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		The Massachusetts Council for Home Care Aide Services The Massachusetts Council for Home Care Aide Services (Council) has been the voice for paraprofessional home care aide services in Massachusetts since 1967. Council membership includes over 100 Medicare certified, non-certified, and private pay agencies which directly employ home care aides and meet standards of training, supervision, and administration as established by the organization.  Home care aides are the heart of the Commonwealth's home care system, providing personalized and supportive services that enable our elders and disabled children and adults to remain at home. The Council works with state agencies, the Legislature, the media, and the general public, providing timely information and education on home care services and advocating for priority home care issues and initiatives.  Throughout our history, the Council has brought together providers from certified home health, homemaker, and private pay agencies to ensure that quality home care aide services are delivered throughout Massachusetts.  The Council has been the leader in setting standards for home care aides and is proud to serve as the question and referral source for standards of practice.  The Council keeps its members informed of issues affecting home care aide services through our informative Board meetings, regional meetings, monthly newsletter, and email alerts. Most importantly, membership in the Council provides you with the opportunity to network with and learn from other home care providers in order to develop innovative ways to balance the needs of your agency with the needs of your staff and your clients.  NEW HOME FOR THE COUNCIL! In October, the MA Council for Home Care Aide Services (Council) moved to Waltham.  Our office is now located at the headquarters of Jewish Family and Children’s Service.  We are extremely grateful that JF&CS was able to accommodate the Council in its Waltham location.   Please remember our new phone number is: 781-693-5719 and our new address is: 1430 Main Street, Waltham, MA 02451 CHECK OUT THE COUNCIL’S NEW FACEBOOK PAGE The Council has a new Facebook page! Click on the following link to “Like” us and receive regular updates on what we are up to: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Massachusetts-Council-for-Home-Care-Aide-Services/187412874618842?sk=wall. ; Also, check our pictures from recent events including our Home Care Aide Celebration and our 2011 Personal and Home Care Aide State Training (PHCAST) graduates.  COUNCIL GRADUATES 174 PCHMs THROUGH PHCAST GRANT In September, the Council completed our final six (6) pilot trainings through the Massachusetts Personal and Home Care Aide State Training Program (PHCAST) grant awarded to the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) by the United States Department of Health and Human Services.  The Council was awarded $266,850 in Year 1 of this grant initiative to update and enhance our Home Care Aide Training Curriculum outline and pilot test our new home care aide training model through regional trainings.  In total, this summer the Council held fifteen (15) PHCAST Enhanced Personal Care Homemaker pilot trainings.  These free trainings took place in: Worcester, Danvers, Lynn, Malden, Holyoke, Hadley, Taunton, North Andover, South Dennis, Greenfield, and Burlington.  The Council enrolled 188 students in these trainings and 174 of these students successfully completed the program.  In October, the Commonwealth Corporation (Comm Corp) and the PHCAST Grant Team began to review the results of our Year 1 pilot.  The Council will work closely with this team to further enhance our curriculum throughout the next couple of months.  The PHCAST team will also continue its work to develop Core competency curricula for direct care workers.  This Core curriculum is being integrated into the Council’s enhancements.      In spring 2012, the Council will train an additional 200 students at a new series of free regional trainings.  Information on our Spring 2012 PHCAST trainings will be posted on our website in the beginning of the new year.  Detailed information on the Massachusetts PHCAST program can be found online at: www.mass.gov/hhs/communityfirst. ; COUNCIL RELEASES NEW "STANDARDS MANUAL" WITH RESOURCE DISC. ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY This new manual, developed by the Standards Committee of the MA Council for Home Care Aide Services, delineates requirements for homemakers, personal care homemakers, and home health aides as set forth by the federal Conditions of Participation (COPs) for Home Health Agencies, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs, and the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission. Our new manual is divided into seven distinct sections: Hiring Practices, Position Descriptions, Training Requirements, Competency Evaluation, Field Supervision, In-Service Requirements, and Disciplinary Action and Termination.  The manual also includes relevant home care laws and regulations and an appendix with multiple legal reference documents.  In addition, this new manual includes a companion resource disk that contains sample documents and additional resources in both Microsoft Word and PDF formats.  We are pleased to offer this new manual and companion disk to Council members for $150 (plus $5.00 mailing charge).  Non-members can purchase the manual and disk for $300 (plus $5.00 mailing charge).  If you are interested in purchasing a copy of this invaluable resource, download the following order form and send it to the Council office today: www.mahomecareaides.com/documents/StandardsOrderform.doc REVISED HHA COMPETENCY EXAM NOW AVAILABLE A special workgroup of the Council’s Standards Committee has revised the Council’s Home Health Aide Competency Exam last updated in 1998. The exam was revised with the specific goals of clarifying/rewording certain questions and addressing issues that arise for English for Speakers of Other Language (ESOL) students.  This new edition is the Council’s fifth revision of this exam. Our exam is divided into ten sections to ensure coverage of all of the subject areas required by Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Conditions of Participation for Home Health Agencies.  We are pleased to offer this revised examination on CD to Council members for $100 (plus $4.00 mailing charge). Non-members can purchase the exam for $200 (plus $4.00 mailing charge). Download the order form for the disc at: www.mahomecareaides.com/documents/HHAExamOrderForm.doc. COUNCIL RELEASES CONSUMER BROCHURE ON PRIVATE PAY Caring for a loved one at home can be an overwhelming experience. Fortunately, there are many options today for those who need assistance to remain safely in their homes. However, deciding which option is best for your family can be difficult if you don’t understand your options and know what to look for. Most people are not aware that Medicare and most insurance policies cover only short-term clinical home care aide services for limited increments of time. Often, the amount of care provided through insurance and other programs is not sufficient to keep a person safely at home once their medical needs have been met. In those cases, their family might choose to purchase additional services for their loved one. The Council designed our "Know Your Private Pay Home Care Options" brochure as a guide for families purchasing home care services in times of need. This tool will help you understand what paraprofessional home care services are and will help you decide which services can best be used by your family. Click on the following link to download an electronic copy of this brochure: www.mahomecareaides.com/documents/Private%20Pay%20Brochure%202006.pdf If you would like to receive multiple copies of this resource, please contact the Council office by telephone at 781-693-5719 or email at lgurgone@mahomecareaides.org.
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