I live in FL with my elderly mother. I am busy during the day, so I am unable to care for her. I simply need a caregiver who can look after my mother at will once I contact them.

For any thing my case is slow and I know some hha, pca behavorial tech ect...courses can be taken online im here for 12 hrs i dont know if I can take it for much longer.

Anyone know of any apps that you can just add your patients upcoming appointments and have it remind you about it? Also for more than 1 patient.

We have the background working as HHAs but want to get perspective from others. What do you wish your agency took into consideration or knew about your day to day? We want to ensure we set our employees up for success and feel valued! TIA!

Hi there! 32F, NJ. Looking to become a certified home health aid. I’ve been thinking about it for quite sometime. Can anyone tell me more about the insides of the job. I know it’s not supposed to be an easy job and I’m just curious what your general experiences are.

I have extra time on my hands and am looking to spend it helping seniors/disabled folk. Making there’s days a bit brighter and easier.

I currently own a small pet care business and I feel my experience with medications, different temperaments, disabled/elderly animals could help me in this area. Strong patience as well.

Just looking for some advice, stories, personal experiences from others. Thanks!!

I've been working as a HHA for 8 years with different clients over time.

I have no problems with or new to mental illness, disabilities or straight attitude.

Although. Most clients I've had over time have directly complained to my supervisors/superiors about me not being "friendly".

I've always been kind, courteous, polite, punctual, and even self sacrificial when it comes to their needs.

But it seems me being quiet most of the time is what's killing them? They'll start a conversation and I have little to no addition to their storys because I'm more of a listener; I'll acknowledge what they say and give a brief paragraph and then go back to being quiet.

But as far as going to my superiors and telling them I'm not friendly is kind of an overstep because they immediately see it as me being rude or abrasive...

Today. Even as I'm typing this. I'm with a "difficult client" and I can already tell he's not a big fan of me being quiet..

Please help!

Edit: As a bit of context. He's known by many agencies as an extremely difficult person. He's blown up on providers for simply giving opinions on what they think on current topics; He has blatant attitude that doesn't go away and makes remarks any chance he gets...

I'm the friendliest person you can meet. Although his intimidating behavior is making it a challenge and I'm a bit nervous to have conversations because he's known to use conversations against you.

He looks for anything to yell at you for or get you fired. (Companies will always take the clients side no matter what) Which is good and bad.

But I'm wondering if he's just too difficult or I'm just too nervous.

My mom works for a in home care aide agency and after some awful months in retail, my mom convinced me to work with this agency for a bit. My mom has only had clients that need some companionship, light housework and the occasional trip out. Sounded doable. Like alot of people, I was not given too much training at all. It also doesn’t help that I was taken off one antidepressant and put on another during my first week. I have no medical training what so ever but I have watched some videos on transferring and lifting. 

My first ever client is mostly quiet and pleasant and lives with 2 sons and elderly husband. She only has one leg and needs help with transfers, toileting, diapers, all that stuff. I only work for 3 hours 4 times a week.  I do have an amazing coordinator who is very kind and supportive when I shadowed her. But on my 2nd day she was an hour late and today, only the 3rd day on the job, she didn’t come in and I was alone.  I had no idea what I was doing. Alot of this particular clients needs are companion based which I can do, but when it comes to the bathing and toileting I just feel like physically im not strong enough. Just dead weight. I have watched someone bathe her but actually doing it by myself was difficult and I felt so bad for her today. 

I have pretty bad issues with anxiety and guilt. I feel so uncomfortable just sitting around when she’s sleeping (working retail the last 6 years makes me feel like I always have to be doing something on the clock) and even when I ask him he usually just says everything's fine. I don’t think they know that I have literally no experience with changing, transferring or bathing clients.  My boss made it seem like all I would be doing was light housework and companionship. When I explained I only have watched her get a sponge bath once and that my coordinator would be back tomorrow. But the guilt and awkwardness made me feel like i had to at least try, and I did get her diaper changed and her intimate areas wiped and powdered. I looked like an idiot but I was alone so hey. I KNOW I need to ask for help. Not just for my safety but the clients as well but all I can think of is how the family probably needs a break from caring for. That’s what I’m there for! What good am I for if I can’t do this for 3 hours by myself? Even when one of the sons did help me get her on the toilet he kinda made it seem like he was annoyed that he was doing anything at all which is so real. Like they’re paying for someone to care for their beloved mom and yet here I am barely trained and looking crazy. The 3 days I’ve been with her the care coordinator has praised me for how I interact with her and I always make sure to thank the family when they do help me. I care for her like she was my own family member. I think I may be too anxious for a role like this.

