Home health aides and certified nursing assistants, or CNAs, play similar roles in the health care community. Both provide companionship and basic care to patients, while reporting back to the nurses and doctors overseeing the patients' care. The primary difference lies in the level of training required and the type of care they can provide without supervision from a doctor or nurse: 

 

Other Responsibilities:

• Primarily, they assist with bathing, dressing and other hygiene needs, in addition to preparing meals and helping patients eat. They may perform light housekeeping duties such as laundry, in addition to grocery shopping and providing transportation

• Home health aides provide basic personal care to patients, many of whom are elderly or disabled. They rarely provide any type of medical care, although some states allow them to administer medications or check a patient's vital signs if supervised by a nurse or other licensed health care professional

• They may also provide simple medical care such as changing dressings, and with additional training they can sometimes assist with equipment such as ventilators. 

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Medical Social Worker (MSW) Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses. Services include advising family care givers, providing patient education and counseling, and making referrals for other services. May also provide care and case management or interventions designed to promote health, prevent disease, and address barriers to access to healthcare

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Other Responsibilities:

• Helps patients utilize the resources of their families and the community. This may be accomplished by either referring the patients to resources, or acting as an advocate on behalf of the patients in their dealings with other health and welfare agencies

• Assists patients and their families with personal and environmental difficulties, which predispose them toward illness or interfere with obtaining maximum benefits from medical care.

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