🤝Elderly carer

About the job

An elderly carer helps older people keep their dignity and independence in everyday life. The work can be in the beneficiary's home (COR code 532201) or in a residential centre (COR code 532104), on day, night or shift schedules. It is not a medical role — the carer supports daily activities, observes the senior's condition and alerts the family or medical staff when needed.

Responsibilities

• Support with personal hygiene: bathing, dressing, changing bedding
• Help with meals, feeding and hydration, following the recommended diet
• Mobilising and transferring the beneficiary, and fall prevention
• Help with already-prescribed medication, on the nurse's instruction
• Companionship, conversation and activities that reduce isolation
• Monitoring general condition and filling in the daily care record
• Providing first aid and urgently alerting medical staff

Requirements

• At least 8 grades (compulsory education)
• ANC level-2 'Home elderly carer' qualification (recommended, often required)
• Empathy, patience and the physical stamina for daily activities
• Availability for shift or live-in schedules (for some roles)
• Clean criminal record and a medical fitness certificate

Certifications & courses

• ANC-accredited 'Home elderly carer' course (level 2, 120–360 hours) — e.g. the Red Cross, authorised providers
• Alternative: assessment of skills gained through experience (ANC exam, without the full course)
• First-aid course (recommended)

Where you can work

• Private care homes and residential centres for seniors
• Home-care services and specialised agencies
• DGASPC and public residential centres
• NGOs (Red Cross, Caritas, the Princess Margareta Foundation) and families hiring directly

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a course to work as an elderly carer?

It isn't always legally mandatory, but most serious employers ask for an ANC level-2 'Home elderly carer' qualification. It improves your hiring chances and your salary. If you have proven experience, you can earn the diploma through a skills assessment, without the full course.

Can I administer medication as a carer?

Only medication already prescribed by a doctor, as support (reminders, dosing per the prescription), on the nurse's instruction. You don't set treatments or perform medical procedures — those belong to the nurse or doctor.

What's the difference from a nursing assistant?

A nursing assistant more often works in medical units, under a nurse's coordination, with basic care in a clinical context. An elderly carer focuses on everyday support, at home or in a care home.