Training Requirements

Elder Option’s Eldercare Education Center provides certification training to persons entering the long-term care industry in Clark and Cowlitz Counties. We have been a certified education center through Washington State’s Department of Social and Health Services since 1997. Our classes are created especially for students working in private duty home care, agency caregiving, adult family home and/or boarding homes. We also provide continuing education classes for the industry. 


CLASS OFFERINGS:
1.  Fundamentals of Caregiving Training (28 hour class)

2.  Modified Fundamentals of Caregiving Class (7 hours – for CNAs, RNs, LPNs, PTs, & OTs who plan to work with home care agencies, adult family homes).

3.  Nurse Delegation (self study)

4.  Nurse Delegation with Diabetic Endorsement (self study)

5. CPR for health care professionals

6.  Various continuing education classes scheduled throughout the year.

7.  Classes by video. Call to schedule. Each tape provides 1 CEUs of credit.


NEW REQUIREMENTS:

As of January 1, 2011, sweeping changes in the caregiver profession, will occur in Washington State as a result of Initiative 1029 passed by voters in 2008. This controversial initiative will require caregivers to increase their basic training from the 28 hour Fundamentals of Caregiving Class (FOC) to a series of classes that add up to 75 hours, completed within the first 120 days of employment (Or taken before work begins depending on the employer’s requirements). Continuing education hours will increase from 10 to 12 hours a year. The Legislature passed these requirements, the strictest in the United States, without a clear understanding of what the classes will cost caregivers or whether some employers might cover a portion of the training.


Elder Options is in the process of developing new curriculum approved by the state to be ready by January 1. Most employers we have contacted are requiring applicants to attend the basic 28-hour Fundamentals Class before hire to prove the student has a firm understanding of the roles and responsibilities of a home care provider. This training ensures the student is ready for their first day of work with knowledge and some practice under their belt. A State FOC Certificate attached to a student’s application or resume will give an applicant a hiring advantage over other applicants who do not have the training. As 2011 arrives there will be more clarification since additional bills will be introduced in the legislature regarding I-1029.


Our Director of Education is monitoring any state changes and clarifications as they occur and will post updates on this website.


We do not want the new requirements to keep good dedicated persons from entering the caregiving profession. We are committed to helping callers through the process and give them the tools they need to be successful in their new role of personal care assistant, caregiver, or home care aide. As of January 1, 2011, caregivers will be referred to as Certified Home Care Aides upon successful completion of 75 hours of training and passing a test.


WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO TAKE FOC BEFORE DEC 31, 2010:

If you complete the FOC class prior to December 30, you will be “grandfathered in” and not required to take new classes unless you want continuing education credits (CEU’s). The basic Fundamentals Class costs $150 and provides a state issued Certificate of Completion recognized in all long-term care settings. (Nursing Homes require CNA training within 120 days of hire) Elder Options accepts most major credit cards, money orders, cash and provides a payment plan.


After January 1, 2011 applicants will need to attend 47 extra hours of class. Tuition costs have not yet been established. The applicant will need to pay $60 to the State of Washington to apply to become a Home Care Aide along with $115 to take the certification test. It is much more cost effective to pay $150 for FOC training in 2010 saving hundreds of dollars. 


TESTING SITES:
The new 75-hour training will require a separate written and skill test, provided by one regional test site per county. Elder Options has been selected to be the regional testing site in both Clark and Cowlitz Counties. Please call our number or log onto elderoptions.org/calendar for test days and locations after January 1, 2011. A state certificate for a Home Care Aide will be issued upon passing the certification test.