxIt)
• Courses may require other software that is denoted in the above course outline.