Is Senior Health the Right Career for You?
When pursuing a career in senior healthcare, you must ask yourself several questions to ensure that you are capable of successfully meeting the needs of those to be served, while maintaining your own well-being.
There are specific characteristics outside of professional training and education that are absolutely necessary for one to be a successful care provider. Decide if you meet these qualifications by asking yourself a few questions.
Are you patient?
Patience is perhaps the number one qualification for a senior health care provider. While we often have busy schedules and are able to rush from one task to the other without skipping a beat, our elderly patients often move slowly. As a successful senior care provider, you must be able to adjust your speed to that of your patient and understand their physical and sometimes mental limitations.
You may have to repeat yourself several times when discussing new, or even old information with your patient. Some patients are very stubborn at meal and/or medication times and may even attempt to abuse the caretaker. If you are unable to separate the conflict from the individual, you will begin to have an issue with the patient instead of the behavior. Providers who begin to dislike their difficult patients experience burnout …show more content…
While passion is encouraged in any industry, it is especially important when you are responsible for a population that is often helpless and completely dependent on you for continued survival and well-being. As discussed above, senior health can be a very trying field on a day to day basis. However, those with a compassionate heart and a passion for helping this population will find joy in aiding those who truly need them. Passion fuels patience and is reflected in the duties performed. Developing a passion for your work not only benefits the patient, but also makes a happier
When pursuing a career in senior healthcare, you must ask yourself several questions to ensure that you are capable of successfully meeting the needs of those to be served, while maintaining your own well-being.
There are specific characteristics outside of professional training and education that are absolutely necessary for one to be a successful care provider. Decide if you meet these qualifications by asking yourself a few questions.
Are you patient?
Patience is perhaps the number one qualification for a senior health care provider. While we often have busy schedules and are able to rush from one task to the other without skipping a beat, our elderly patients often move slowly. As a successful senior care provider, you must be able to adjust your speed to that of your patient and understand their physical and sometimes mental limitations.
You may have to repeat yourself several times when discussing new, or even old information with your patient. Some patients are very stubborn at meal and/or medication times and may even attempt to abuse the caretaker. If you are unable to separate the conflict from the individual, you will begin to have an issue with the patient instead of the behavior. Providers who begin to dislike their difficult patients experience burnout …show more content…
While passion is encouraged in any industry, it is especially important when you are responsible for a population that is often helpless and completely dependent on you for continued survival and well-being. As discussed above, senior health can be a very trying field on a day to day basis. However, those with a compassionate heart and a passion for helping this population will find joy in aiding those who truly need them. Passion fuels patience and is reflected in the duties performed. Developing a passion for your work not only benefits the patient, but also makes a happier