Blog Archives - Choose2Care.ca - BC Health Care Assistants

HCA Virtual Event for IENs

We have exciting news! Choose2Care will be hosting a Free Virtual Health Care Assistant (HCA) Event for Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs) on February 10, 2022!

During this event you can learn more about how to become a registered HCA and the pathways to nursing. You will be able to connect with BC Health Authorities to learn more about their employment opportunities.

We will also be joined by the BC Care Aide Registry, Nursing Community Assessment Service (NCAS), Career Paths for Skilled Immigrants and Health Match BC’s Nursing Recruitment team.

This event is open to all IENs, but will be most beneficial to those who have applied to the BC Care Aide Registry and have been referred to complete the Nursing Community Assessment Service (NCAS) and are ready to proceed with the registration process.

We are looking forward to seeing you there!

Registration for this event is now closed. Please follow us on social media to find out about our next webinar.

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Health Care Assistant’s Day 2021

Health Care Assistant’s Day

October 18, 2021 marks Health Care Assistant Day in BC!

Join us in celebrating and recognizing all Health Care Assistants in your community this year, to show our appreciation for their hard work and dedication to our health care system.

Health Care Assistants make a tremendous difference in our lives and this annual event has been recognized by unions, educators and employers. Health Care Assistant Day was first officially proclaimed in 2011 by the BC Provincial Government.

Health Care Assistants may have many different job titles including Community Health Worker, Residential Care Aide, Home Support Worker, Long-Term Care Aide, Home Health Aide, Continuing Care Assistant, and Personal Care Aide.

The one thing all Health Care Assistants in BC have in common is that they provide frontline personal care and assistance services to vulnerable patients, clients and residents.

Please take the time on Health Care Assistant Day (October 18, 2021) to recognize and thank Health Care Assistants across British Columbia!

Download the Proclamation here.

What do Health Care Assistants in BC value most about their role?

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“I love helping clients and being out in the community. We have an amazing team. We are always caring for clients, family, and coworkers. I learn something new each and every day!”

“I am continuously learning, and I am so grateful that my line of work allows me an endless supply of new knowledge.”

“I always try to look at the positive and definitely love to bring humour to the workplace. I believe in paying it forward, being kind, and at the end of the day knowing that I made a positive difference in someone’s life and put a smile on their face.”

Photos and testimonials provided by Interior Health, Providence Health and Vancouver Coastal Health.

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Choose2Care Celebrates its 1-year Anniversary

Health Care Assistants (HCA) play an essential role in BC’s health care system; they make a significant difference in the everyday lives of seniors, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable clients. In order to increase HCA education enrolment, create opportunities for those with existing HCA competencies in becoming registered HCAs, and ensure that BC residents have access to all forms of care they need, Health Match BC collaborated with The Ministry of Health, the BC health authorities, and other provincial partners to launch the Choose2Care program. Since October 2019, Choose2Care has provided potential HCAs with the information necessary to train, register, and become employed as an HCA.

Choose2Care celebrated its 1st-anniversary last month and reflected on its mission and accomplishments in the previous year. We used our social media accounts to share relevant information, attended and hosted webinars, conferences, and events. We also kept our website updated with helpful resources, created a blog with pertinent content, and launched the HCA Career Pathway and Bursary Program, which provides future HCAs with financial support and guidance to navigate the HCA NCAS assessment and registration processes.

Andreanne Gariepy, HCA Career Consultant, says, “one of the things we’re most proud of is the HCA Career Pathway and Bursary Program launch and expansion,” and our participants agree! One participant praised the program’s helpfulness saying that whether you are an international graduate, struggling financially, or aiming to learn more, it supports you. Another wrote that this program helps “to ease the burden financially” and “alleviate the anxiety in pursuing [a] chosen career path.” Andreanne adds that the program began with one bursary, the Remedial Education Bursary for NCAS-assessed applicants, but in the last year, was expanded to include four bursaries to better support applicants through the entire HCA registration process. “It’s been such a pleasure to speak with and support hundreds of HCAs. It makes me feel the direct impact this program has. We wouldn’t be here today without our dedicated team,” she says. Choose2Care attributes its success to its excellent partnerships with the BC Care Aide Registry, government employers, educators, industry associations, and those leading and collaborating with them every day.

Choose2Care is celebrating its first year and looking ahead to the many possibilities that the future holds – from engaging more people, identifying new collaborative opportunities, and finding new innovative ways to promote the HCA profession to communities. They are on the watch and on the rise.