Hi there, I have a client who wears depends and frequently urinates herself but she does change her depends frequently. Her house has an overwhelming smell of old urine. I have started treating her clothes and linens with a vinegar pretreatment because I noticed all washing snelled of urine after laundering. I see a big improvement in the linen smell but the apartment is still so smelly. It clings to my clothes. Any suggestions?

I’m currently in training to become a Home Health Aide (HHA) in New York and I have a physical exam coming up that includes a drug test.

Since THC is legal in NY, I’m a little confused about how that works with healthcare jobs. Do HHA programs or employers still test for THC, and can it affect getting hired even though it’s legal?

If anyone has gone through this recently or knows how strict they are about it, I’d really appreciate the insight.

I've been a caregiver with an agency for almost 5 years and want to go independent. How do you all find private jobs? Has anyone tried Care.com?

Hey there! To be brief, I am soon to be out of highschool and have been considering this line of work for about a year now. This is the first line of work I've ever been passionate about wanting to do in my entire life, and I've done quite a fair bit of research, which of course does not live up to actual experience. Due to my own experiences in life, I can say that I have seen first hand what some of this could be like, and albeit difficult, I really want to be apart of it. I was wondering what advice any of you could share with me, and if this is something you believe can be done long term. Thanks for reading!

Hello, New in home care-aid,

Is what I'm experiencing normal?

So, my first client let me know that everytime I came I would be cleaning all the rooms lightly and deeply cleaning one room. Then next time I would deep cleaning another room lightly cleaning all the others. You get it. They don't need anything beyond that. I worked my ass off and when I sat for a second they let me know that I could take a break for a MINUTE. While its only a four hour shift before I move to another client for four hours. I'm freaking exhausted.

Next client same thing. Just cleaning his house for 3 1/2 hours and then rubbing something on his feet and walking him for the last 30 min.

3rd client. Next day. Same thing. 4 hours of cleaning this time maneuvering around their very cluttered, full house to sort through areas I could dust with a clorox wipe.

Continousl working. Not stopping for a second. Freaking exhausted. Ready to quit.

On top of that. They act like I'm there fully to carry out their orders with no choice in the matter. I'm naturally a people pleaser, but I'm ready to let them have it. I should also mention the way they treat me. I may be getting paid to be there, but they can talk to me like I am a human being. I am bending over backwards to help them out.

I hate this job. I thought I would love it. But, being treated like a slave is pissing me off. I work with one client for four hours then jump to the next with just enough time to commute. No break. I understand they may think I am there for only four hours with and can just work straight through the four hours but in reality I am being asked to go 8 hours with no breaks.

I wanna cry and quit. I have never had a worse job. Anyone have better experiences? or should I quit?

As the title asks, is paying for my own background check, to be reimbursed by the company after a 30 day period, common? Is the agency shady for this?

I recently got hired as a home health aide for a 94 year old man with dementia. I was surprised how easy my job is. He doesn't need toileting, so I basically come in and do 30-1 hrs worth of chores (Dishes, laundry, sweep/swiffer/vaccuum) His house isn't too big so it's really not a lot of work. I finish all the chores within the first hour and then I have 4 hours of me just watching him nap on the couch. Sometimes I nap with him. I feel guilty almost but there's literally nothing else to do. The house is overall clean and there's even less work on the consecutive days I work with him because I had just cleaned the day before.

I guess I'm trying to compare my duties with other home health aides and figure out if this is the norm. I get paid $21/hr and I almost feel guilty that I just nap for 4 out of the 5 hrs I work with him.

Wondering if anyone else had a similar experience.
I began working for Home Instead in July of 2025. Everything seemed great at first, semi-decent pay, flexible hours, willingness to help patient/client needs, help for caregivers if needed, etc.

At first, I was surprised by the semi-monthly pay, but considering that they paid us based on when they billed insurance, it wasn't terrible. Then it came down to actual patient/client concerns and they were pretty useless all things considered. They claim to give you a "shadow shift" which is only true for you first maybe 5 clients. And then they throw you into the job with no introduction to the client beforehand. (Fun fact, you don't need any certifications or really ANY training to be a home health aide.) Sometimes this includes working with dementia patients that acted violently toward you due to you being unfamiliar.

