Becoming a professional caregiver is commonly regarded as an unconventional career path since it is not widely known. Even though we often take care of the people around us, we don’t usually consider it a job or expect to be paid for it.
However, if you could use those valuable caregiving skills to make a difference in the lives of seniors, while getting paid for your efforts, would you?
If you are passionate about making an impact in the community, read on to learn more about how you can become a professional caregiver in Singapore—even with zero caregiving experience!
Do note that this article will be discussing the process of becoming a non-medical professional caregiver in Singapore. If you are a nurse with a valid SNB certificate, you should be finding out how you can become a freelance or part-time nurse with Homage instead.
What is a professional caregiver?
A professional caregiver is an individual who is trained and equipped with the proper caregiving skills, knowledge and experience to deliver quality care and assist others so they can live as independently as possible.
While professional caregivers are skilled in caregiving duties, they may not necessarily be medically-trained. Non-medical caregivers are therefore not qualified to diagnose, prescribe medication, or perform nursing or medical procedures. The bulk of their job scope will involve support with activities of daily living (ADLs) such as feeding and bathing. This is an important role as caregivers are on the frontline and can make a huge, direct impact on the lives of those receiving care.
What experience or certifications do you need to be a professional caregiver?
To become a professional caregiver, you will need to have the basic caregiving skills nailed down.
There are several caregiver training courses available in Singapore that will equip you with the skills and knowledge required to deliver care to different individuals. General elder care courses will typically cover topics such as personal hygiene, movement and transfer, fall prevention strategies, medication management, nutrition and hydration, infection control, vital signs monitoring, and caregiver stress management.
Specialised courses are also available to guide caregivers on the best way to care for individuals with specific conditions or care needs, such as dementia, autism, cerebral palsy, and diabetes. These courses provide a holistic understanding of the condition and introduces tried-and-tested approaches to deliver effective care to the care recipient, which is immensely helpful for professional caregivers who are caring for seniors with such conditions on a regular basis. Read this heartwarming story to learn how Christina, a professional caregiver at Homage, benefitted from the dementia caregiving training at Alzheimer’s Disease Association and effectively translated the knowledge she learnt into action when caring for Mdm Ganesiah.
Besides caregiving training, it helps to be competent in first aid and to be certified in CPR+AED so that you will be well-equipped and confident in handling emergencies should they arise.
While prior caregiving experience may be useful, it is not a hard requirement. Everybody starts somewhere. As long as you have the passion and dedication to care for others, you can be a professional caregiver too!
Become a Homage Caregiver today!
Apply here and our friendly advisors will be in touch with you shortly.
What are the benefits of being a professional caregiver?
A professional caregiver is a highly fulfilling job. Being on the frontline means that you are making a direct impact on the lives of others, and you get to see the fruits of your labour too—be it in the form of improvements in health or simply a bright smile greeting you at the door.
Caregiving often puts your creativity to the test. Each individual responds differently to different care approaches, so you will have to tailor your caregiving approach for each unique care recipient. This often means you will have to think and react on the spot and use your creativity to come up with an approach that works best in the given situation.
Through this job, you’ll also meet people from all walks of life. This gives you an avenue to hone your interpersonal skills and develop greater empathy for others. In fact, engaging in conversation with seniors doesn’t only benefit them. More often than not, professional caregivers—or anyone for that matter—leave the interaction with nuggets of wisdom picked up through the life stories of these seniors!
At Homage, you will be able to enjoy the added benefits of flexible work hours, subsidised training, insurance coverage, attractive earnings, and exposure to caregiving across a variety of settings including day care centres, nursing homes and hospitals. If you are interested in delivering care in the community, become a Homage Caregiver today.
What kind of services can you expect to deliver as a professional caregiver?
A professional caregiver’s primary role is to help others live with independence and dignity. However, there are also secondary responsibilities such as providing emotional support and lending a listening ear to families.
Here are some of the services you can expect to deliver as a professional caregiver:
Personal care
Often, the main role of a professional caregiver is to provide support for ADLs such as feeding, bathing, toileting, and transferring.
Companionship
Cognitive stimulation is an essential aspect of the holistic wellbeing of any individual, so a professional caregiver is expected to engage in conversations to befriend the individual receiving care and make them feel at ease.
