4 Quickly Growing Trends in the Home Health Aide Field
As the general population ages, there becomes more need to assist with medical illnesses and chronic conditions that can be debilitating in someone’s life. Hospitals can certainly feel overwhelmed with the number of patients they need to treat during their rounds and outpatient health facilities often have a waitlist for entry when a bed becomes available. These challenges can pose problems when someone needs astute care and there is no family or relatives to support them around the clock.
Why People Choose a Home Health Aide Program
Most individuals who go down the home health aide route are seeking a variety of expectations. First, they can have flexibility when an aide or nurse comes to their home. Depending on the severity of the illness(es), they may not need someone there twenty-four seven. Perhaps a morning or evening aide is sufficient to help them get going for the day or monitor their progress and assist with night time routines.
There is also a sense of manageability for the patient. Some tasks can be harder to accomplish independently and having an aide there to assist can ensure safety and success of the task at hand. Whether the individual is over 65 or under 65, there is a comfort in knowing they can still live in their home and go about their daily routine with as much normalcy as possible while having the comfort of someone there to help if the need should arise.
Despite being in the comfort of one’s own home, if family or friends are unable to visit frequently, loneliness can become a familiar companion. Unlike outpatient facilities, there are less people around to interact with. Having a home health aide who is scheduled to be with someone for a certain amount of time each day ensures a measure of social interaction that might not be there otherwise.
The Trends in the Industry
As patients continue to see the success and draw to utilizing a home health aide program, the industry continues to see rising trends that are important to monitor.
Most people who use these programs are over the age of eighty five. This statistic was calculated in a chartbook survey conducted in 2020. At this age, it can become harder to live independently. However, most people still want to feel capable of living their life like they used to and don’t want to leave their home and find care in another facility. Because of the age demographic of people seeking HHA’s, it is important for employees or those pursuing this career field, to recognize the general bracket of people they will be serving on a daily basis, with the vast majority being geriatrics.
Because there is a draw to the comfort of one’s own home, hospitals in particular have been seeking ways to compete with home health aide programs. This trend is showing hospitals seeking ways to institute their own type of at home care. Whether a doctor or nurse meets with the patient or brings specific medical equipment, it is important to recognize the way the medical field is acting upon the need for medical care while meeting patients where they’re at.
Furthermore, staying in a hospital or outpatient facility can be expensive. The knowledge of the cost associated with this service is also driving competition, considering that a majority of individuals who take advantage of HHA’s are from the lower income level.
Telehealth is also growing at an increasing rate and provides people at home the ability to communicate with a home health aide even if they can’t get to their house immediately. Using this service means expert medical care can be provided even if an individual is not near a traditional red button pager. Telehealth also allows medical appointments, evaluations, and diagnoses without the high exposure to illnesses.
This feature allows those who are over eighty five to take comfort in knowing they can receive medical assistance without interacting with a significant amount of people that could increase their risk of contracting a disease. It will be imperative to keep an eye on this specific trend as technology continues to advance and the landscape for meeting patients’ needs continue to evolve.
The home health aide career was expected to grow 70% from 2013 to 2020. With a pandemic in 2020, this field has definitely seen significant growth. The outlook is projected to continue rising and the recent trends show this market as being able to mold to the current times while meeting the needs of a variety of patients.
Looking to Start Your Career as a Home Health Aide?
Blackstone’s online Home Health Aide training program offers the quality education needed to secure a rewarding job in this growing healthcare field. Learn how to become a home health aide and concentrate on assisting the elderly, the disabled, and other patients recovering from illness and injuries by maintaining their quality of life and making them feel safe in their homes. Across the nation, thousands of people require home health aides in a variety of work fields such as home health organizations, rehabilitation centers, and home care placement services.
Written by Laura Conaway
Laura Conaway is a middle school teacher-librarian and author who writes for a variety of publications in the educational sector and mainstream narrative writing field. She graduated with a Library Science B.S.Ed. and a Professional Writing minor from Kutztown University and enjoys learning new knowledge and staying current on educational best practices. When she’s not writing, she enjoys adventuring outdoors, serving in the community, and playing her violin and guitar.