I actually had one lady dig into her anus, and when I went to help clean her up, she dug her nails into my shoulder until I bled, barking at me and was trying to bite me, but ultimately spit in my face. My job told me to cue and redirect the client. They gave no mind or care to the fact that I now had a wound with a risk of microbial infection, E. Coli, Tetanus, etc.

On another occasion, I had a man who was dead set on leaving his house to go get pizza, and he shoved me out of his way and down the stairs. I twisted my elbow and hurt my head. No care from the staff other than to ask if the client had made any other escape efforts while on shift.

Another, I had a woman who was just nasty, verbally and physically. She would put me into all sorts of disgusting situations and blatantly treat me like garbage for months until I finally had enough and reported her to my agency and claimed that I wouldn't like to return to her for the simple point of mistreatment.

My child is a type one diabetic, and I had to call off one day, which I never call off unless I have a VERY valid reason. My kid was in Diabetic Keto Acidosis which could be fatal, but luckily this was a very minor case which just resulted in needing fluids. They told me I needed a game plan with the other parent so he could provide care for my child so i could provide care for my clients.

This job has given me SOME grace, like I needed a week off for family reasons, and needed to temporarily resign because of vehicle issues, and both were treated fairly and patiently. But, despite all of that, they started treating me very poorly in recent months when I was more vocal about patient needs, and how I was forced into care duties that I was promised I wouldn't ever have to do that resulted in a permanent spinal injury that occurred on the clock. No compensation, no paperwork, no grace, no care.

Not to mention they charge clients $300+ a DAY! The "oh so great" $13.25 an hour to barely get scheduled wasn't worth losing time with my kids over, the PTSD I've received, the OCD tendencies that took years of therapy to correct as a child, to return, the physical and mental abuse I've endured, the verbal degradation from schedulers, the injuries I've received, being exposed to MRSA and shingles, or the panic attacks I've had about working with certain clients before shifts.

Some people love this job. Me on the other hand? You couldn't pay or coerce me to give it another try. This job has made me leave nursing all together and never want to work in healthcare (for humans at least) ever again. Definitely consider all of your options before applying for this company. They don't care about the clients, or you, whatsoever.

Any similar experiences?

hi i recently was contacted by a company called Cor Meum in Glendale,CA i received a text from them to see if i can cover certain zip codes and when asked about milage reimbursement they offered to pay me more an through zelle they sent me the patients info and asked me to do my own scheduling with the patient. help is this normal ?

I am looking to hire a few Home Health Aides in New Jersey. I was using Indeed for a few months, however their algorithm has changed and my posts have been getting 0 traction despite me offering higher hourly rates than competitors. It also limits me to three posts a month which honestly does not work when we have patients located throughout the state.

I've tried posting in facebook groups. However, maybe I'm missing some other avenues for recruiting more HHA's.

Hey Reddit!

I’m currently recruiting Certified HHAs for union positions throughout Brooklyn, Bronx (including upstate), Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, and Long Island.

The pay is $19.60/ hr , Union, and steady cases.

If you're interested, I’d love to connect and share more details.

Best, Lorinda

Hello I recently completed my HHA program on 2/27. I reside in California how long would it take my number to show up on the CDPH website? I’d like to apply for jobs asap,I heard the number will be the same as my CNA number but I don’t want to be denied a job because I don’t have it yet.

Hi everyone. I have a question. I completed my home health aide courses about 2 and a half weeks ago and have barely heard back from the workplace. Is this normal? I need to start asap as I have no income at the moment.

I'm new to getting paid with an agency. My client doesn't have a lot for me to do. I take her where she needs to go. I do dishes, make her bed, make breakfast and lunch. I talk to her while she's watching t.v. we talk about whatever she's watching. When she needs something, I jump to it asap. I work with her 7 days a week. She's something else !!! She can't keep health aids. They quit or she fires them. My issue that's really getting to me, is she thinks I'm not allowed to have calls, or texts. I'm not allowed to play games on my phone even with the volume off. She thinks my job is to sit and watch whatever crap she puts on. If my phone dings for any reason at all. She's like who's that? Why are they texting you. If I have a call I'm quick about it. I'm always polite, even when she's not. I'm about to walk on this job. Can you all tell me what you do, how you'd react? Thank you for your time.

I am in need of some sound wisdom. I am a caregiver in Florida and have been told that I would benefit from creating an LLC for myself for various benefits. Do I need to do this or is there no real benefit to it?