Oklahoma · personal care aide (PCA)
In Oklahoma, aides who give hands-on personal care for a licensed home care agency must be certified and listed on the state home health aide registry within four months of hire. Supportive home assistants, who give standby help, take nurse-taught agency training and a state-approved exam.
At a glance
What the state asks of PCAs who work for licensed agencies or Medicaid programs.
| Job titles | Home health aide, supportive home assistant, personal care assistant (PCA), personal services assistant (PSA), advanced personal services assistant (APSA) |
| Training | Home health aides: state-required training, hours not confirmed. Supportive home assistants: agency training taught by a registered nurse, sized to client needs. |
| Exam | Supportive home assistants: written or oral exam plus a skills exam from a state-approved tester. Home health aides: state competency evaluation. |
| Certification | Home health aides must be certified and on the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) registry within 4 months of hire |
| Background check | Criminal background check and Nurse Aide Registry check before work. Agencies cannot hire anyone on the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Community Services Worker Registry. |
| Yearly training | Not confirmed in state sources; ask your agency |
| Minimum age | 18 for State Plan personal care assistants; ask your agency for other roles |
| Agency licensing | Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) |
Training
Oklahoma splits in-home aides into two groups. Home health aides give hands-on personal care for licensed home care agencies. They must complete state-required training and a competency evaluation, then be certified and listed on the OSDH home health aide registry within four months of hire. The exact hour count was not confirmed in state sources.
Supportive home assistants give standby help to clients who can walk. Their agency training is taught by a registered nurse and covers observing and reporting, safety, emergencies, standby help with bathing and toileting, meal preparation, client rights, and infection control. They must pass a written or oral exam and a skills exam from a state-approved testing entity.
The steps
The usual path for a new aide.
Family caregivers
Sometimes. Members of the ADvantage and Medically Fragile Waivers can use Consumer-Directed Personal Assistance Services and Supports (CD-PASS) to hire their own personal services assistant.
Legally responsible family, such as a spouse, legal guardian, or parent of a minor, cannot be paid as a State Plan PCA. Under ADvantage, OKDHS may approve paying a spouse or legal guardian in limited cases, such as when no agency has staff available or the member’s needs require it, for up to 40 hours a week. Other relatives, such as adult children, are not barred from State Plan PCA work.
Read our full guide: how to get paid to care for a family member.
Compare
All three help people with daily care. Training, tasks, and pay differ.
| Personal care aide | Home health aide | CNA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Training | Registry certification; hours not confirmed | 75 hours federal minimum, including 16 hands-on | State-approved program, 75 hours or more |
| Medical tasks | Mostly not. Help with daily living, like bathing, dressing, meals, and housework | Some, like vital signs, under nurse supervision | Yes, under nurse supervision |
| Where you work | Clients' homes, group homes, assisted living | Clients' homes, through home health agencies | Nursing homes and hospitals |
| Median pay (OK) | $13.32 an hour* | $13.32 an hour* | $17.27 an hour |
*Federal pay data groups personal care aides with home health aides. Many PCAs later become CNAs, which opens more jobs and higher pay.
FAQ
Short answers to what people ask most.
If you give hands-on personal care for a licensed home care agency, you must be certified and on the OSDH home health aide registry within four months of hire. Supportive home assistants must pass a state-approved exam.
A worker who gives standby help to clients who can walk, such as with bathing, toileting, and meals. They take nurse-taught agency training and pass written or oral and skills exams.
Possibly. State Plan personal care bars only legally responsible family, such as a spouse, legal guardian, or parent of a minor, so an adult child is not excluded. If she is in the ADvantage or Medically Fragile Waiver, she can also use CD-PASS to hire her own assistant, but that worker cannot hold her power of attorney. Other CD-PASS worker rules were not confirmed in state sources, so ask OKDHS.
Not as a State Plan PCA. Under the ADvantage Waiver, OKDHS may approve paying a spouse in limited cases, such as when no agency has staff available or the member's care needs require it, limited to 40 hours a week.
Home health and personal care aides in Oklahoma earn a median of $13.32 an hour, based on the May 2025 federal wage survey.