Health Care Assistant, Certificate

In demand

Health Care Assistant (HCA) graduates are in high demand.

Do you have a genuine desire to work with older adults and persons with disabilities? Are you intrigued by the possibility of assisting others with personal care in the practical aspects of their day-to-day lives? Are you prepared for a career that will require you to work days, evenings, nights, weekends, holidays and 8-12 hour shifts? If you answered yes to all the above, then Health Care Assistant is the perfect career for you.

In addition to the general HCA program, you can specialize in one of the following alternative streams:

• Health Care Assistant - ESL is designed for students who want to take the HCA program while also improving their English language skills. 
• Health Care Assistant - Indigenous is designed for Indigenous* learners who want to take the HCA program while focusing on Indigenous community and culture. 
  *Camosun College views any student who is a descendant of the Indigenous peoples of North America to be an Indigenous student. This includes status and non-status Indians, Métis, Inuit and Native Americans who reside in Canada.

We'll help you succeed

As you work through the Health Care Assistant program's curriculum and your clinical placements, you'll acquire the skills, knowledge and values you'll need to provide professional care to the elderly and those facing other health or illness challenges.

Focusing on the elderly, you'll learn how to provide care that promotes and maintains the physical, psychological and social well-being of the clients you'll care for in your subsequent role as a Health Care Assistant.

HCA Information Session Slides 

Find out more about upcoming networking and information sessions occurring at Camosun.

HCA Program Start Dates

New Intakes available every January, May and September.

Note:  a January intake (non-HCAP) will take place primarily on the Westshore at Belmont School. Program delivery is: 3 days at Belmont for theory classes, one full day at Interurban campus for lab and one day one-line.  

HHS Student Handbook

Current information for School of Health and Human Services students and HCA program specific handbook.

Recognition status by the BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry

The Health Care Assistant (HCA) program delivered by Camosun College has been granted a full, five-year recognition status by the BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry. Graduates of the HCA program delivered by Camosun College are eligible for registration with the BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry.

The BC Care Aide & Community Health Worker Registry reviews and recognizes Health Care Assistant (HCA) programs in BC to ensure that they are: following the provincial curriculum, implementing a common set of training standards and graduating competent front-line health care providers. Confirming that HCAs meet registration requirements is integral to the Registry's mandate of patient protection and improved standards of care. For further information about the recognition process and standards please see: www.cachwr.bc.ca.