Home Health Care
Resume:
An Overview of Home Health Aides:
United States, 2007
by Anita Bercovitz, M.P.H., Ph.D.; Abigail Moss; Manisha Sengupta, Ph.D.; Eunice Y. Park-Lee; Ph.D.; Adrienne Jones; and Lauren D. Harris-Kojetin, Ph.D., Division of Health Care Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics; and Marie R. Squillace, Ph.D., Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Abstract
Objectives This report presents national estimates of home health aides providing assistance in activities of daily living (ADLs) and employed by agencies providing home health and hospice care in 2007. Data are presented on demographics, training, work environment, pay and benefits, use of public benefits, and injuries.
Methods Estimates are based on data collected in the 2007 National Home Health Aide Survey. Estimates are derived from data collected during telephone interviews with home health aides providing assistance with ADLs and employed by agencies providing home health and hospice care. Results In the United States in 2007, 160,700 home health and hospice aides provided ADL assistance and were employed by agencies providing home health and hospice care. Most home health aides were female; approximately one-half were white and one-third black. Approximately one-half of aides were at least 35 years old. Two-thirds had an annual family income of less than $40,000. More than 80% received initial training to become a home health aide and more than 90% received continuing education classes in the previous 2 years. Almost three-quarters of aides would definitely become a home health aide again, and slightly more than one-half of aides would definitely take their current job again. The average hourly pay was $10.88 per hour. Almost three-quarters of aides reported that they were offered health insurance by their employers, but almost 19% of aides had no health insurance coverage from any source. More than 1 in 10 aides had had at least one work-related injury in the previous 12 months. Conclusions The picture that emerges from this analysis is of a financially vulnerable workforce, but one in which the majority of aides are satisfied with their jobs. The findings may be useful in informing initiatives to train, recruit, and retain these direct care workers.
Keywords: direct care worker • National Home Health Aide Survey • hospice aide • long-term care
Introduction
By 2050, the estimated number of
persons who will need some type of
long-term care is projected to almost
double from 15 million in 2000 to 27
million, assuming current patterns of
care continue (1). Of those, the majority
will receive long-term care in the
community rather than in institutions.
Currently, the majority of home- and
community-based long-term care is
provided by unpaid caregivers, such as
family members, neighbors, or friends.
Although unpaid care remains the
primary source of community-based
long-term care, the demand for paid
(formal) caregivers is expected to
increase (1). The bulk of formal
long-term care is provided by direct care
workers, such as nursing assistants,
home health aides, and personal aides,
who provide basic care and essential
help with daily activities, enabling
people with functional and activity
limitations to live independently in their
homes.
In 2006, about 3 million people
were employed in the direct care
industry, including nursing, psychiatric,
and home health aides. Direct care jobs
are projected to be among the fastest-
growing occupations in the near future,
with the greatest increases among home
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Health Statistics
Page 2 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 health aides. Projected employment of
home health aides is expected to
increase 50% between 2008 and
2018 from 921,000 to 1,382,000 (2).
Given the projected demand for
direct care workers, recruitment of
additional workers and retention of
currently employed workers is crucial.
Retention of direct care workers is a
major challenge. A low pay structure,
lack of or limited fringe benefits, a
heavy workload, poor working
conditions, lack of appropriate training,
little opportunity for professional
advancement, and a lack of respect from
management are some of the reasons
cited for high turnover and vacancy
rates (3,4). National data on direct care
workers are limited, as most of the few
existing studies are restricted to smaller
geographic areas. The Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) provides estimates of
employment in the home health aide
industry to monitor labor force
participation (5). However, no nationally
representative data are collected from
home health aides that could provide
their perspectives on the work
environment, job satisfaction, and
retention. Given the high turnover and
vacancy rates (6), these data could help
policymakers understand the needs of
and challenges faced by home health
aides, and identify strategies that can
enhance the home health aide
experience.
Recognizing the need to fill the gap
in data about factors related to
recruitment and retention of home health
aides, the Department of Health and
Human Services’ Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
(ASPE) sponsored the National Home
Health Aide Survey (NHHAS). NHHAS
provides the first nationally
representative data source on home
health aides employed by agencies
providing home health or hospice care.
