Programme · Care Assistant
Care Assistant programme.
A ten-month pathway to certified care assistant work in Finnish healthcare. Built for candidates who already have healthcare experience abroad and want the fastest sanctioned route into a Finnish care role.
Who this is for
You already know how to help a patient bathe, eat, move safely and take medication. What you need to work in Finland is the Finnish language, the local rules, and the paperwork that lets a Finnish employer hire you. This pathway is built around exactly that gap — nothing more, nothing less.
What the ten months look like
Finnish language — the care-specific route
Four months of intensive Finnish (A0 → A2), taught around the vocabulary of the ward: helping, hygiene, food, medication, patient interaction. AI-assisted feedback and a Finnish-speaking chat tutor speed the curve.
Hygiene passport and workplace safety
The national hygiene passport, aseptic working, safe handling of secretions, and workplace safety essentials required in Finnish care facilities. Ends with the online hygiene passport exam.
Finnish healthcare service system
Who does what in Finnish care: public vs. private, wellbeing counties, laws on patient rights, services for the elderly, mental health, disabilities, families. Enough context to actually understand your workplace.
Care skills in Finnish practice
Assisting in bathing, oral and dental care, dressing, eating, toileting — the everyday hands-on care work, done the Finnish way and using Finnish vocabulary. Ergonomic patient handling included.
Recording, reporting, professional interaction
How to give a handover in Finnish, take notes in the shared electronic system, and interact with supervisors, doctors, and family members. Practice with realistic scenarios.
Paid clinical placement
Two months of supervised work in a partner care facility. Real shifts, real patients, paid according to the Finnish care collective agreement. You finish the programme with a Finnish work reference in hand.
What you leave with
Finnish A2 language proficiency
Sufficient Finnish to work safely as a care assistant — measured and documented against the national language proficiency framework.
Hygiene passport
The nationally required hygiene certificate, valid for five years, accepted by every Finnish care employer.
Documented clinical experience
Two months of supervised, paid work at a Finnish partner facility with a written reference from your supervisor.
Pathway forward to lähihoitaja
If you decide to continue, this programme counts as foundation for the full Practical Nurse pathway — you do not start from zero.
Care Assistant is not a Valvira-registered profession. The scope of the role varies by employer and is agreed between employer and employee. Completion of the programme does not guarantee employment in Finland.