American Caregiver Association Streamlined Caregiver Certification Process

For decades, the American Caregiver Association has been recognized as the national certifying body for caregivers. Today, the ACA continues to be the leader and standard in the industry, offering a streamlined certification process that allows students to complete their caregiver certification in as little as a few days. Why does the ACA do this? Well, there are a few simple reasons why certification is possible in just a few days.

First, we want to point out that there are a number of different types of ‘certifications’ that can be acquired in as little as a few days in an equal number of fields. This said, efficiency in training through online formats is at an all-time high, and caregiver certification is no different in this regard. When we look at trends what we see is that more and more colleges and universities, both private and public, are expanding opportunities for students to obtain a degree or certificate in a condensed format, and the ACA approach parallels this ongoing trend that doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon.

As we look closer at the ACA, what we see is that the vast majority of caregivers who are seeking certification with the American Caregiver Association already possess years of hands-on or clinical experience (in both private duty and facility settings), but simply lack certification to lend credibility to their hands on experience. And, because these caregivers already have hands on experience the opportunity to acquire certification within a few days provides these caregivers with the flexibility they need in a certification program without having to jump through a slue of additional ‘hoops.’

Second, many caregivers seeking caregiver certification with the American Caregiver Association need to fulfill a long-term care insurance requirement, and are given a specific window of time to acquire certification. Long-term care insurance, like “CalPERS” in the state of California requires that those seeking to be compensated for taking care of a family member, finish a caregiver certification course within a specified amount of time. For these individuals, acquiring certification essentially amounts to a formality. Here again, the streamlined certification process becomes invaluable in terms of meeting long-term care insurance requirements.

Third, more and more caregivers are moving out of facility venues and are looking to start their own private duty caregivers service companies like Visiting Angels or Bayada. The vast majority of these caregivers already possess several years of experience in the caregiver field and want to move onto a new challenge, expand their opportunities in the industry, and provide valuable in-home care services to our seniors that are much needed. The American Caregiver Association supports caregivers who take on the challenge of providing such services for two primary reasons.

First, as a private duty caregiver you’re in a position to help seniors remain independent in their own homes where they are most comfortable. It also means personalization, meaning that the caregiver can tailor their services to the unique needs of the client. Secondly, it allows private duty caregivers to determine the services that they want to provide, and the time allotted for each service. This means that if the caregiver wants to stay a few minutes longer at the home of a client she can do that because she is in control of her own schedule.

Years ago, the American Caregiver Association recognized the need to streamline the caregiver certification process without sacrificing the quality of the course. The ACA will continue to lead the way as America’s national accrediting body in our effort to facilitate the needs of our caregivers, so that they are able to get certified, and get to work helping our seniors.