The first basic element to take care of any other living creature is empathy. Without empathy, you will not be able to feel another's pain or suffering as your own. And without feeling another's pain, you wouldn't be able to take care of them. Sadly in the hustle-bustle of this modern life, many people abandon their parents when they become old. And then, unfortunately, there are old people who have not been abandoned but nonetheless, they don't have anybody to take care of them.
So you feel the pain of the elderly as your own, and you have decided to work in the aged care sector. But what will it really take to do so? There are a lot of tasks that you can help out the elderly with. You can help them in their daily outdoor and indoor chores such as shopping and housekeeping. You can also help them at a more personal level, that is, maintaining their hygiene. Other activities that you can do include organising social support and making sure the person you're taking care of doesn't feel left out.
Since there are so many tasks, there are plenty of key roles and main sectors to choose from. You can opt to be a registered nurse or a community support worker who helps out with carrying out community support programs. But these are not all. And then the sectors in which you can work are public administration and safety, healthcare and social assistance, and administrative and support services.
Again, the requirements you would need to match to work in this aged sector are soft skills. Since it is a form of social work, you need to be great at communicating, both listening and speaking. And that's just one of the many soft skills that you would need. To learn about more soft skills that you need to possess, as well as other requirements and key roles in the aged care sector, have a look at the following infographic.
Infographic by: Koncheck
