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by: Deborah S. Hildebrand

Despite the economy, career opportunities in health care and nursing are booming. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as recently as 2006, the health care field was the largest in the U.S., offering approximately 14 million jobs as well as seven of the 20 fastest growing occupations.

The following details how to get a career in this in-demand field.

Certification and On-the-Job Training Options

One interesting fact about the health care field is that many positions require less than a four-year degree, in fact some of the fastest growing health care jobs require little or no specialized education. Careers including nursing and home health aides as well as medical and dental assistants get their training on the job or through a certificate program.

Undergraduate Career Options

Undergraduate degrees offer even more nursing and health care career options. Along with traditional careers such as registered nursing, social work and occupational therapy, there are new trends opening in the field of health care. For instance, RNs who might want to follow a different career could consider becoming a certified legal nurse consultant (CLNC). CLNCs assist attorneys with medical issues. Another new job trend is medical illustration. Medical illustrators use their knowledge of human science and medical concepts to create educational materials for publications and journals and can earn as much $75,000 annually.

Higher Education Career Options

Naturally, higher education offers opportunities for surgeons, psychiatrists, cardiologists and other doctors. However, if medical school isn’t your thing, getting a higher education in the health care field offers a variety of other lucrative positions. Genetics, for instance, is a health care field that offers unique and in-demand jobs. Such jobs include behavioral geneticists, who solve health problems by identifying gene-related therapies, and genetics counseling, which involves informing and supporting families who have members with birth defects or genetic disorders.

Why are there so many people who want to become home health care nurses ? By 2020, the world will need almost one million nurses, as more and more population will be getting old or sick for various reasons. This will make it easier and more desirable to land a job in this field someday. Moreover, the nursing profession is perhaps one of the highest-paid professions these days. A registered nurse, for example, can earn an average of $50,000 annually.

The Difference between Regular Nurses and Home Health Care Nurses

In truth, there’s not a stark difference between home health care nurses and regular ones, except that you can find nurses mainly in hospitals while home health care nurses can mainly be found in hospices, nursing homes, and in patient homes. Normally, their patients are elderly, who may need some assistance from professionals. It’s also one of the reasons too why a travel nurse also specializes in home health care. Rather than allowing the patient to suffer or be inconvenienced by commuting, they offer their services at the comfort of their patient’s home.

How to Become a Home Health Care Nurse

A home health care nurse needs to have the following:

1. The proper degree. You can never be a home health care nurse unless you have a proper educational background, which includes a nursing degree. Almost all universities and colleges all over the world offer some type nursing programs, so it shouldn’t be too hard for you to search for schools.

2. Certification. Home health care nurses need to be certified, or licensed, before they can practice their profession. Certifications can vary widely from state to state and country to country. A certified home health care nurse will want to be sure to be licensed properly to avoid legal issues. Anyone who wishes to become a home health care nurse should be aware of the rules and requirements in the area they wish to practice in beforehand.

3. Experience. Novice home health care nurses can still land a job; however, the more experience you have in this field, the higher your chances of getting better opportunities. While you can earn a sizeable income working for a home health care company, you will have more income potential if you are hired for private home health care nursing.

4. Patient bill of rights. A home health care nurse is required to provide a patient bill of rights to the patient or to the family or a representative of the patient just in case he doesn’t have the capacity to read or understand his rights. This means that nurses should be very knowledgeable in his or her duties and the rights of the patients under his or her care. 

5. Close coordination with doctors. Nurses should have excellent communication and analytical skills so that medical situations can be described properly. Home health care nurses may need to coordinate with other health practitioners and doctors at times when  the ailment is severe, requiring immediate help, or unusual, requiring a specialist.

FIRST-CARE OF NEW YORK Inc. is a New York State Home Care service agency licensed by the New York State Department of Health.  We provide services to: Westchester, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and Staten Island.

We pride ourselves on our ability to provide customized home care services for all of our patients.  Careful attention is given to identify each patient’s needs; thereby providing effective and affordable services to our patients every step of the way.