This report presents estimates on home
health aides’ demographics and
employing agency characteristics; aides’
reasons for becoming aides and attitudes
toward their jobs; training; work
environment; pay, employer-offered
benefits, and use of public benefits; and
work-related injuries. These estimates
help paint a picture of home health
aides a crucial group of direct care
workers providing long-term care.
Methods
Data source
Data are from NHHAS, the first
nationally representative sample survey
of home health aides. NHHAS, a
two-stage probability sample survey,
was a supplement to the 2007 National
Home and Hospice Care Survey
(NHHCS) conducted by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention’s
National Center for Health Statistics in
partnership with ASPE. Agencies
providing home health or hospice care
were sampled for NHHCS, then aides
were sampled from participating
sampled NHHCS agencies. Aides who
were directly employed by the sampled
agency and provided assistance in
activities of daily living (ADLs)
including eating, toileting, bathing,
dressing, or transferring were eligible
to participate in NHHAS. Aides were
interviewed using computer-assisted
telephone interviewing or CATI
technology. Data collection was
conducted by Westat. NHHAS data
collection is authorized under Section
306 of the Public Health Service Act
(Title 42 U.S. Code, 242K).
For further information on the
sampling, survey design, and other
survey methodology, see ‘‘Technical
Notes’’ in this report, documentation
available from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/
nhhas.htm, or Vital and Health Statistics
Series 1, Number 49 (7).
Data analysis
All analyses were performed in
SAS-callable SUDAAN (8) to account
for sampling weights and the complex
sampling design. In some tables,
categories were collapsed to permit
reporting of reliable estimates.
Chi-square tests and t tests were
used to test for significance at the
p < 0.05 level. T tests were not adjusted
for multiple comparisons. The difference
between any two estimates is mentioned
in the text only if it is statistically
significant and represents an absolute
difference of at least 10 percentage
points. This approach is intended to
highlight meaningful differences. Terms
such as ‘‘similar’’ or ‘‘no significant
differences’’ are used to denote that the
estimates being compared are not
significantly different statistically.
Comparisons not mentioned may or may
not be statistically significant.
Nonresponse was handled
differently for different variables.
Missing values for age, sex, and race
were imputed using the hot-deck
method. Nonresponse for these variables
was 1.8% for age, 1.36% for sex, and
1.64% for race. Nonresponses (e.g.,
‘‘don’t know’’ and ‘‘refused’’) were
excluded when calculating estimates for
other continuous variables (e.g., hourly
wage and agency size based on number
of current patients). The percentage of
cases with nonresponses for continuous
variables ranged from 4.8% for agency
size to 6.7% for hourly wage. For other
categorical variables, nonresponses were
recoded as unknown and included in the
analyses. The percentage of nonresponse
for categorical variables ranged from
1.36% for sex to 14.5% for the aide’s
response to whether the agency offered
paid or subsidized child care. When 5%
or more of the responses were unknown,
an ‘‘unknown’’ category was included in
the tables. When an unknown category
has less than 5% nonresponse, the
unknown category is not reported in the
tables. Unknowns are included in the
denominators for percent distribution
estimates regardless of the percentages
unknown and whether they are or are
not reported in the table. Except where
noted, figures depicting percentages also
include the unknown category in the
denominator, even when the unknown
category itself is not depicted in the
figure. For this reason, category-specific
sample sizes may sum to less than table
or figure totals, and percent distributions
may sum to less than 100%. Because
nonresponses were included in the
denominator when calculating
percentages, the percentages reported are
underestimates.
In this report, the term ‘‘aides’’ is
used to refer to home health and hospice
aides. Agencies that provided both home
health and hospice care are referred to
as mixed agencies.
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 Page 3 Results
Employer characteristics
+ In the United States in 2007, 160,700
home health and hospice aides
provided ADL assistance and were
employed by agencies providing
home health and hospice care
(Table 1).
+ Almost three-fourths of these aides
(74.2%) worked for agencies that
provided home health care only.
+ More than three-fifths of aides
(63.3%) worked for proprietary
agencies.
+ Almost one-half of aides (47.0%)
worked for agencies located in the
South.
+ Over four-fifths of aides (84.0%)
were employed by agencies located in
metropolitan areas.
