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Care workers can be known by different titles, such as "care assistantt", "care attendant" or "healthcare assistant" and can be employed by the HSE, voluntary agencies or private organisations.

Care Careers is an initiative to promote caring as a positive career choice.

Care work is all about providing practical help to people who have difficulties carrying out normal day-to-day activities. Apart from supporting people with activities such as dressing and feeding, care work can involve tasks such as helping to pay a bill or grocery shopping.

Care work offers lots of opportunities for training and career advancement: senior care work, nursing and management are all positions that care workers can aspire towards. Once a care worker completes skills training, it is possible to specialise in a  particular area, including: general hospitals, community care in the client's home, mental health services and special needs services.

Care work is all about providing practical help to people who have difficulties carrying out normal day-to-day activities. Care workers can assist children with special needs; people with a physical or learning disability; older people or families.

It is possible to work in a home environment, in a hospital, in the community, in day care centres or in a residential setting, such as a nursing home.

If you want to make a difference, enjoy the company of other people and are sympathetic and patient, care work might be a suitable career choice for you.

Care Work Training

The Healthcare Support Certificate is offered on a full-time and part-time basis in the Tallaght area. Students who successfully complete the course are awarded the Healthcare Support Certificate (FETAC level 5).

This course prepares students to work competently, safely and effectively as a care worker in a number of different settings. Practical work experience is offered to all students as part of the course programme.

The Healthcare Support Certificate is open to school leavers; those interested in a career change and people who are already delivering care work, but do not have any formal training.

Interested in Caring?

If you are interested in a career in care,  you can do some research:

• Call your local nursing home, hospital or day care centre to see if you can secure some work experience.
• Talk to care workers and nursing staff to see what they enjoy about their work.

Courtesy of: Care Careers

Care Careers is a project of Tallaght Partnership and is funded under the EQUAL EU Community Initiative.

For more information log onto www.carecareers.ie