Persons intended to provide certain personal and health care services to clients at their home are required to hold a license as a Homemaker-Home Health Aide, as issued by the Board of Nursing under the State of New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs. The Board has enacted regulations related to training and application requirements, and also handles examinations and disciplinary enforcement for misconduct. Candidates must meet the minimum educational and exam requirements before obtaining their license. Convictions of certain crimes, as designated by the Board, will disqualify applicants from receiving or holding their Homemaker-HHA license.

Obtaining a license

General

Homemaker-HHA applicants are certified as such after successfully completing a training program, competency evaluation and criminal background check. The educational component of the licensing process must be through a training institution approved by the Board, which can be accomplished through a certification package prepared by the Board. There is also a process whereby candidates can receive their Homemaker-HHA license by endorsement. Once all requisites are complete, applicants must submit their application with supporting documents and processing fees.

Training

All Homemaker-HHA candidates must complete 76 hours of educational training at a Board approved school. The 76 hour curriculum shall include:

• A minimum of 60 hours in-classroom instruction; and,
• At lease 16 hours of clinical instruction in a laboratory or patient-care environment.

Classroom instruction shall cover such topics as the role of the Homemaker-HHA in patient care; the foundations of working with patients and their families; the basics of providing a safe patient environment; the anatomy of the primary systems of the human body; the legalities of death and dying; and, other concepts as directed by the Board.

Competency examination

After completing the training component of the licensing process, the Homemaker-HHA applicant must register for the competency exam administered by the Board, which is offered four or more times per year. Applicants may work for a home health care agency while waiting to take the competency exam, so long as they operate under the supervision of a registered professional nurse.

Application

Applicants for a Homemaker-HHA license must submit the following with their application:

• The application and $80 application fee;
• Birth certificate and supporting documents proving U.S. citizenship; and,
• Evidence of completion of training program.

Licensure by endorsement

To be eligible to obtain the Homemaker-HHA license by endorsement, an out-of-state applicant must have completed 76 hours of a qualifying homemaker-home health aide course. Candidates must then submit an Application for Certification with the following documents:

• Certification and authorization from the other state;
• An application fee in the amount of $60; and,
• An official letter from the training institution stating the number of training hours completed.

Maintaining a license

Renewal

Homemaker-HHA certification must be renewed every two years from the date the license was issued, except in the case that disciplinary action has been instituted by the Board based on rules violations.

Disciplinary actions

The Board maintains all authority over the discipline of Homemaker-HHA licensees. Those license holders who violate Board-established regulations may have their certification placed on probation, suspended or revoked. Typical violations include failing to report criminal conviction, failure to maintain a current certification and administering medication to patients without authority.

Disqualification for certain criminal convictions

Upon the conviction of certain crimes, first-time applicants for their Homemaker-HHA license are disqualified from receiving their credentials; likewise, licensees holding an existing license will have their certification revoked by the Board. Crimes which qualify as Disqualifying Crimes include, but are not limited to:

• Crimes resulting in personal injury or death to another person;
• Kidnapping, false imprisonment or interfering with custody;
• Theft or robbery;
• Endangering the welfare of a child, elderly or incompetent person; and,
• Drug related offenses.