Health Care Aide - Alternative

Program Description

Earn a Bow Valley College/Government of Alberta Health Care Aide Certificate. 

This self-paced program focuses on helping you develop the core skills needed to care for individuals in the health care field. Topics include personal care, assisting with mobility and assisting with mobility and nutrition, communication, assisting with medication delivery, and clinical skills. Upon completion, you will earn a Bow Valley College/Government of Alberta Health Care Aide Certificate. 

This program combines on-campus lab study, online theory components, and eight weeks of full-time experience in various clinical and practicum settings. 

Depending on the number of courses you take at one time, you will need to attend on-campus labs up to five or six times per month. It is recommended you take two or three courses per four-month semester, which allows for you to complete the program in 18 months.

Clinical experience

You will be required to travel to various locations in order to complete your clinical and practicum placements. Every effort is made to accommodate learners in clinical placements within the time frame of the program, however, in rare instances, there may be a delay in program completion until a clinical placement can be arranged.

Graduation requirements

To obtain your Government of Alberta Health Care Aide Provincial Curriculum 2019 Certificate, you will need to successfully complete the program, enroll in the Alberta Health Care Aide Directory, and pass the Alberta Health Care Aide Provincial Examination.

Tuition and financial aid

Refer to the Tuition and Fees chart for an estimate of the cost of completing a Bow Valley College career program. When creating a budget, consider the costs of tuition, learner fees, textbooks, learning materials, and police information check fees. Contact the Financial Aid team for advice on financing a Bow Valley College education.

Admission Requirements

Starting with new students in January 2020, admission requirements will be increasing. Please see the ‘Important Note’ below for more information.

Academic requirements

• Credit in English 20-1 or equivalent 

Or

• Satisfactory results on the Bow Valley College Admissions Test 

English language proficiency requirements

See English language proficiency requirements for details.

Pre-clinical requirements

• A current Police Information Check (PIC) with Vulnerable Sector Search (VSS) must be submitted prior to practicum placements. The existence of a criminal record may postpone or prevent clinical, practicum, or field work placements, and, subsequently, successful completion of the program.
• Immunization requirements must be met in order to participate in practicum placements. Details will be provided after being accepted into the program. Up-to-date immunizations are valid for the duration of the program.
• You will have an opportunity to get an N95 mask fitting, at our downtown campus. You will be able to register for this course (SAFT9406 N95 Mask Fitting) through MyBVC (or your regional administrator) once your program begins. This is a requirement for clinical placements.

Additional recommendations

• You can ensure your CPR certification is up to date by taking FACP9101 Basic Life Support CPR (healthcare provider level) through Continuing Education. You can see the current schedule and register online by clicking here. This certificate is recommended, but not required for clinical placements.
• Applicants must be able to work shifts and weekends, be on their feet for extended periods of time, use their knees, back, and arms to move clients who have minimal body strength and function effectively in stressful situations.

Transferability

You can transfer to the Bow Valley College – Recreation Therapy Aide Certificate Program.