Rhode Island · personal care aide (PCA)
Rhode Island splits personal care work between agency aides and workers hired directly by the people they care for. Agency homemakers need 25 hours of training, while hands-on personal care at agencies is generally done by registered nursing assistants. Here is how it works and how family caregivers can get paid.
At a glance
What the state asks of PCAs who work for licensed agencies or Medicaid programs.
| Job titles | Personal care aide or attendant (PCA), homemaker, home health aide, nursing assistant (CNA) |
| Training | Homemakers: 20 classroom hours plus 5 hours of practical experience. Self-directed PCAs: training from the person they care for, EOHHS orientation and training, or both. The rule does not set hours. |
| Exam | Homemakers must pass a final exam. Nursing assistants complete state certification. |
| Certification | Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) nursing assistant registration for agency aides; self-directed PCAs may join the optional Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) PCA registry |
| Background check | Agency staff: state criminal records check. Self-directed PCAs: national fingerprint check every 5 years, plus yearly abuse registry and federal exclusion list checks. |
| Yearly training | Agencies must give ongoing in-service training, with no hour minimum found. Self-directed PCAs renew CPR and First Aid every 2 years. |
| Minimum age | 18 for self-directed PCAs; not confirmed in state sources for agency aides |
| Agency licensing | Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH), which licenses home nursing care providers and home care providers |
Training
Licensed home care agencies must give direct-care staff an orientation and ongoing in-service training on topics like infection control, patient privacy (HIPAA), and reporting abuse and neglect. Homemakers need 20 hours of classroom training, 5 hours of practical experience, and a final exam.
Hands-on personal care at agencies is generally done by nursing assistants registered with RIDOH. Nursing assistant training hours were not confirmed for this page. In the self-directed Personal Choice program, a PCA the participant already knows can be trained at home by the participant, take the EOHHS orientation and training, or both. PCAs found through the state registry must take the EOHHS orientation and training first. The participant verifies training before the PCA is paid, and the rule does not set a number of hours.
The steps
The usual path for a new aide.
Family caregivers
Yes, if the person you care for gets Medicaid long-term care at home through the Personal Choice Program, which absorbed the former Independent Provider (IP) program in 2024. In these programs the person hires their own PCA, and family members and friends can be hired.
Some people cannot be paid as the PCA: a spouse, the person’s representative, their financial power of attorney, or their Social Security representative payee.
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 | 25 hrs for homemakers; PCA hours not set | 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 (RI) | $21.00 an hour* | $21.00 an hour* | $22.33 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.
Not a license, but most paid roles involve a registry. Agency aides doing personal care are generally nursing assistants registered with RIDOH, and self-directed PCAs can list themselves on the EOHHS PCA registry, though joining it is optional.
Agency homemakers need 20 classroom hours, 5 practical hours, and a final exam. Self-directed PCAs are trained by the person they care for, through EOHHS orientation and training, or both, and the rule does not set the hours, so ask EOHHS.
Yes, if she qualifies for Medicaid home care through the Personal Choice program. She can hire you as her PCA, as long as you are not her spouse, her representative, her financial power of attorney, or her Social Security representative payee.
Yes. Agency staff get a state criminal records check. Self-directed PCAs get a national fingerprint check every 5 years and yearly abuse registry checks.
Home health and personal care aides in Rhode Island earn a median of $21.00 an hour, based on the May 2025 federal wage survey.