Medical escort
Professional caregivers are expected to accompany individuals to and fro medical appointments and accurately relay the doctor’s advice and collect medication. This ensures that individuals who need medical attention follow through with their appointments, even when the family caregiver is too busy to accompany them.
Medication reminder
While non-medical caregivers are not qualified to prescribe or administer medication, they play an important role in reminding and ensuring the individual takes the right dosage of medication at the correct time and frequency.
Groceries and meal preparation
A caregiver’s role may also involve buying groceries and preparing meals for the senior to ensure proper nutritional intake.
Check-in visits
When family caregivers are too busy to drop by to visit their loved one, professional caregivers step in to conduct a check-in visit to ensure that everything is well with the senior, and then update the family accordingly.
Exercises
Caregivers may need to plan senior-friendly exercises to help them improve and/or maintain strength, balance and mobility, which is essential for overall health and preventing falls.
Recreational activities
Holistic health involves mental stimulation as well. Planning recreation activities like puzzles and painting can help to engage seniors cognitively and boost their mood.
Night care
Professional caregivers may have to work shifts and assist with toileting and other care needs at night, prevent wandering, and reduce fall risk.
Support for families
Professional caregivers often work closely not only with the senior, but entire families. Part of being a professional caregiver is to provide care tips to family members, and comfort them as they share their journey with someone who understands how tough caregiving can get. It may seem trivial, but this support can be crucial in alleviating caregiver stress and preventing burnout.
As you can see, caregiving duties go beyond physical, but also involves cognitive engagement and emotional support to ensure the holistic wellbeing of the senior and their family.
8 steps to be a professional caregiver with Homage
Inspired to become a professional caregiver? Get ready to make an impact with Homage in 8 simple steps.
1. Step One: Submit your application
Fill up this form and let us know more about you and your availability. It only takes one minute!
Should you experience an error when sending in your application, reach out to us at [email protected]. Do include your full name and contact number in the email so we can get back to you promptly.
2. Step Two: Schedule an interview day
After choosing an interview slot, you should receive a confirmation email and message immediately.
In the confirmation email, there will be a quick 3-step process you must complete:
- Step 2a: Complete the Health Declaration Form
- Step 2b: Complete the Application Form
- Step 2c: Watch an Introductory Video of Homage
You can complete these 3 steps anytime before your interview.
If you are unable to attend the scheduled interview due to unforeseen circumstances, click on the link in your confirmation email or SMS to reschedule your interview slot. For additional assistance, please email [email protected].
3. Step Three: Phone interview with the Homage team
At the time and day of your interview, you will receive a call from the Homage Care Pro Operations team. This phone interview is conducted to better understand your motivation and experiences, and to assess your suitability as a professional caregiver with Homage.
The phone interview will last approximately 30 minutes.
4. Step Four: Submit documents
After the interview, you will be asked to submit a couple of documents. More details on what documents to submit will be conveyed to you.
5. Step Five: Trainings and certifications
All Homage caregivers are required to have a valid CPR/AED or BCLS/AED certification and receive AIC-certified caregiver training. If you do not meet the above-stated requirements, fret not! Our Operations team will advise you on the CPR and caregiver training sessions that you can attend.
6. Step Six: Submit certifications
After completing the caregiver training and CPR course, please submit a copy of the certification to the Homage team.
7. Step Seven: Online onboarding
Once the team has approved all documents, you will receive an online onboarding email. The onboarding process will equip you with essential home care skills and introduce how our Homage Care Pro mobile app works. This is essential since you will be browsing and booking caregiving slots via the Homage Care Pro app.
8. Step Eight: Approval
Upon completion of the online onboarding process, you will be considered a full-fledged Homage Care Pro equipped with the skills, knowledge and qualifications to deliver quality care to seniors and families in our community.
Congratulations—you can now book your first care visit!
How much can you earn as a professional caregiver?
As a non-medical professional caregiver with Homage, you can expect to earn up to $19 per hour. Rates differ depending on the time of day (day or night), and whether the visit is on a weekday, weekend, or public holiday. You can also stand to receive incentives of up to $20 per visit, which allows you to earn more as you deliver more care.
Some of our Care Professionals earn over $4,000 every month!
Ready to make an impact with us? Apply now and become a Homage Care Pro today!
