October 18, 2019 marks Health Care Assistant Day in British Columbia.
BC Care Providers Association is proud to recognize the compassion, professionalism and perseverance of over 35,000 health care assistants (HCAs) working in B.C.
“Today, we acknowledge the contributions of the unsung heroes of our community,” says BCCPA CEO Daniel Fontaine. “HCAs play a unique role in our health care system and possess a broad range of skills which allows them to provide excellent care to our seniors.”
“To health care assistants across B.C., thank you for your round-the-clock commitment to helping those who need your help the most,” says Fontaine.
BCCPA is committed to working with the government, health authorities, unions and other partners to ensure that working as a health care assistant in the seniors’ living and care sector continues to be a desirable and rewarding profession.
Celebrating excellence in the field
Year after year, BCCPA celebrates the outstanding work of care providers at the BC Care Awards.
Frontline workers, nominated by their employers and colleagues, are recognized at a ceremony attended by Members of the Legislative Assembly, Ministry of Health staff, and BCCPA service provider and commercial members.
Congrats, 2019 #BCCareAwards winners! Great rounds of applause for Agnes Trylinski, Crystal Clark, Marilyn Kirkpatrick, Erin Terry, KD Riar-0& a heartfelt thank you to all those who work so hard to provide outstanding care for our elders. Thank you @BCCareProviders for the event pic.twitter.com/fQFuLcNz8v
— Adrian Dix (@adriandix) February 21, 2019
A memorable moment from our #BCCareAwards — Premier @jjhorgan meeting long-service award winner KD Riar, surrounded by her fellow award recipients. #seniorscare pic.twitter.com/LecJE0dIQk
— BC Care Providers (@BCCareProviders) February 21, 2019
Giving a voice to workers
In August 2018, BCCPA conducted a province-wide survey to ask health care workers why they chose seniors’ care as a career path.
Responses indicated that an overwhelming majority of health care workers find their careers intrinsically rewarding, and would recommend seniors’ care jobs to friends and family members.
94 per cent of health care workers view their work in seniors’ care as an honourable career, and 76 per cent indicated that they felt they were “making a positive difference” in people’s lives.
Calling attention to B.C.’s HHR crisis
For the last few years, BCCPA has been sounding the alarm on B.C.’s ongoing health human resources crisis.
The Association has been working with sector stakeholders–including industry, unions, career colleges and frontline workers themselves–to identify practical approaches to address the crisis, and has released multiple reports to drive action.
BCCPA has also launched public awareness campaigns to promote job opportunities in the seniors’ care sector.
Promoting career and training opportunities
BCCPA has thrown its support behind a new marketing campaign by Health Match BC to boost public awareness of the health care assistant profession. “Choose2Care” is funded by the provincial government, and was developed in partnership with multiple government ministry representatives, health authorities, training college, as well as BC Care Providers Association providing ideas and input on the campaign.
BCCPA committed to investing $100,000 into a bursary program over the next three years for students enrolled in recognized care aide training programs in B.C. The first year will see bursaries of $3,125 allocated to eight students enrolled at Okanagan College, providing nearly a full scholarship for aspiring HCAs.
BCCPA also endorsed a unique program that provides training to immigrants in Metro Vancouver who want to work as care aides. The Care-Aide Training for Employment (CATE) program is supported by MOSAIC, in conjunction with Sprott Shaw College. In 2017, 15 of CATE’s first program graduates celebrated the completion of their course, followed by a second cohort of students in 2018.
Join us in celebrating Health Care Assistant Day. Use #HCADay2019 on your preferred social media platforms to thank health care assistants and show your appreciation for all they do for seniors.