+ More than two-thirds of aides
(70.0%) worked for independent
agencies, that is, agencies that were
not part of a chain of agencies.
Aide characteristics
+ Little more than one-half of the aides
were white (53.3%) and aged 35
years and over (56.5%). An
overwhelming majority of the aides
were non-Hispanic (90.2%) and
female (95.0%).
+ More than three-quarters of aides
(77.3%) had at least a high school
diploma.
+ Nearly one-half of all aides (50.3%)
were married or living with a partner.
+ Almost one-half of all aides (46.9%)
had a family income of $30,000 or
less.
+ Most aides were U.S. citizens
(94.2%). Of these, most were citizens
by birth (89.6%).
Reasons for becoming aides
and whether would become
an aide again
+ More than three-fourths of aides
stated that they became aides because
these jobs were available close to
where they lived (80.3%), they
eventually wanted to become a nurse
(80.0%), they had provided care to
friends or relatives (76.7%), or these
jobs were steady and secure (76.2%)
(Table 2).
+ A higher percentage of female aides
(81.1%) than male aides (59.5%)
became aides because they wanted to
eventually become a nurse. On the
other hand, more male aides (90.0%)
than female aides (73.3%) reported
becoming aides because family
members or friends were also home
health aides.
+ Aides aged 25–34 were more likely
than those under age 25 to become
aides because they provided care to a
friend or relative (81.0% compared
with 60.9%), and liked helping
people (68.5% compared with
47.3%).
+ Nearly three-fourths of current aides
(72.2%) would definitely become an
aide again (Table 3).
+ Compared with those aged 45–54
(76.3%) or those aged 55 and over
(74.3%), aides under age 25 (49.9%)
were less likely to report that they
would definitely become an aide
again.
+ Aides with no high school diploma or
General Educational Development
(GED) high school equivalency
diploma (86.7%) were more likely
than those who had some college or
trade school (66.6%) to indicate that
they would definitely become an aide
again.
Training
Initial training
+ More than four-fifths of aides
(83.9%) had received initial training
(Table 4).
+ More aides aged 35–44 had taken
initial training (89.6%) than aides
aged 25–34 (74.4%).
+ A greater percentage of aides of other
races had taken initial training
(95.1%) than white aides (79.1%).
+ Aides with less than a high school
diploma or GED were more likely to
have taken initial training (96.1%)
than aides who had a GED (82.4%),
a high school diploma (81.4%), or
some college (83.9%).
+ Among aides who had taken initial
training, over four-fifths (82.2%)
thought the training prepared them
well for their jobs (Table 5).
+ Aides whose initial training was
either mostly hands-on (81.6%) or
evenly split between hands-on and
classroom training (87.2%) felt more
well-prepared for their jobs than aides
whose initial training was mostly
classroom study (60.7%).
Continuing education
+ Most aides had taken continuing
education (91.0%), including
in-service training, in the past 2 years
(Table 4).
+ Aides aged 25–54 were more likely
to have taken continuing education in
the past 2 years (over 90%) than
aides under age 25 (76.6%).
+ Among aides who had taken
continuing education in the past 2
years, including in-service training,
almost four-fifths found the training
very useful (79.1%), and about
one-fifth found it somewhat or not at
all useful (20.9%) (Table 6).
+ A higher percentage of aides working
in the South (84.9%) found their
continuing education very useful
compared with aides working in the
Midwest (69.9%).
+ Aides who said they would definitely
become an aide again were more
likely than aides who said they would
probably become an aide again to
rate their continuing education as
very useful (86.2% compared with
63.7%).
+ Aides who rated their continuing
education very useful were more than
twice as likely to be extremely
satisfied with their jobs as aides who
rated their continuing education
somewhat or not at all useful (52.3%
compared with 22.7%) (Figure 1).
+ Conversely, aides who found their
continuing education somewhat or not
at all useful were more than three
times as likely to be dissatisfied with
their jobs as aides who rated their
continuing education very useful
(25.9% compared with 7.5%).
