Certified caregiver training in the state of Illinois was mandated by state law in 2008. Then shortly after this, an additional mandate for Alzheimer’s disease caregiver training was added. Illinois caregivers are required to annually renew training for both basic caregiving skills and dementia caregiving skills.

How do you become a professional caregiver in Illinois?

• 8-Hour Caregiver Certification course with the basic skills for caregiving, including Elder Abuse Identification and Reporting and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) topics.
• 6-Hour Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia training for any caregiver who will be working with seniors with memory loss. This includes learning about the different types of memory loss illnesses, as Alzheimer’s disease is just one type of dementia. As Alzheimer’s disease progresses over time, and includes forgetting person, place and time, it brings additional safety risks. The Alzheimer’s Association lobbied the state of Illinois to mandate this training which became a requirement in 2014.

Illinois reports more than 210,000 seniors suffer from Alzheimer’s Disease and projects this will grow to more than 240,000 in 2025.

Illinois Public Health Statue 410 ILCS 405 Alzheimer’s Disease Assistance Act mandates both caregiver and supervisor training for licensed senior home care agencies in the state who provide care for any seniors with dementia.

Review all Illinois Caregiver Training requirements on Caregiverlist, and purchase caregiver training for yourself or your staff.

Certified caregiver training may be taken through an online course and access to the training will be maintained for senior caregivers, allowing renewal training to easily be taken each year. Caregivers may also obtain a t-shirt and lapel pin as members of the Professional Association of Caregivers to showcase their training accomplishments.

The Professional Association of Caregivers members receive Caregiver Training University courses, the industry’s very best training and we thought we would go the extra mile to tell you the facts on why.

The first is In the Know locks you into contracts – ouch! We wanted to work with a company that knew we would stay with them because they offered a great product, not because we were locked into a monthly contract.

Caregiver training for senior care has become a requirement in many states, although most professional senior home care agencies have always trained their staff on caregiving skills. Why does the Professional Association of Caregivers provide training from Caregiver Training University? Because they offered the first and only caregiver training created in-the-cloud and with courses that includes activities and tools to use for caregiving in-the-home setting, along with an indepth exam to confirm retention of information to reward the caregiver (they are the only training on the market offering 3 different sets of questions for caregivers to re-take the exam 3 times and created this concept, along with several other cool unique tools just for senior caregivers). They aren’t off-the-shelf training written for doctors, nurses and C.N.A.’s, but instead training created just for caregivers. This is why we only use Caregiver Training University classes for senior caregivers.

Let’s show you why you are enjoying the industry’s best training by answering some questions about other training out there.

Caregiver Training University, most importantly, delivers a very enjoyable experience to the caregivers as an in-the-cloud training that doesn’t require an App and can be used on any device. This is the #1 reason – far superior user experience – in addition to having better content and pricing.

In-the-Know training was created as Continuing Education Units (CEU’s) for Certified Nursing Aids and created originally as ink-on-paper courses. They later decided to come into the caregiver training market but did not have a background in creating digital content and did not have their own learning management system. A few more reasons why their training is not preferred are listed below, to help you know you are receiving the best training from Caregiver Training University as a P.A.C. member.

In the Know Caregiver Training Features vs. Caregiver Training University

• Pagespeed below 7 (on a scale of 1 to 100, this is their PageSpeed rank by Google): this means it is a slow-moving website that is also difficult to use, think of driving 7 miles per hour vs. 90 miles per hour, which delivers a frustrating user experience.
• Requires an “App” if want to take training on your smartphone which is just an added hassle and headache.
• Uses a Learning Management Platform from another Company that cannot be updated in real-time (they will actually say “come back later” on their log-in page sometimes).
• Lack of Interactive Content: ink-on-paper content shoveled online, instead of interactive content written for the digital experience.
• Contracts: Ouch! In-the-Know locks companies into contracts and requires senior care companies to pay for monthly training courses, even if they don’t use any courses to train caregivers that month, so we didn’t want to be locked into a contract.
• Training not customized to match state laws – you have to go shopping for different topics and hope you get it right.
• Tough to reach on the phone.
• Equity-ownership: private equity investors, as you know (get it) are in-it-for-the-profits. They invest in companies to flip them. They don’t have a background in learning management systems or in creating new tools for caregivers. This means they also have debt and the company will be flipped which means lots of changes, including changes in pricing.
• Not a diversity supplier – Caregiver Training University has met the rigorous standards to be a Certified Diversity Supplier and is the only caregiver training company on the market that has achieved this designation (Relias is part of a German-owned conglomerate, Bertelsmann, Care Academy is majority-owned by Venture Capitalists and thus cannot meet the diversity supplier requirements (and also are a company of debt).
• The name In the Know presents challenges for caregiver training: caregivers can say they received training from Caregiver Training University, (we couldn’t imagine saying “I got my training from “In the Know” – what? You know what? Just kidding but it presents branding challenges which means there will be other challenges if they aren’t interested in going the extra mile to have a name that resonates for caregivers. Where else do they cut corners? We couldn’t imagine asking a caregiver to try to explain to an 80-year-old senior that they secured their training at “In the Know”. We can only imagine how confusing that would be. We strive to deliver an experience that assists caregivers to be part of a professional career, with training that has a professional name.

