Personal care aides provide personalized assistance to individuals with disabilities or illness who require help with personal care and activities of daily living support (e.g., feeding, bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, and ambulation). May also provide help with tasks such as preparing meals, doing light housekeeping, and doing laundry. Work is performed in various settings depending on the needs of the care recipient and may include locations such as their home, place of work, out in the community, or at a daytime non-residential facility.

  • Administer bedside or personal care, such as ambulation or personal hygiene assistance.
  • Prepare and maintain records of client progress and services performed, reporting changes in client condition to manager or supervisor.
  • Perform healthcare-related tasks, such as monitoring vital signs and medication, under the direction of registered nurses or physiotherapists.
  • Participate in case reviews, consulting with the team caring for the client, to evaluate the client's needs and plan for continuing services.
  • Care for individuals or families during periods of incapacitation, family disruption, or convalescence, providing companionship, personal care, or help in adjusting to new lifestyles.
  • Perform housekeeping duties, such as cooking, cleaning, washing clothes or dishes, or running errands.
  • Instruct or advise clients on issues, such as household cleanliness, utilities, hygiene, nutrition, or infant care.
  • Plan, shop for, or prepare nutritious meals or assist families in planning, shopping for, or preparing nutritious meals.
  • Transport clients to locations outside the home, such as to physicians' offices or on outings, using a motor vehicle.
  • Provide clients with communication assistance, typing their correspondence or obtaining information for them.
  • Train family members to provide bedside care.
Work Context
  • Physical Proximity — 69% responded "Very close (near touching)".
  • Contact With Others — 70% responded "Constant contact with others".
  • Work With Work Group or Team — 68% responded "Extremely important".
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 52% responded "Extremely important".
  • Face-to-Face Discussions — 52% responded "Every day".
  • Spend Time Standing — 48% responded "Continually or almost continually".
  • Structured versus Unstructured Work — 43% responded "A lot of freedom".
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Work Activities
  • Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
  • Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Performing General Physical Activities — Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling of materials.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
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Detailed Work Activities
  • Monitor health or behavior of people or animals.
  • Administer basic health care or medical treatments.
  • Administer basic health care or medical treatments.
  • Document client health or progress.
  • Maintain client information or service records.
  • Perform housekeeping duties.
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Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Skills

Service Orientation
  • Actively looking for ways to help people.
Social Perceptiveness
  • Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Active Listening
  • Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking
  • Talking to others to convey information effectively.
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Abilities

Oral Comprehension
  • The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression
  • The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Problem Sensitivity
  • The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Near Vision
  • The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
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Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Achievement/Effort
  • Persistence
  • Initiative
  • Leadership
  • Cooperation
  • Concern for Others
  • Social Orientation
  • Self Control
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Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Medical software
  • MEDITECH software Hot Technology
Electronic mail software
  • Voltage SecureMail
  • Email software
Spreadsheet software
  • Spreadsheet software
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