Our Areas of Service Include:

Nursing Care
Certified Home Health Aides
Certified Personal Care Workers
Homemakers
Live-In Care

First-Care of New York Advantage:

First Care of New York is licensed by the NYS DOH and accredited by the Joint Commission to provide home care services.

We are contracted with various:

Managed Long Term Care Programs
Long Term Home Health Care Programs
Hospice program
Certified Home Health Agency

Serving :- Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queen, Staten Island and Westchester County.

Advantages :-

Depending on the patient’s needs, if they require assistance with activities of daily living, rehabilitation or skill nursing (pre pour medication, wound care, etc…).  First-Care can facilitate and ensure that proper and immediate care is in place.

Physician: Do not have to fill out M11Q’s and submit them to CASA for approval of home care services and wait months before service begins for the patient.  Instead, submit to First Care a referral form and First Care will arrange for services to begin within a week or 2 and deal with the entire process.

If a member switches from a Medicaid HMO program to a Managed Long Term Care Program.  (Takes approximately 4 weeks)

Clinics:

PCP can bill Medicaid their clinic rate, not a deep discounted rate paid by the Medicaid HMO, which is capped.  (a lot more capital for the clinics)

Members

PCP remains the same
Member can receive long term care (FREE)
Member can receive skilled nursing, if applicable  (FREE)
Transportation to MD Appointments (FREE)
As well as many other benefits (FREE)

Based on cost solely a wireless nurse call system, will normally be the cheapest solution for transmitting emergencies in your facility. You will see types of nurse call system in nearly every kind of facility licensed for seniors care as they are required . However, numerous older nurse call systems in equivalence to a wireless nurse call system constitute the thought process of the moment, and are based on criteria that may or may not apply to specific sections or to the example of how resident care is rendered nowadays or in the future.

To add confusion, it is getting common for facilities to own equipment from different makers and vintages of nurse call alerting whether a wired or wireless nurse call system. Given these issues, it’s challenging to handle schemes, not to mention pick a completely new system.

How might assisted living facilities comfortably select a wireless nurse call system that can hold up against the tests and changes of time?

Most can’t realize that the potentialities of advanced wireless nurse call systems go far past the fundamentals of calling a caregiver for assistance, or even easy voice communicating between the resident and the caregiver.

Wireless nurse call systems nowadays are genuinely both information and voice technologies that can and should be incorporated with both the PBX call system your faculty employs, as well as the personal phones in the resident rooms. Therefore, health facilities professionals must consider how these systems can integrate with other data and communicating systems and infrastructure wiring to act in concert and allow a higher level of functionality and capacities.

The wireless nurse call system has germinated importantly in just five years. The wireless nurse call systems of today are the product of technological advances that involved what was once a signal system and added together features to provide selective information in numerous other forms.

A quality wireless nurse call system features classic functions for calling, indicating and transmitting between patients and faculty. Types of component parts include resident alert stations, dome lights, your wireless nurse call master station annunciator and other collateral stations. The primary issue when choosing a wireless nurse call system is to be fully aware that the system must be certified to Underwriters Laboratories listed under U.L. 1069 standards.

The need for experienced technical and medical workers who have the ability to manage both medical and administrative functions is increasing. This need is especially seen with doctors who want to spend more time with their patients. In recent years, medical assistant careers have become more in demand as the health care industry has seen a tremendous increase in job openings in this field. The health care industry is increasingly seeing the value of having trained medical assistants on staff. A Medical Assistant (MA) or Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) provides a number of medical and administrative tasks in the field of medicine. They assist physicians and nurses with delivering patient care.

Duties of a medical assistant can include: explaining treatment, medications, diet schedules, and procedures to the patient, monitoring and recording vital signs, preparing patients for medical exams, assisting physicians during a patient’s medical exam, instructing patients about medications and special diets, preparation and administration of medications, prepare patients for X-rays, take electrocardiograms, perform simple lab tests, disposing of contaminated supplies, sterilization of medical instruments, drawing blood, changing wound dressing, and removing sutures. A medical assistant’s administrative tasks can include: maintaining medical records, billing and clerical duties, scheduling appointments, arranging for admission to the hospital, and maintaining health supplies.

