Home-based personal care workers

Home-based personal care workers provide routine personal care and assistance with activities of daily living to persons who are in need of such care due to effects of ageing, illness, injury, or other physical or mental condition in private homes and other independent residential settings.

Duties and tasks

• Assisting clients with personal and therapeutic care needs such as personal hygiene, feeding, dressing, physical mobility and exercise, communication, taking oral medications and changing dressings, usually according to care plans established by a health professional
• Maintaining records of client care, changes in condition and responses to care and treatment, and reporting concerns or providing referrals to a health or social services professional
• Positioning and lifting clients with physical mobility challenges, and helping transport them in wheelchairs and motor vehicles
• Providing clients and families with emotional support, information and advice on topics such as nutrition, hygiene, exercise, caring for infants or adapting to disability or illness
• Maintaining clients' environmental hygiene standards, such as changing bed linen, washing clothes and dishes, and cleaning living quarters
• Providing psychological support to clients such as through conversation or reading aloud
• Planning, purchasing, preparing or serving meals to meet nutritional requirements and prescribed diets
• Providing support to parents and care for newborns during the postpartum period
• Scheduling and accompanying clients for appointments with medical doctors and other health professionals or performing other errands