What is a Personal Support Worker?

Personal Support Workers (PSW’s) manage and assist with daily tasks for people who are suffering from advanced age, illness, or injury. PSW's are unregulated health care providers. This means that there is currently no governing body that sets standards for the skills and knowledge needed to provide care. Therefore, PSW’s have varying skills, knowledge, and supervision. At Simcoe Senior Services, we ensure that our PSW’s have the training, knowledge, skills, and experience to provide high-quality and consistent care.

PSW’s may also be called Health Care Aides. If working in a facility, PSW’s may also may be called Patient Care Aides, Resident Care Aides, Nursing Attendants or a Hospital Attendants.

In Ontario there is a large population of seniors. Most family members work outside the home. Therefore, it is often a challenge for family members to provide full-time care to their elderly family members. Frequently families have to rely on personal support workers to provide home-based health care for their senior, ill, or injured family members.

Personal Support Workers at Simcoe Senior Services:

Simcoe Senior Services require that all personal support workers in our agency provide a high level of personalized care to our clients. They achieve their Personal Support Worker certificate from accredited colleges and many have higher certificates, diplomas, or degrees in nursing or occupational therapy. Our experienced PSW’s are invaluable to the care of your senior, ill, or injured family member.

The primary duties of our Personal Support Worker’s include:

· Assisting with all activities of daily living including, toileting, bathing, dressing, mobility, transfers, and grooming

· Preparing meals and feeding

· Housekeeping, including cleaning and tidying the client’s room or house, changing beds and doing laundry

· Companionship

· Helping the client sort out their medication and ensure they take it according to physician orders

· Going shopping, including grocery shopping

· When requested, changing lightbulbs and smoke detector batteries, and discussing home safety hazards including rugs, hot water temperatures, improper door locks, etc.

· Observing, recognizing and reporting changes in behaviours, mental condition, and physical condition

Often personal support workers work under the direction of a nurse where the necessary care for medical condition requires such direction. Not only should a Personal Support Worker be knowledgeable with a good skill-set, but also a PSW should be:

· Able to communicate clearly

· Reliable

· Respectful

· Caring

· Patient

· Flexible

· Confident

Our in-home based PSW’s provide one-on-one care to seniors, ill, or injured persons. The combination of knowledgeable and skilled Personal Support Workers with one-on-one care will provide seniors, injured, or ill persons with the best possible at-home care solution.