Medical assistants can be found working in hospitals, medical clinics, and in specialized medical areas. Education programs can be either a one year certificate or a two-year associate’s degree from an accredited school. Medical assistant training programs are provided by community colleges and vocational/technical training schools. Study areas include: first aid, medical billing, lab testing, patient care, medical terminology, administration, math, science, and more.

After completing a medical assistance program, one can sign up to take the certification exam to become a Certified Medical Assistance. The course is offered three times per year by the American Association of Medical Assistants. The certification has to be renewed every five years. There are some employers that do not require the certification, but Certified Medical Assistants will normally have more job choices and receive a higher pay than Medical Assistants.

Employment is projected to grow much faster (35 percent) than average which has placed medical assistants as among the fastest growing occupations over the years 2006- 2016. Job opportunities are expected to be extensive, particularly for those with training, experience, and certification.

According to the American Medical Association website, salary ranges for medical assistants range from about ‘$22,000 to just over $30,000 annually.’ Other benefits such as health insurance may also be offered.

As the health care industry expands because of the advancements of technology in medicine as well as the aging of the population, there will be an increased need for health care workers of all areas. The use of medical assistants in the fast growing health care industry will increase.

Medical Assistants have become a highly valued asset in medical clinics and hospitals. Working under the supervision of doctors, nurses, and other health practitioners, medical assistants help make the health care system run much smoother and more efficiently.

Home health care can often be better for seniors that need one on one assistance and care. Skilled and certified nurses operate within most of these businesses to verify high levels of professional service. You and your parents are the absolute decision maker on who you want to use for therapy and nursing services through home health care. While you need to utilize a Medicare certified agency to have Medicare pay for services, you and your parents have the right to use any home health agency that you desire. Home health care services are offered all around the country, which means that there is one close to your loved ones. Elderly home care consists of many services, however, Freedom Home Health offers:

•    Home Health Aides
•    Physical Therapy
•    Occupational Therapy
•    Speech Therapy
•    Nursing

Nursing homes are more about companionship for the elderly. If you are looking to make sure your parents always have a close eye kept on them as well as their health, an assisted living facility is necessary. These services are available in most nursing home facilities:

•    Wellness Program
•    Activities and Entertainment
•    Assisted living
•    Meals   

Take the time to analyze which option will best suit your parents necessities. A free home health assessment can be taken at Freedom Home Health to help you understand the needs of your loved ones.

Do not hesitate to ask questions when searching for local home health care or nursing home services. This is a decision that requires a lot of research to ensure you are making the proper decision for your family member.

Nursing care provides the patients and elders with required level of care. Nowadays, a few agencies are offering home based nursing care which is a great option to take care of patients and elderly people. These agencies employ certified nursing staff expert in providing intensive care to patients suffering from different kinds of diseases. Home based nursing care becomes a necessity for people suffering from permanent disability or diseases like Diabetes, Alzheimer and Parkinson.

Home Based Nursing Care Versus Nursing Home Care

Nowadays two popular options of living are popular for elderly people or patients suffering from certain diseases or permanent physical disability. However, it is better to take experts suggestion about it before finalizing which type of service to choose.

Presence of licensed and certified aides at nursing home care facilities make it ideal place for people suffering from several diseases like Diabetes, Alzheimer and Parkinson. Such people need constant medical care and most often supervision of doctors in critical medical conditions. Choosing home based nursing care option is not ideal in this case.

Home based nursing care is idea for elderly people not suffering from severe diseases but facing difficulties with their daily activities. Such people need assistance from someone else to perform a majority of everyday tasks. A certified home healthcare professional can be the perfect companion for them who will not only provide assistance with everyday tasks, but also take complete care of their diet and medicines.