Work environment
+ Over two-thirds of aides (69.6%)
reported the number of hours they
Page 4 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 NOTES: Job satisfaction includes the 146,300 aides (91% of total) who took continuing education in the previous 2 years. Percentages may not add to 100% because of rounding or because the denominator includes a category of unknowns not reported in the figure. Percentages are based on unrounded numbers. SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Home Health Aide Survey, 2007. Percent of home health aides
Continuing education
0
20
40
60
80
100
Dissatisfied with job
Somewhat satisfied with job
Extremely satisfied with job
Very useful Somewhat or not at all useful
7.5
25.9
49.9
22.7
39.0
52.3
Figure 1. Usefulness of continuing education, by job satisfaction: United States, 2007 worked was about right; however,
about one-quarter of aides (26.2%)
would prefer to work more hours
(Table 7).
+ More than 90% of aides reported
having enough or more than enough
time to assist patients with ADLs
(Table 8).
+ One-half of all aides (50.0%) had
worked as a home health aide for 11
years or more, about four-tenths
(41.3%) had worked as an aide
between 2 and 10 years, and less than
one-tenth (8.6%) had worked as an
aide fewer than 2 years (Figure 2).
+ Slightly over one-third of aides
working in micropolitan statistical
areas (35.6%) had worked as an aide
for 11 years or more, less than aides
working in metropolitan statistical
areas (51.9%) and aides working in
other locations (48.6%) (Table 9).
+ The opportunity for career
advancement was a reason for
continuing in their current job for
89.4% of aides under age 25, cited
more than among aides aged 25–34
(71.7%) and aides aged 55 and over
(76.0%) (Table 10).
+ The opportunity to work overtime
was a reason for continuing in their
current job for 47.3% of aides under
age 25, cited less frequently than
aides aged 25–34 (75.1%), 45–54
(72.4%), and 55 and over (76.5%).
The opportunity to work overtime
was also cited more frequently as a
reason for continuing in their current
job among male aides (84.4%) than
female aides (70.3%).
+ Almost one-half of aides (46.7%)
were extremely satisfied with their
job, 40.4% were somewhat satisfied,
and 11.7% were somewhat or
extremely dissatisfied (Table 11).
+ Among aides who were extremely
satisfied with their job, 77.0% were
extremely satisfied with the
opportunity to do challenging work,
73.0% were extremely satisfied with
their opportunities to learn new skills,
47.0% were extremely satisfied with
their benefits, and 31.6% were
extremely satisfied with their salary.
+ About three-fourths of aides (75.7%)
felt their supervisor respected them a
great deal as part of the health care
team, and 89.6% felt that patients
respected them a great deal as part of
the health care team.
+ Fifty-four percent of aides would
definitely take their current job again,
while 14.0% would probably or
definitely not take their current job
again.
+ Virtually all aides felt their work was
very important (96.5%). However,
fewer aides thought that their
supervisors (76.5%), their
organizations (66.3%), and society
(56.1%) valued their work very
much. Aides’ perceptions of the three
groups’ value of their work were all
significantly different from each other
(Figure 3).
Pay and employer-offered
benefits
+ During 2007–2008, home health and
hospice aides earned, on average,
$10.88 per hour (Table 12). The
federal minimum wage rate specified
in the Fair Labor Standards Act that
went into effect July 24, 2007, was
$5.85 (available from http://
www.laborlawcenter.com/t-federal
minimum-wage.aspx).
+ Aides working in areas outside of
metropolitan and micropolitan
statistical areas had the lowest
average hourly wage ($8.12 per
hour), compared with $10.91 per hour
in metropolitan and $12.16 per hour
in micropolitan statistical areas.
+ More than one-half of all aides
(56.7%) received a pay raise during
the past year.
+ Aides working for home health care
only agencies were less likely to
receive a pay raise within the past
year (51.6%) than aides working for
hospice care only (69.6%) and mixed
agencies (73.3%).
+ Aides working for home health care
only agencies were less likely to be
offered health insurance benefits
(66.0%) than were aides working for
hospice care only (94.3%) and mixed
agencies (89.2%) (Table 13 and
Figure 4).
+ Over one-half of aides worked for
agencies that offered extra pay for
working holidays (62.0%) or other
paid time off (59.1%); dental, vision,
or drug benefits (56.0%); disability or
life insurance (53.2%); or paid
holidays (51.2%) or paid sick leave
(50.5%).
