What Does Home Care Have to Do With Community?

Something that I didn't find odd—until it was pointed out to me—was just how invested in the community Cornerstone Healthcare is.

When I think about what it means to "give back to the community," I think of food drives and sponsorships. I'm thinking, Oh, we're partnering with the city to do XYZ. That's not really what Cornerstone Healthcare has done.

We are, at the end of the day, a home health aide training program and a home health aide agency. I never really understood what that meant beyond the basic definition of it. So before I even talk about community, I have to talk about what a home health aide is.

A home health aide is somebody who assists people who need help. That's probably the best way to describe it, because there isn't one specific type of person who needs home care.

It's not like we're tutoring people on algebra. To be a home health aide means having the ability and the capacity to assist somebody with their daily living. That could be a new mother who just had a child. It could be a 16-year-old with a disability that affects their ability to move around independently. It could be an 85-year-old who's trying to continue living on their own.

There's no set age range for who a home health aide can assist. That's part of what makes the role so important. Sometimes, having the right support is what allows a person to stay independent and continue doing the things that make their life feel like their own.

So, what does this have to do with community?

That's actually a good question. I'm getting there.

You see, apart from the licensing—and there are plenty of requirements that come with that—home health aide training is really an entry point into healthcare.

You don't need to go to nursing school or become a doctor or physician to become a home health aide. The training gives you knowledge that can help you improve the life of the person you're caring for, while also giving you knowledge that can benefit you and the people around you.

So, I would like to think that, in a sense, being a home health aide is already a way of giving back to the community.

I'm a part-time home health aide myself, one of my many, many hats, and I see the impact that it has on people—and the impact it can have on people when they have the right support.

There is a clear difference between having appropriate support at home and not having it. Without that support, it can become much harder for someone to remain independent and maintain their quality of life. That's why home health aides are so important.

Now, getting back to community.

To train a home health aide is, in a sense, to educate someone about entry-level healthcare. You learn about body systems and back safety. You learn about medication use and what to do with medications that are expired or no longer needed. You learn about different diets and foods. You learn how to care for people living with Alzheimer's disease and dementia, how to properly hold an infant, and even which household chemicals should never be mixed.

Everything and more, honestly.

That information stays with you. So the more home health aides we train, the more people there are who have knowledge about health and about caring for the people around them.

And that's better for their community.

So, to an extent, being a home health aide is giving back to the community.

But then my boss took things a step further and decided she would just go and educate people about health all over the place.

She would go to senior centers and public schools, teaching about health and hygiene.

Back in May, we were doing talks with a senior center about the nuances of eating healthy and eating right. Just because something is labeled organic doesn't necessarily mean it's the right choice for everyone, especially when dietary restrictions or health conditions are involved.

My boss would go, and she would educate. That was her way of giving back to the community.

And so, by default, Cornerstone Healthcare's way of giving back to the community was—and is—through education.

You're going to see a lot of us in education systems, especially in the town where we are located. We also plan on reaching out to other towns and other counties.

Because if there's one thing that can never be taken from you, it's education. It is your knowledge.

That is what my boss believes, and that is what the people who work with her believe too.