Health care assistance is a significant part of the health care system in Canada, and its crucial role is only increasing with time as the population of the country is getting old. The needs of healthcare facilities are also growing due to the fast-increasing population and, with that, job opportunities in this sector. This blog will talk about all the crucial facts related to health care assistance and the health care assistant program and how this industry may change in 2025.
What Is Health Care Assistance?
Health care assistance is all about providing support to people who are ill, who need long-term care to do everyday activities, or those who require short-term care. Usually, the patients are old or injured in accidents and need physical support to do daily activities like dressing, bathing, feeding, exercise, etc.
Who Is A Health Care Assistant?
A health care assistant is a person who provides services like feeding, bathing, exercising, etc., to patients, old people, or people who are facing different kinds of injuries. These people work under the supervision of senior nurses, doctors, and other professionals to carry out the operations that are part of the overall treatment of patients in hospitals and health care facilities. Sometimes patients also go through mental challenges during their treatment process and need psychological assistance to recover from long-term disabilities or injuries. In all such circumstances, health care assistants help patients, as they are trained to keep up the spirits of the patients so that they can stay positive and recover soon.
Why Do People Need Health Care Assistance In Canada?
Canada is getting old with every passing decade, and people are also living much longer than before. Scientific advancements in the medical field and overall improvements in the health care sector are also playing a key role in why people are living longer. These are some of the main reasons why the demand for health care workers is increasing continuously in the country.
The population of people age 75 or older is growing faster than other groups, and the trend is expected to continue not only in 2025 but also over the next two decades. For instance, there were just 2 million people who were above the age of 60 in 1977. This number increased to 3.5 in 1997, 6.2 million in 2017, and is expected to touch 10.7 million by 2037, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
Join Edison College’s Health Care Assistant Diploma Program
Edison College offers two programs in this category; one is a one-year program, and the second is a two-year diploma. The Health Care Assistant Diploma Program is a one-year program, while the other has a practicum component that allows students to gain some work experience before entering the workforce. Graduates of these two programs can work in different health care facilities, such as hospitals, long-term care facilities, assisted living facilities, etc.
Conclusion
Health care assistance is a field where Canada is facing an extreme shortage of workers. This is happening despite the fact that the country is trying to fill the vacant positions through different immigration programs because the domestic education and training systems are not able to produce enough workers every year. This is why federal as well as provincial governments are trying to train new people by offering monetary assistance through different education programs. All in all, the job prospects over the next couple of years in this field look really bright. If you have questions or concerns, you can contact us today to learn more about these programs.
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