Is dementia training required for home care aides?

For aides in someone’s own home, we did not find a Georgia rule that sets a number of dementia training hours. Rules do exist for facilities, and they show what the state thinks is a good baseline:

- Memory care centers (Georgia Code 31-7-12.4): all staff get at least 4 hours of dementia-specific orientation within 30 days. Direct care staff get at least 16 hours of specialized dementia training within 30 days of working on their own with residents, then at least 8 hours every year.

- Assisted living (Rule 111-8-63-.09): hands-on staff must be trained on the special needs of residents with dementia and how to respond to dementia-related behavior.

For your caregivers, even if no rule applies, dementia is a big part of the job. A caregiver who knows how to handle wandering, repeating questions, and refusing a bath is safer and calmer. It also reduces burnout.

If you serve a waiver participant with dementia, read the service plan. It may call for specific skills.

Simple plan: include a dementia module in orientation, and repeat it as an in-service topic each year. Ask your state licensing office, in writing, if any dementia training is required for your license.