Nowadays, licensed agencies offering home based healthcare services helps their customers with almost everything. Be it an appointment with doctor, normal morning activities such as bathing and getting dressed, cooking meals and even doing laundry, home healthcare professionals are always there to perform all these activities with much expertize.

Selecting a Nursing Care Plan or Nursing Care Professional

It should always be your decision to choose the type of services you need. Aforementioned suggestions and comparison of services that you need during different situations will help you in making up your mind. It is also advisable to take the opinion of the person (elderly people or the patient who needs the care) about what type of service they want?

Nowadays, a majority of nursing homes are offering nursing care facilities for needy people. Some of them are also offering home based nursing care facilities. So, never leave the decision for the type of care you need over them. They may think about their financial benefits and suggest you nursing home based care.  However, an agency working with a motive to provide service to the society will always provide you right suggestion. So, better consult one such agency for nursing care services.

Different people choose a nursing career for different reasons. Some choose to become a nurse because they have a caring and compassionate nature, others feel that nursing is a very lucrative profession and pays rather handsomely, others consider the fact that nurses are in high demand, while most have their own personal stories that have led them to choose nursing as a profession. Nursing also affords a lot of opportunities such as health benefits, travel opportunities, landau scrubs free shipping, and diverse career options.

High demand

Statistics show that the need for nurses will increase in years to come and that the demand for nurses has become greater than ever before. In the US and the UK, there is a significant shortage of nurses. Some of the reasons for this high demand include the fact that the US is an aging population and the advances in health care have allowed people to live longer. Because of this, there are more elderly people who need nurse assistance and care. The number of sick people is also increasing and the need for skilled nurses is growing proportionally. Besides the hospital, nurses are also needed in retirement communities and homes. In addition, the existing nursing workforce is aging and a lot of these nurses are expected to retire in 10 to 15 years. More nurses are needed to replenish the workforce. A lot of people take up a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing because it almost guarantees a job right out of college.

Economic immunity

A lot of people also consider a career in nursing because of the job security it promises. No matter what type of economic climate, a certified nurse can be assured of a career well into the future because health care is a necessity. Even in times of crisis when people are more stringent with their money, health care is one area where people are less likely to scrimp on, especially if they have health insurance landau scrubs free shipping anyway.

Lucrative income

The average entry-level salary for registered nurses is around $44,600. Compared to the entry-level salaries of other fields such as Accounting ($43,269), Marketing ($33,873), Economics ($24,667), and Teaching ($31,704); Compensation for nurses is very competitive indeed. As registered nurses gain adequate experience throughout the years, their salary also increases. In addition to that, nurses also receive extra pay for overtime work and graveyard shifts, significantly augmenting their base salaries. Later on in their career, after having gained experience, nurses can pursue further studies, go into advanced clinical practice, or get promoted to nursing management or administrative work and earn even more. As an example, nurse administrators receive an average of $45,071, while nurse practitioners average about $71,000 per year. Specializing is even more lucrative such as nurse anesthetists, which earn an average of $113,000. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest 10% of registered nurses earned more than $74,760 per year. For many people, this is a very attractive proposition and can guarantee a bright financial future and a promising career.

Benjamin Franklin said it best – “nothing in life is certain except death and taxes” but with daily advancements in science, technology and health care, Americans are living longer than ever before*. This blessing however, has created a unique dilemma for modern American families: How to plan for and prepare for one’s retirement years.

Have you taken a road-trip lately? Almost every highway is graced with large bill-boards providing the locations of new planned communities where couples can spend their retirement years dedicated to recreational pursuits. I doubt you will find a local newspaper that doesn’t have at least one ad promoting the amenities found at a local assisted living facility. Try to search for “nursing homes in Virginia” on the Internet and thousands of web pages will appear. Each and every day new facilities offering different programs are being built and marketed across the state.

Is such a facility right for you and your family? If so, which facility? We often hear the terms “retirement community,” “nursing home,” and “assisted living facility” but rarely consider what these terms actually mean. The differences however, are striking and it is imperative to understand these differences when making choices for yourself or your loved ones.

