How to become a patient care assistant | Salary, duties & more

Start earning healthcare money in just 12 months as a Patient Care Assistant.

Forget spending four years at university racking up massive student debt before you can even start helping people. Patient Care Assistant training takes 12 months and gets you working in hospitals or aged care facilities earning decent money whilst actually making a difference in the lives of those who need it most.

Australia’s population aged 65 and over is projected to hit nearly one-quarter of all people by 2064, up from 17.3% today. That demographic shift means healthcare facilities will desperately need your hands-on caring skills for decades to come, guaranteeing job security almost any other career simply can’t match.

If you’re looking for a job that will show you the fruits of your labour almost immediately, then you might want to look into how to become a Patient Care Assistant in Australia. This guide will show you exactly how to get there plus how the Institute of Allied Health’s Certificate III in Health Services Assistance is your best path forward.

What is a Patient Care Assistant?

Patient Care Assistants work directly with people who need help managing everyday tasks that most of us take for granted. They support patients who temporarily or permanently can’t wash themselves, get out of bed safely or eat meals without assistance. Whilst this role isn’t about treating diseases or making medical decisions, Patient Care Assistants keep people clean, fed, comfortable and safe when doctors and nurses are busy designing a treatment plan.

You’ll find Patient Care Assistant positions in hospitals treating acutely unwell people, nursing homes caring for elderly residents long-term and outpatient clinics where people come for ongoing treatments without staying overnight. The work is a little bit different across these settings, but the purpose stays the same: providing practical, hands-on support that helps patients keep their dignity and wellbeing. Some facilities call this role Patient Care Aide instead, though both titles describe identical work.

Australia saw 12.1 million hospital admissions in 2023, and every single one of those admissions created demand for Patient Care Assistants who could help. Without these workers, hospitals simply couldn’t function because nurses and doctors wouldn’t have time to handle everything. Here’s how the different healthcare roles compare:

 *Salary data sourced from Payscale

Duties of a Patient Care Assistant

Everything you do as Patient Care Assistant revolves around keeping patients physically comfortable and emotionally supported during healthcare experiences. Your responsibilities shift slightly depending on whether you’re in a bustling hospital emergency department or a quiet aged care facility, but the fundamental purpose stays the same.

Here are the regular duties of a Patient Care Assistant:

• Helping with intimate personal tasks: Showering, toileting, dressing and grooming assistance for people who’ve temporarily or permanently lost the ability to manage these private activities independently.

• Tracking basic health indicators: Regular checks of body temperature, pulse rate, blood pressure readings and breathing patterns, with immediate reporting when something seems off.

• Supporting nutrition and hydration: Serving meals, helping people who struggle with cutlery or swallowing and documenting exactly what patients consume throughout the day.

• Preventing dangerous falls: Helping patients walk safely, moving them between furniture and catching them before they tumble.

Patient Care Assistant vs. Patient Services Assistant

Patient Services Assistants handle the paperwork side of healthcare rather than working with patients directly. They book appointments, file medical records, process admission forms and answer reception phones whilst Patient Care Assistants are on the ward helping people eat breakfast or use the bathroom. Some smaller clinics blur these boundaries where staff juggle both administrative duties and basic patient support, but most hospitals keep these roles separate.

These are the biggest differences between Patient Care Assistants and Patient Services Assistants:

Patient Care Assistant salary insights

The Patient Care Assistant salary in Australia is around a median hourly rate of $25, which translates to about $55,000 per year. The pay spectrum varies quite a bit depending on your experience and workplace, as 90% of workers in this field make at least $23 an hour but the top 10% of earners make $28 an hour or more. 

Your actual take-home pay depends heavily on where you work and how long you’ve been doing the job. Patient Care Assistants in major city hospitals can earn more than those in regional aged care facilities because cities have higher base rates to compensate for higher costs of living.

Experience matters, too. Fresh graduates starting their first Patient Care Assistant role usually sit at the lower end of the pay scale, whilst workers with five years of hands-on experience and specialised skills like dementia care can ask for higher, premium hourly rates.