Percent of home health aides
Time worked as home health aide Time worked at current job 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
12.6
3.1
1.6
6.5
3.9
12.9
20.9
31.1
20.4
16.9
35.0
17.2
15.0
2.8
6 months 6 months to less 1 year to less 2–5 years 6–10 years 11–20 years More than or fewer than 1 year than 2 years 20 years
NOTES: Percentages may not add to 100% because of rounding or because the denominator includes a category of unknowns not reported in the figure. Percentages are based on unrounded numbers.
SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Home Health Aide Survey, 2007. Figure 2. Length of time worked as home health aide and at current job: United States, 2007 40
60
80
100
Values work done as home
health aide somewhat or
Values work done as home
health aide very much
Society Organization Supervisor
42.0
56.1
32.1
66.3
21.2
76.5
not at all
Percent of home health aides
20
0
NOTES: Percentages may not add to 100% because of rounding or because the denominator includes a category of unknowns not reported in the figure. Percentages are based on unrounded numbers. SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Home Health Aide Survey, 2007. Figure 3. Home health aides’ perception of how others value their work: United States, 2007
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 Page 5 employers (72.7%), only about
one-third of all aides enrolled in their
employers’ plans (37.5%) (Table 14).
+ Among all aides, about one-third had
health insurance coverage that was
exclusively provided by their
employer (31.9%), and about
one-tenth had more than one source
of health insurance (11.1%), including
employer and nonemployer sources.
Almost one-fifth of all aides had no
health insurance coverage (18.8%)
through their employer, spouse or
another individual, or a government
+ About two-thirds of aides working in (32.7%) and about one-quarter of large home health care only agencies aides in smaller agencies (23.6%) of received dental, vision, or drug this type.
benefits (66.3%), compared with + While about three-fourths of all aides about one-third of aides in medium were offered health insurance by their plan, such as Medicaid or Medicare
(Figure 5).
Use of public benefits
+ Slightly over one-half of all aides
(51.8%) had received benefits prior to
or were receiving benefits at the time
of the NHHAS from at least one of
the following programs: Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF); Special Supplemental
Nutrition Program for Women,
Infants, and Children (WIC); or food
stamps (Table 15).
+ Almost one-tenth of aides were
receiving benefits from at least one of
Government only
6.1
Other
nongovernment,
nonemployer
source only
32.2
Employer policy only
31.9
No health
insurance
18.8
More than one
source of coverage
11.1
Both employer
and government
3.1
Both employer
and other
3.1
Both government
and other
4.9
NOTES: Percentages are based on unrounded numbers. Denominator excludes unknowns (1.9% of aides). SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Home Health Aide Survey, 2007. Figure 5. Source of health insurance for home health aides: United States, 2007 Page 6 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 NOTES: Denominator includes a category of unknowns not reported in the figure. Percentages are based on unrounded numbers. SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Home Health Aide Survey, 2007. Percent of home health aides
Small Medium Large Total
43.0
59.3
79.0
66.0
83.1
97.0
95.5 94.3
71.3
87.7
91.1
89.2
0
20
40
60
80
100
Home health care only Hospice care only Home health and hospice care Figure 4. Home health aides employed by agencies offering health insurance, by agency type and size: United States, 2007 these programs (9.9%) at the time of
NHHAS.
+ Among all aides, 5.4% were
receiving housing assistance (rental
subsidy, lower rent because of
government contributions, or living in
public housing) at the time of the
interview.
Injuries
+ At least one work-related injury in
the previous 12 months was reported
by 11.5% of aides (Table 16).
+ Among aides with injuries, 83.4%
had only one injury.
+ Back injuries (44.3%) and other
strains or pulled muscles (43.2%)
were the two most common types of
injuries reported among the aides
with one or more work-related
injuries in the past 12 months.
Discussion
These data are based on self-reports
through telephone interviews with 3,377
aides providing assistance in ADLs,
working directly for agencies providing
home health or hospice care and
employed by the agency at the time of
the NHHAS. The data from the first
nationally representative sample of
home health aides are especially useful
because they are based on direct
interviews with the aides. Aides are part
of a workforce where demand is
expected to increase, and supply is
expected to be insufficient to meet
demand (2). NHHAS data can be useful
as a basis for developing approaches for
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 34 n May 19, 2011 Page 7 improving work experiences and
increasing recruitment and retention.