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Stories of the Heart

Eight months ago, the COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm. While it left many out of a job, others needed to give more than they ever had. ‘Stories of the Heart,’ a short film from The BC Centre for Palliative Care, recounts the experience of four Health Care Assistants (HCAs) in British Columbia; stories of patience, perseverance, and empathy. The compilation of real experiences from over 80 HCAs formed what these four actors share. This is a short film that is definitely worth the watch.

Throughout the first few months of the pandemic, we could hear clapping, howling, and the banging of pots and pans at 7 p.m. every night in honour of our front line healthcare workers in British Columbia. Still, in ‘Stories of the Heart,’ one HCA expresses he sometimes feels ‘invisible to everyone.’ Then he recalls a time when the community sent a gift basket to the care team where he works and that this reminded him of how the work they do is valued and recognized.

These stories are important because they show us what is happening behind the scenes and help us better understand the challenges HCAs all around our province are facing. Take a minute and think about how it would feel caring for an aging adult who could not receive visitors or even see your smile because it was hidden behind a mask. Or what it would feel like to not be able to hug your toddler when you came home, afraid of infecting them. This work requires creativity, such as organizing a dance party to bring the mood up at lunchtime, compassion, and so much heart.

Although these have been challenging times, one HCA says that she ‘can’t imagine doing anything else,’ stating that this work ‘feeds your soul.’ ‘You get these special moments,’ she says, recounting a time at the end of her work shift where a resident she knew well was dying. She stayed with him until the end, not wanting him to be alone. She felt honoured to have been there for him in that moment.

‘Stories of the Heart’ will speak to your heart; it will give you hope in humanity. Watch and share it with your family, friends, and colleagues, and remember to show kindness to HCAs who do so much for us and our loved ones daily.

Watch ‘Stories of the Heart’ here:

The BC Centre for Palliative Care has gathered multiple resources, from recorded webinars to links to education, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. They aim to help Health Care Assistants with this life-limiting illness. Visit: https://bc-cpc.github.io/covid/ for more information.

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Skilled Immigrants Info Centre Event

Navigating the Licensing Pathway for Internationally Educated Nurses and Caregivers

The Career Paths for Skilled Immigrants program and the Skilled Immigrants Info Centre is pleased to host the Navigating the Licensing Pathway for Internationally Educated Nurses and Caregivers virtual webinar on Thursday, November 5th, 2020 from 1-3 PM.

This FREE Zoom webinar is for permanent residents and refugees who are looking to return to their nursing or caregiving careers in British Columbia. At this event, you will learn about the steps to licensure in British Columbia, hear from other internationally educated nurses who are successfully working as Registered Care Aides and/or Nurses, and learn about the support services that are available to help them achieve their career goals.

Health Match BC will provide information about the HCA Career Pathways & Bursary Program which provides support to future HCAs who aim to register with the BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry, through financial assistance and guidance.

Event Date: Thursday, November 5th, 2020
Time: 1 PM – 3 PM
Registration: https://vpl.bibliocommons.com/events/search/index/event/5f7b6b1ad141592400004a2e

Interested participants can register directly at the link provided above and will need access to a stable internet connection and electronic device, such as a laptop, iPad, or cell phone to take part in the event.

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Health Care Assistant’s Day

October 18, 2020 marks Health Care Assistant’s Day in BC. Join us in celebrating and recognizing all Health Care Assistants in your community this year, to show our appreciation for their hard work and dedication to our health care system.

Health Care Assistants are dedicated, frontline care providers serving patients and clients in a variety of settings including acute care, long-term care, home and community settings. Health Care Assistants make a tremendous difference in our lives and this annual event has been recognized by unions, educators and employers. Health Care Assistant Day was first officially proclaimed in 2011 by the BC Provincial Government.

Health Care Assistants may have many different job titles including Community Health Worker, Residential Care Aide, Home Support Worker, Long-Term Care Aide, Home Health Aide, Continuing Care Assistant, and Personal Care Aide.

The one thing all Health Care Assistants in BC have in common is that they provide frontline personal care and assistance services to vulnerable patients, clients and residents.

Please take the time on Health Care Assistant Day (October 18, 2020) to recognize and thank Health Care Assistants across British Columbia!

Download the Proclamation here.

What do Health Care Assistants in BC value most about their role?

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