The type of facility you choose makes a real difference in your weekly earnings as well. Hospitals usually pay better base rates than residential aged care homes, though aged care facilities sometimes offer more predictable rostering without the intensity of acute care environments.

Private healthcare providers occasionally pay slightly more than public facilities, but public sector jobs tend to come with better benefits and more reliable shifts.

Qualifications to become a Patient Care Aide/Assistant in Australia

You’ll need a Certificate III in Health Services Assistance to break into patient care work, which trains you on how to manage infections and how to lift injured patients without hurting them. This nationally recognised qualification could be yours in just 12 months of full-time study and is all you need to start working in hospitals, aged care facilities and community health centres all over Australia. 

The Institute of Allied Health runs this program completely online, letting you study at whatever pace suits your current life whilst still getting the hands-on placement expertise that builds real confidence.

Here’s what you’ll learn as you complete your certificate:

• Ward support and clinical assistance: You’ll get comfortable working alongside busy nursing teams, learning when to step in during procedures and when to stay back. The placement component throws you into real hospital or aged care environments where you’ll practice under supervision until taking vital signs or repositioning patients becomes second nature rather than nerve-wracking.

• Personal hygiene and daily living support: Helping someone shower or use the toilet requires specific techniques that protect their dignity whilst keeping both of you safe from injury. Your training covers these intimate care scenarios thoroughly because fumbling through them on your first day would traumatise both you and your patients.

• Safety protocols and infection management: Healthcare environments are crawling with dangerous bacteria and viruses that can hurt immunocompromised patients. You’ll learn proper handwashing routines, how to use personal protective equipment correctly and how to safely dispose of contaminated materials.

• Patient interaction and documentation skills: Talking to confused elderly people or distressed hospital patients requires different communication approaches than chatting with your mates. The course teaches you how to speak clearly without being condescending, plus proper record-keeping so other staff know what happened to everyone during your shift.

How to Become a Patient Care Assistant in Australia

Getting started as a Patient Care Assistant doesn’t require years of university study and perfect academic records. You can move from complete beginner to employed healthcare worker in roughly 12 months by following a straightforward pathway that thousands of Australians complete every year. Each stage builds practical knowledge whilst giving you realistic expectations about whether this physically and emotionally demanding career suits you.

Step 1: Figure out if patient care is for you

Jumping into healthcare training without understanding the daily reality sets you up for disappointment. Patient Care Assistants deal with bodily fluids, confused dementia patients, heavy lifting and people during their absolute worst moments. Some people thrive in this environment whilst others burn out within months, so test the waters before committing money to qualifications.

Visit hospitals or aged care facilities and ask if you can shadow Patient Care Assistants for a few hours. Watch what they actually do during their shifts rather than relying on sanitised course brochures. Talk to current workers about what they love and what they don’t about the job.

Step 2: Complete your Certificate III in Health Services Assistance

The Certificate III in Health Services Assistance is your standard entry qualification for Patient Care Assistant roles across Australia. This nationally recognised training runs for 12 months full-time and covers 18 units including infection control, patient hygiene assistance, vital signs monitoring and workplace safety protocols that healthcare facilities demand before hiring.

The Institute of Allied Health delivers your qualifications entirely online with self-paced learning, so you can study around existing responsibilities without attending scheduled classes. You’ll need to have completed Year 10 or equivalent experience to enrol, plus you must be at least 16 years old.

Step 3: Secure your practical placement hours

Every Certificate III includes mandatory workplace placement where you practice patient care skills under experienced staff supervision. These placements happen during your final months of study and require 80–120 hours across hospitals, aged care facilities or community health centres. 

Treat placements seriously because supervisors could become your first employment references and some facilities hire students they’ve already trained. Show up on time, ask intelligent questions, handle difficult situations professionally and demonstrate genuine compassion for vulnerable patients during these crucial supervised hours.

