Don't Be Fooled By Caregiver Nomenclature, Designations and Titles
Sometimes having a bunch of different names to describe something or someone can be a good thing, and sometimes it can’t. The same is true of job titles. In our case, we are talking about caregivers and caregiver titles and designations. Unfortunately, over the past few decades, there have been a number of ‘new’ titles to describe caregivers. Again, sometimes this can be a good thing but sometimes organizations use and abuse this fact to promote courses and programs that are only different in title, not the actual job that the caregiver will be doing. Let’s clarify this just a bit.
What you will see is companies selling you a course entitled “Senior Caregiver.” At the same time, you will see the same organizations selling what appears to be a different course because the ‘title’ of the course is different, (i.e., Personal Care Assistant). What does this mean for the organization? Simply put, the business is able to sell two different courses for the same job, and thereby generate more revenue for their organization with the consumer left unaware of this ruse.
Let’s be straight here. A Senior Caregiver takes care of seniors. A Personal Care Assistant take care of seniors. They are only different in name, not the job that they are actually doing. As we have said before, there are many titles that can be used to describe a caregiver or a course, but the word ‘caregiver’ is the master keyword. The logic that follows is this:
A Senior Caregiver gives care, therefore they are a caregiver
A Home Health Aide gives care, therefore, they are a caregiver.
A Personal Care Assistant gives care, therefore they are a caregiver
..and so on.
Each of the above caregivers , regardless of working under a different title perform the same job , with little exception. And, such exceptions will generally take the form of meeting the needs of the individual client, resident or family member. In other words, you may call yourself a “Senior Caregiver” and assist your family member to the restroom, but this is not different fro someone who calls themselves a “Direct Care Worker” and does the same thing.
What we want to impress upon you here is that as a consumer looking to acquire caregiver certification it is vitally important to be aware of the various names, titles, designations and nomenclature to describe caregivers. A different title slapped on a course doesn’t means it’s a different job. You can look at nearly any job site and see where this holds true. So, don’t be fooled by different titles for what amounts to performing the same job.
The same is true of the organization that is certifying you. Now, most caregivers across the country are aware that the American Caregiver Association is the Official certifying body at the national level in the United States. As such, the ACA sets the standards for caregiver certification at the national level. There is no other designated organization that provides you with National Caregiver Certification that is genuine. Any such organization would need to be approved by the ACA as an affiliate of the American Caregiver Association, given authority to certify individuals under the ACA name.
So, like course titles, names, and designations for caregivers, buyer be ware of any organization imitating or assuming the role of the American Caregiver Association, our offering ‘similar’ courses. One final thing that you should know as a consumer looking to obtain caregiver certification concerns the National Caregiver Registry (NCR). There is only one Official national registry for caregivers, and it’s the NCR, operated and maintained by the American Caregiver Association.
Do you know a little something about the topics discussed in this article? Don’t hesitate to share your thoughts with us. We value your feedback and look forward to your input. Need caregiver certification? Click Here