PERSONAL SUPPORT WORKERS
It takes a combination of many disciplines to provide care in the health sector. All working in a harmonious balance, starting where the other stops – a collaboration that culminates into the very core of health care service provision. Among the many disciplines in this sector is the Personal support worker; a generic title that encompasses several professions in the healthcare field categorized as Unregulated Care Providers.
WHO ARE PERSONAL SUPPORT WORKERS?
Personal support work is largely unregulated. It is a health care-providing field with no uniformly spelt-out job description. However, due to the limits of clinical training under established governing bodies, personal support workers are largely tasked with the duty of managing the daily needs of people dealing with a debilitating illness or who are simply too old to take care of certain aspects of their daily routines by themselves. Personal support workers usually provide care in the patient’s homes or in long-term care facilities. They could also be self-employed, offering their support services on a contract basis.
According to the National Occupation Classification, the personal support worker is primarily required to carry out tasks for patients which are typically direct, front-line, and practical. The personal support workers also go by these names:
• Hospital attendant
• Resident care aide
• Health care aide
• Patient care aide
More than ever before, the services of personal support workers have been on the increase. This is so majorly because of the rising aging population of developed countries. With better standards of living and cutting-edge medical scientific innovations at our disposal, the baby boomers are living well into their old ages.
This has created a challenge for family members who live afar or who are not readily available on-demand to take care of them. It is also considered as a form of solution to the problem of employment by making jobs available for personal support workers who fill that void of healthcare service provision.
WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A PERSONAL SUPPORT WORKER
To become a personal support worker, just like in most other disciplines, training is required.
However, the position of a PSW is regarded as an entry-level one in the healthcare field therefore, the required training is basic – a certification program taken in an accredited college. Under such programs, people get trained in the following functions:
1. Household management
2. Provision of optimal support
3. Recognizing medical conditions and medical emergencies
4. Taking care of people with impairment in cognitive abilities and mental health challenges
5. Administration of first aid
This training equips the personal support worker in assisting their patients with the following tasks:
• Following the instituted care plan
. Recognizing and swiftly handling changes in their health condition
• Provision of counseling to the people they take care of
• Assisting the sick or aged in their routine activities, ensuring that their safety always, helping them to carry out the doctor’s instructions as well as keeping to their medication schedule.