Step 4: Apply strategically for Patient Care Assistant positions

Start job hunting during your final study months rather than waiting until you’ve completely finished, since many employers hire students approaching qualification. Aged care facilities constantly hire due to chronic staff shortages, making them excellent places to land your first break. Hospitals run more competitive recruitment but offer better career progression opportunities.

Tailor your resume to highlight placement experiences, any previous caring roles and specific patient care skills you’ve developed. Prepare for interviews by researching each facility’s values and practicing answers about handling difficult patients and working under pressure during emergencies.

Step 5: Keep developing skills after you start working

Your first Patient Care Assistant job is just the beginning of what you can achieve in healthcare. Many workers use this role as a stepping stone toward Enrolled Nurse or Registered Nurse qualifications that drastically increase your earning potential. Others specialise in dementia care, wound management or rehabilitation support, commanding premium wages for expertise in complex patient care.

Career pathways and future outlook

Patient Care Assistant roles come with genuine job security because Australia’s ageing population creates relentless demand for hands-on carers. Life expectancy keeps climbing, with men projected to reach 83.8 years and women 87.1 years by 2034, up from 81.5 and 85.4 years respectively. 

More importantly, the number of Australians aged 75 or over will explode by 49% over the next decade, jumping from 2.1 million people today to over 3.2 million by 2034. That’s an extra million elderly people who’ll need daily help with personal care, creating massive demand for Patient Care Assistants across hospitals and aged care facilities.

Australia already spends $96 billion per year on hospital care alone, accounting for 40% of all health expenditure in the country. This massive investment means healthcare facilities constantly need qualified workers to deliver the hands-on patient support that justifies those billions in spending. 

No matter which way you slice it, there is plenty of demand for Patient Care Assistants and related healthcare worker positions well into the future. Most workers advance to Enrolled Nurse through a Diploma of Nursing or to Registered Nurse with a Bachelor of Nursing. Alternatively, you can specialise by completing a Certificate IV in Allied Health Assistance to land higher-paying roles supporting physiotherapists, occupational therapists or speech pathologists with more technical responsibilities and higher pay.

Patient services and care assistant FAQs 

What is the role of a patient care assistant in hospitals?

Patient Care Assistants help hospital patients with daily activities like showering, eating and moving around safely whilst monitoring vital signs and reporting changes to nurses. They work on wards providing hands-on personal care that keeps patients comfortable during their stay.

What is the difference between a patient care assistant and a patient services assistant?

Patient Care Assistants provide direct physical care like bathing and feeding patients, whilst Patient Services Assistants handle administrative tasks like scheduling appointments and managing records. One role involves touching patients constantly, the other sits behind a desk doing paperwork.

How long does it take to become a patient care assistant?

It takes 12 months of full-time study to complete a Certificate III in Health Services Assistance and become qualified. Part-time students typically finish within 18–24 months depending on how many units they tackle each term whilst balancing other commitments.

What is the average salary of a patient care assistant in Australia?

Patient Care Assistants earn a median hourly wage of $25, which equals to about $55,000 per year. The top 10% of workers make $28 an hour or more before penalty rates, whilst 90% earn at least $23 per hour across all experience levels.

What is the difference between a PSW and a PCA?

Personal Support Workers and Patient Care Assistants describe nearly identical roles with the same hands-on responsibilities. PSW is the term used specifically in aged care settings where workers must spend at least 50% of their time providing personal care services under nursing supervision to qualify for this classification.

Patients need someone like you to start tomorrow

Vulnerable people in hospitals and aged care homes right now are waiting for their next shower, struggling to eat meals alone or needing help getting to the bathroom without having an accident. You could be the person who shows up for them. Patient Care Assistant work will definitely get your hands dirty, but it’s honest, reliable work that matters deeply to the people you’ll help every single shift.

Ready to do something meaningful with your life? A career in Patient Care Assistance could change thousands of lives. Check out the Institute of Allied Health’s Certificate III in Health Services Assistance or call a career advisor who’ll answer your questions about breaking into healthcare.