Home Health Aide

Applicants must satisfy the Institute's published admission requirements before enrollment and must be able to participate safely in supervised skills training.

• Be at least 18 years of age and provide an acceptable government-issued photo identification document.
• Provide the education, enrollment, and health documentation required by the Institute.
• Provide documentation of a TB or PPD screening completed within the preceding 12 months unless a different written health requirement applies.
• Demonstrate reading, writing, communication, and basic math skills sufficient for aide training and documentation.
• Meet the physical and functional expectations of the skills laboratory, with reasonable accommodation when appropriate.
• Complete required acknowledgments, confidentiality forms, releases, emergency information, and other enrollment documents before participating in practical training.

All 80 hours are scheduled, instructor-led, and documented. Classroom hours are verified through daily attendance records and active participation. Practical hours are verified by the supervising instructor during in-person laboratory activities. Assignment completion does not substitute for missed clock hours. At least 16 classroom hours must be completed before any supervised practical training begins.

The standard program load is 20 clock hours per week. The Institute will issue a cohort calendar identifying the specific meeting days and times. Schedule changes may be made for holidays, closures, or instructional needs only when required hours, sequencing, supervision, and learning outcomes are preserved. No portion of the 80 hours is designated as self-paced study.

• Communication skills, including reading, writing, verbal reporting, respectful interaction, and communication with patients, representatives, caregivers, and agency staff
• Observation, reporting, and documentation of patient status and care or services furnished
• Reading and recording temperature, pulse, and respiration
• Basic infection prevention and control, hand hygiene, standard precautions, and use of personal protective equipment
• Basic body functions and changes that must be reported to the supervisor
• Maintaining a clean, safe, and healthy environment, including fall, fire, electrical, food, and equipment safety
• Recognizing emergencies and initiating the appropriate emergency response within the aide's role
• Physical, emotional, developmental, cultural, and social needs of individuals served, including dignity, privacy, property, choice, and independence
• Personal hygiene and grooming, including bed bath, sponge bath, tub and shower assistance, shampooing, nail and skin care, oral hygiene, toileting, and elimination
• Safe transfer, ambulation, positioning, normal range of motion, body mechanics, nutrition, fluid intake, and recognition of changes in skin condition
• Care-plan compliance, scope limitations, medication reminders or assistance within applicable rules, and immediate reporting of unsafe or prohibited requests
• Dementia-informed care, abuse and neglect recognition and reporting, boundaries, ethics, confidentiality, and professional conduct

Instruction includes lectures, guided discussion, audiovisual demonstration, case scenarios, care-plan exercises, documentation practice, instructor modeling, skills laboratory practice, return demonstration, oral questioning, written testing, and remediation. Skills are introduced only after the student receives the prerequisite classroom instruction.

• Institute-approved textbook, workbook, handouts, care plans, documentation forms, and competency checklist
• Hospital bed or adjustable training bed, linens, pillows, over-bed table, wheelchair, gait belt, walker, cane, transfer aids, and positioning supports
• Bath basin, towels, washcloths, grooming and oral-care supplies, bedpan, urinal, commode, incontinence-care supplies, and approved resident or patient care mannequin
• Thermometer, watch or timer, blood pressure equipment for demonstration where included, and supplies for measuring and documenting vital signs
• Gloves, gowns, masks, eye protection, hand-hygiene supplies, cleaning supplies, waste containers, and other infection-control equipment
• Nutrition and hydration demonstration items, adaptive utensils, measuring containers, and feeding-assistance supplies
• First-aid and emergency demonstration equipment and access to a telephone or simulated emergency communication device

Practical training occurs in an in-person practicum laboratory or other approved setting where the student demonstrates knowledge while providing simulated or authorized services to an individual or pseudo-patient. Classroom and practical training will be performed by a registered nurse or by other qualified individuals under the registered nurse's general supervision. The final competency evaluation will be performed by a registered nurse in consultation with other skilled professionals as appropriate.

A student is not competent in a task rated unsatisfactory and may not perform that task independently. The student must receive documented retraining and successfully complete a subsequent evaluation. A student with an unsatisfactory rating in more than one required evaluation area has not passed the competency evaluation and must complete remediation and reevaluation before program completion can be recorded.

To complete the program, the student must attend and document all 80 clock hours, earn a final grade of at least 75 percent, pass the written final examination, receive a satisfactory rating for every required competency, comply with safety and conduct standards, resolve all remediation, satisfy financial and administrative obligations, and submit every required document.

Students must attend every scheduled classroom and practical session, arrive on time, participate actively, and remain for the full instructional period. Missed clock hours and practical competencies must be completed through an instructor-approved make-up session. Written work alone does not replace required classroom or supervised practical hours.

• Notify the instructor or designated Institute representative as soon as possible when an absence or late arrival is unavoidable.
• Complete approved make-up hours and missed skills by the assigned deadline and before the certificate is issued.
• Understand that repeated absence, lateness, early departure, or failure to complete make-up work may result in warning, probation, or dismissal under Institute policy.

Students must follow instructor directions, use required personal protective equipment, perform hand hygiene, use equipment only as trained, and immediately report injury, exposure, unsafe conditions, or equipment damage. The instructor may stop any activity that creates a safety risk. Incident and exposure records will be completed and retained according to Institute procedure.

Students must protect privacy and confidentiality, preserve dignity and property, obtain permission before beginning a task, respect individual choices, communicate without harassment or discrimination, and maintain professional boundaries. Photography, audio recording, video recording, or disclosure of personal or health information is prohibited unless the Institute has provided specific written authorization and all required consents are in place.

The Institute provides equal access and considers reasonable accommodation requests under its nondiscrimination and accommodation procedures. Accommodations do not waive essential learning outcomes, required clock hours, safety requirements, or competency standards.

Classroom and supervised practical training will be conducted by a registered nurse with at least two years of nursing experience, including at least one year of home health care experience, or by other qualified individuals under the general supervision of that registered nurse. The registered nurse performs or directs competency evaluation as required. The Institute maintains resumes, licenses, experience verification, and qualification records for assigned instructors.

The President and Chief Executive Officer has overall responsibility for Institute operations and confirmation of faculty qualifications. The designated registered nurse instructor is responsible for curriculum delivery, safety, attendance, assessment, competency verification, remediation, and completion documentation. Qualified adjunct instructors may be assigned within their verified education, experience, and supervision limits.

A student who satisfies every completion requirement will receive the Solution Allied Healthcare Institute Home Health Aide Training Program Certificate of Completion. The certificate documents completion of the Institute's approved training program. It does not independently constitute a nursing license, certified nursing assistant credential, guarantee of placement on a registry, or authorization to perform duties prohibited by law or an employer's policy.

Employment eligibility may depend on the type of agency, payer, assigned duties, background and health screening, competency evaluation, registry status, employer orientation, and other state or federal requirements. Students and employers are responsible for confirming the requirements that apply to a particular position.

The Institute does not provide job placement assistance or financial aid. Program completion does not guarantee employment, wages, work assignments, or acceptance by a specific employer. Students must complete all classroom and supervised practical components before receiving a certificate.

This syllabus is used with the current Student Handbook, enrollment agreement, attendance and leave policies, refund policy, code of conduct, complaint and grievance procedure, anti-harassment policy, nondiscrimination and accommodation policy, confidentiality and privacy policy, incident and exposure procedure, student acknowledgment and consent forms, and applicable liability and release forms. The Institute retains enrollment, attendance, assessment, competency, remediation, incident, and completion records according to its record-retention procedure.