NURSING HOMES

In Virginia, a nursing home means any facility with the primary function of providing long-term nursing care, nursing services and health-related services on a continuing basis, for the treatment and inpatient care of two or more non-related individuals**. Put simply, a nursing home is a facility designed for someone who needs less care than a hospital, but requires daily health care assistance.

The Virginia Department of Health licenses such facilities and has established guidelines regulating various aspects of their operations, programs, and staffing needs, etc***. For example, a nursing home must: (a) have written policies and procedures regarding the treatment of residents and the management of resident care which are available to residents and their families (12VAC5-360-20); (b) provide emergency medical services within 15 minutes, under normal conditions (12VAC5-360-50); (c) be subject to unannounced on-site inspections of the nursing facility by State employees (12VAC5-371-60); (d) have a written agreement with one or more physicians licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine to serve as medical director (12VAC5-371-230); and (e) each resident shall be under the care of a physician licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine (12VAC5-371-240).

In addition, residents of nursing homes are also given certain rights as defined by Virginia Code §32.1-138. See http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+32.1-138. Nursing homes are the most regulated and structured residential options for our Seniors requiring some level of daily health care. If the facility provides care through Medicare and Medicaid programs, it is deemed a “Certified nursing facility” (Virginia Code §32.1-123; Virginia Code §32.1-127) and must be in compliance with both federal and state laws.

Of course, the more rules and regulations that define and control the daily operations of a nursing home, the greater the responsibility of the staff. These are the people who will be charged with the daily task of caring for your loved one, and making sure they are in compliance with state and federal laws. No matter how nice and or attractive the facility might be, the staff will make the difference between your loved one being cared for and encouraged, or not.

A nursing home is best suited for someone:

Who requires daily health care – such as assistance getting in and out of bed; taking medicine; or using the restroom.

Who may have dementia or Alzheimer’s and as a result, is unable to eat and or bathe daily without reminder or assistance;

Who is recovering from a fall or accident and is therefore unable to walk, dress and or eat without assistance

ASSISTED LIVING FACILITY

“Assisted living facility” means an adult care residence which has been licensed by the Virginia Department of Social Services to provide a level of service for adults who may have physical or mental impairments and require at least moderate assistance with the activities of daily living. Within assisted living, there are two types: regular assisted living for those seniors (typically) who need assistance with one or more daily activity; and intensive assisted living for someone who may be incapable of performing activities due to mental and/or severe physical impairment (12VAC30-120-450).

The Virginia Department of Social Services licenses assisted living facilities but does not regulate in the way the Department of Health regulates nursing homes. While there are Virginia guidelines regulating aspects of assisted living facilities, they are limited: An assisted living facility must: (a) provide or coordinate personal and health care services; and (b) provide 24-hour supervision.

As reflected in the table below, assisted living facilities have no obligation to provide health care and/or have health care staff available to assist your loved one. In addition, with no obligation to provide such services, there is the question as to whether or not they owe a duty to warn or treat residents with illnesses or diseases that could be transmitted from other residents.

While a nursing home will have many nurses on staff and doctors hired to monitor the residents, assisted living is more analogous to an apartment building or college dorm where laundry and food services are provided and residents are on their own for the rest of the day.

An assisted living Facility is best suited for someone:

Who is basically independent but may not be able or willing to prepare their own food or drive to doctors’ appointments;

Someone who wants to scale back and anticipates needing assistance with laundry, cooking, etc. in the near future.

A couple where one spouse is independent but may need assistance in feeding and or providing for needs of other spouse.

CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

In Virginia you may also see advertisements for a retirement community. They are popping up all around our favorite College Towns and Tourist destinations.