The results presented in this report are
similar to studies of other direct care
workers (4,9,10) but also provide a
more complete picture of aides’ work
experiences and attitudes toward their
jobs.
Home health aides’ demographics
are not representative of the U.S.
population overall. The majority of aides
are female. While the majority of aides
are white, 34.9% of aides are
black more than twice the percentage
in the 2007 U.S. population (13.5% of
the U.S. population identified as black
alone or in combination with other
races, with 12.8% identified as black
alone) (11). The percentage of aides
with at least a high school diploma or
GED was 92.8%, compared with 84% in
the U.S. population aged 25 and over in
2007. However, the percentage of aides
with a college or advanced degree was
5.9% compared with 27.5% for the U.S.
population aged 25 and over (12).
Almost one-half of all aides had a
total family income of $30,000 or less,
compared with a 2007 national median
family income of $50,233 (13). Aides
reported a mean of $10.88 per hour
(median $10.51) compared with national
estimates of $10.03 (median $9.62)
reported by BLS for 2007 for home
health aides. The national mean and
median hourly wage estimates for all
occupations were $19.56 (mean) and
$15.10 (median), and for health care
support occupations were $12.31 (mean)
and $11.45 (median) in 2007 (14).
Seventeen percent of aides were
extremely satisfied with their salaries,
and 43.5% were somewhat satisfied with
their salaries, while 37.8% were
somewhat or extremely dissatisfied.
Most aides reported working for
agencies that offered a variety of
benefits, including health insurance and
paid time off. The most common benefit
aides reported was health insurance.
Although 72.7% of aides worked for
agencies that offered health insurance,
only 37.5% of aides enrolled in the
employer plan. Most aides whose
agency did not offer health insurance or
did not enroll in the agency plan were
covered by a spouse’s plan, purchased
coverage on their own, or were covered
by a government plan. Almost one-fifth
of aides were not covered by any health
insurance (18.5%) compared with 15%
of the population nationwide in 2007
(13). Among those aides offered health
insurance by their employer, 11.9%
were not covered by any other plan. The
Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111–148)
expands insurance coverage and makes
coverage more affordable. Thus, home
health aides who are currently uninsured
may have the opportunity to obtain
health insurance. NHHAS data provide a
baseline of the prevalence of health
insurance coverage among home health
aides prior to implementation of the new
law.
More than one-half of aides worked
for agencies that they reported offered
some type of paid time off, including
paid vacation or personal days (59.1%),
paid holidays (51.2%), or sick leave
(50.5%). Other common benefits
included extra pay for working holidays
(62.0%); dental, vision, or drug benefits
(56.0%); and/or disability or life
insurance (53.2%). While over one-half
of aides reported that they were either
extremely (28.5%) or somewhat satisfied
(28.9%) with the job benefits, 37.8%
were either somewhat or extremely
dissatisfied.
More than one-half of aides had
received TANF, WIC, or food stamps at
some point prior to the NHHAS, and
one-tenth of aides were receiving
benefits from one or more of those
programs at the time of the survey.
Forty percent of aides had received WIC
at some point prior to the NHHAS, and
4.8% were receiving WIC at the time of
the survey, compared with 3.4% of
women of childbearing age (15–44
years) in 2007, based on national
population estimates and WIC program
data (15). Among aides, 41.8% had
received food stamps prior to the
NHHAS, and 6.7% were receiving food
stamps at time of the survey, compared
with 7.7% of U.S households in 2007
that received food stamps or benefits
from the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP), as reported
by the Department of Commerce (16).
Since the percentages presented in this
report are calculated with a denominator
including all aides, not just aides
eligible for these benefits, these
percentages underestimate the
percentage of qualified aides receiving
benefits.
In 2007, home health aides were
experienced and committed to the field
of home health care and to their current
job. One-half of all aides had worked as
an aide for 10 years or more, and 15.0%
had worked as an aide for more than 20
years. Seventy-two percent of aides
would definitely become an aide
again a measure of commitment to the
field of home health care, and 84.5%
would probably or definitely take their
current job again a measure of
commitment to their current job. Older
home health aides were more likely than
younger aides to say they would become
an aide again. Virtually all aides felt
their work was very important (96.5%),
but
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