Those are the main reasons why we don’t recommend their training for senior care. We’ve also heard they make it difficult for companies to get out of their contracts, even when they are no longer going to use their training. And we also prefer working with a certified diversity supplier.

Companies that deliver a great product typically don’t have to lock customers into contracts they can’t get out of because the customers will want to stay with the company because the product is great.

All companies who review caregiver training have found Caregiver Training University to be the most innovative and cost-effective caregiver training on the market and that it goes the extra mile to promote caregivers. They were the first company on the market to offer an in-depth exam to reward caregivers and we really enjoy knowing that we are working with a company that showcases caregiver’s achievements and provides the most modern digital experience available.

And, team Caregiver Training University’s employees all have a back ground in senior care, operating a home care agency and working as caregivers.

Learn more at: www.caregivertraininguniversity.com

Join the Professional Association of Caregivers – and become part of the P.A.C. family.

Professional caregivers have the ongoing challenge of making sure to take care of their emotional needs as they care for others. Enjoy this week’s photo.

Caregivers may enter to win this free new medication manager device.

National Caregivers Day might have been last month, but we like to celebrate caregivers year-round! As a special thank you to all caregivers, we’re giving away one Pria device with six-months free subscription. Enter for a chance to win this awesome prize HERE.

Pria by BLACK+DECKER helps ease the stress associated with caregiving and allows aging loved ones to maintain their independence while thriving in place. Pria is so much more than a medication management device. With the mobile app, you’re able to stay more connected than ever to the people you care for. In addition to medication reminders and dispensing, Pria also features two-way video calling, voice commands, reminders, check-in options and more, that were all designed to maximize quality time with loved ones.

*Enter giveaway  by 4/5/20 at 11:59 PM ET. See Official Rules for all details.

Learn more about becoming a Caregiver at Caregiverlist.

Senior caregivers provide both emotional support and care for physical needs. It’s important that caregivers take time to take care of themselves. Enjoy this week’s stress relief photo.

Find caregiver training and tools for senior care on Caregiverlist.

Illinois Employer’s Annual Sexual Harassment Training Requirement

Illinois’ Governor J.B. Pritzker signed into law a requirement for sexual harassment prevention training for all employees for companies in Illinois. Here are answers to common questions about this new Illinois law.

When does the requirement go into effect? Now but enforcement will begin January 1, 2021, which just means all Illinois companies must show they are training their employees annually on how to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace by the end of this year. Training employees by December 31, 2020, meets your Jan. 1, 2021 deadline. Effective January 1, 2020, all employers must train all employees in Illinois each year. The first deadline is January 1, 2021.

What topics will the annual Illinois required sexual harassment training program include?

• An explanation of sexual harassment

• Examples of conduct that constitutes unlawful sexual harassment

• A summary of federal and state statutory provisions, including remedies available to victims of sexual harassment

• A summary of the responsibilities of employers for prevention, investigation, and corrective measures of sexual harassment.

What happens if an Illinois employer for some reason does not provide this annual sexual harassment prevention training to their employees?

Employers who do not provide compliant training will be subject to civil penalties, including a $500 penalty to businesses with less than 4 employees, or a $1,000 penalty to those with 4 or more employees. Penalties for subsequent violations can rise to $5,000 per violation.

Illinois employers can find sexual harassment prevention training through Caregiverlist’s Learning Management System, specializing in easy-to-understand training for employees with a modern tracking system for employers. Call: 312-669-8820

Caregivers providing daily and 24-hour care in the state of Georgia must follow the training guidelines established by the state. Senior home care agencies providing professional caregivers and individual caregivers are required to show verification of the required training curriculum.

Georgia Senior Caregiver Training Program Requirements are:

• Companion Caregivers and Private-Duty Homemakers: Training in basic caregiving skills, including HIPPA, Elder Abuse, Safety, Infection Control, following Georgia state-approved topics for 8-hours of training within the first annual year of caregiving and renewal training consisting of an 8-hour curriculum for each following year.
• Certified Nurse Aides: Attend and complete a state-approved Certified Nursing Aide program, meeting the minimum federal training requirement and passing the state C.N.A. certification exam. Continuing Education Units, or C.E.U.’s are required annually on refresher topics.

Spanish language Georgia caregiver training courses are available along with the initial training and annual renewal training through the Professional Association of Caregiver’s partner, Caregiverlist. This training meets the state requirements and delivers built-for-caregivers content that is smart-phone and tablet-friendly and provides a certification of achievement upon passing the exam.

Buy Training for yourself or train your staff or buy Spanish -language training to become a Georgia caregiver today.