A Continuing Care Retirement Community provides care depending on your current needs. Like an insurance policy, the resident pays an entrance fee and periodic adjustable payments, which in turn gives the resident a package of residential and healthcare services that the CCRC is obligated to provide at the time these residential and health care services are required. For example, if upon entering, all you want is help with your meals, that is the only service which will be provided. If you require intensive physical therapy or God forbid, daily assistance for a Dementia patient, the CCRC has assisted living services or nursing home services available under your contract. Continuing care contracts are regulated by the Virginia Bureau of Insurance of the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

Many CCRCs can have nursing home services available either on-site, or at licensed facilities off-site (12VAC5-360-10). While you may be entering the Retirement Community as a very healthy independent and capable resident, as your needs change, so will your contract with the Community and in turn, the facility’s obligations to you.

A Continuing Care Retirement Community Facility is best suited for someone:

Who is basically independent but anticipates the need for daily health care for themselves or a spouse in the near future;

Someone who is physically disabled and would be unable to care for themselves or a spouse if the disability grew worse.

With at least three very different choices, it is very important to do your research:

To research assisted living facilities in Virginia, go to Department of Social Services website: http://www.dss.state.va.us/facility/search/alf.cgi.

To research nursing homes, go to Medicare’s website: www.medicare.gov.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST

It is always best to speak to a family member of a current resident and spend time getting to know the staff, no matter what type of facility you are looking into. If looking and researching is not enough, then consider the chart below – a comparison of the legal duties of a nursing home compared to the legal duties of an assisted living facility in Virginia.

DUTY or REQUIREMENT

NURSING HOME

ASSISTED LIVING

Duty to provide nursing care and or monitor resident’s health?

YES

NO

Doctor required to supervise residents?

YES

NO

Each resident shall be under the care of a physician licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine?

YES

NO

Must have nurses on staff?

YES

NO

Must offer rehabilitative services?

YES

NO

Must have ongoing consultation from a registered dietitian or dietitian on staff?

YES

NO

24 Hour Supervision required?

YES

YES

Must develop a written plan upon admission of resident?

YES

YES

Staff must undergo criminal background check?

YES

YES

Monitored by Virginia Center for Quality Health Care Services and Consumer Protection

YES

NO

Monitored by Department of Social Services

NO

YES

*Life expectancy increased dramatically during the past century, from 47 years for Americans born in 1900 to 77 years for those born in 2001. These same factors—improved medical care and prevention efforts— that are partly responsible for the dramatic increases in life expectancy have also produced a major shift in the leading causes of death in the United States in the past century, from infectious diseases and acute illnesses to chronic diseases and degenerative illnesses.” The State of Aging and Health in America 2004, published by the Center for Disease Control, available at http://www.cdc.gov/aging/pdf/State_of_Aging_and_Health_in_America_2004.pdf.

**See generally, Virginia Code §32.1-123, as amended and Virginia Administrative Code § 12VAC5-360-10.

***It is a Felony under Virginia law to operate a nursing facility without a license. See generally, 12VAC5-371-30.

Selecting the proper medical care facilities may now be a simpler task, courtesy of a wide variety of services that are available now for the elderly. Some of the assisted living facilities available for retired folk may look like a state or a tiny community of their own. You may also have an in-house care should you want to remain in your own house. Below are some axioms on how it’s possible for you to choose the right one.
First, you will need to help your elderly member of the family into going thru an assessment process. This is an important step to help work out what level of healthcare your loved one may need from the home. If your beloved one is still independent and doesn’t have any repeated or pressing mental or physical problems that may require a more close-knitted care service, then you’ll go together with home care. This permits the one you love to stay in their homes while still getting correct assistance. You are also much safer when you choose to sign up with accredited assisted living facilities. Many people focus on location alone for their selection criteria, but the facility should be visited and investigated to make sure they have all the amenities needed. Today in this world of passionate work style, the elderly, who are medically unfit, also have an opportunity to live a high quality life at their home.
Certain care facilities provide community-based activities such as congregate meal programs, financial support programs and home maker services. This can help boost the output of the aged, and encourage them to contribute to society even at their late age. This service plan is based upon the resident’s individual needs and desires. These individual plans are implemented by a staff of qualified and caring nurses, certified nursing assistants, and aides. .