PSWs Roles and Responsibilities

Personal support workers (PSWs) provide an essential service in the healthcare sector by taking care of those who can’t care for themselves in a variety of settings including hospitals, nursing homes, long-term care homes, retirement homes, and other similar facilities. Their main role is assisting patients and clients with their daily activities, but because there isn’t a standard list of responsibilities for these caregivers, at least not in Ontario, according to the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council (HPRAC); PSWs tend to have more roles and responsibilities than people think. In the previous article we talked about Personal Support Worker Skills. In this article, we will list some of the most common PSW roles and responsibilities, and we will also mention others that are not as common but certainly prove that PSWs are among the most versatile caregiving professionals in the healthcare sector.

PSW Roles and Responsibilities

The roles and responsibilities PSWs perform while caring for patients and clients usually depend on the plan of care that healthcare providers create for each person, considering their health and the type of setting where they are being cared for, the type of services they or their families want to receive, among other factors. PSWs (personal support workers) are not directly responsible for creating these plans, but they are the ones who execute them.

Generally speaking, PSW’s main roles and responsibilities are:

• Following patient’s pre-established plan of care under the supervision of a Registered Healthcare Professional such as a Registered Nurse (RN) or a Registered Practical Nurse (RPN).
• Performing all tasks delegated to them and their training allows them to. These tasks usually involve providing personal care such as bathing, oral hygiene, and toileting; helping them with dressing, grooming, and eating; and assisting with ambulation, positioning, and transferring (using devices like a Hoyer lift).
• Observing patient’s behavior, cognitive state, and physical condition in order to report any changes or unsafe conditions in their environment to the healthcare professional in charge of their plan of care (RN, RPN, or manager) or a family member.
• Completing computer or paper records of patient’s activities, communication books, and progress notes, and keeping them up to date.

Related:

PSW Positions And Job Titles

Can A Nursing Student Work As A PSW?

Working As A PSW In A Hospital‍

Additional PSW Roles and Responsibilities

According to the Ontario PSW Association, besides the above-listed roles and responsibilities, a PSW (personal support worker) can have, the Regulated Health Professions Act (RHPA) sets out guidelines that allow unregulated health professionals to perform certain controlled acts such as insertion of a digit or instrument into a body cavity, care or procedure under the dermis, and any task or skill needing a physician’s prescription.

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Additionally, PSWs can also carry out these duties:

• Assisting with medication and medication reminders.
• In hospitals and long-term care homes, assisting nursing staff by answering call bells.
• Performing patient watch for confused patients with dementia or delirium in clinical care settings. Providing orientation to date, time, and place when necessary.
• Assisting nurses and physical therapy staff with the personal care of patients and physical therapy goals.
• Ensuring patient’s room is clutter-free, changing bed linens as needed, and making sure patient’s bed is in their preferred position, call bells are within their reach, and bed alarms are working.
• In home-care settings, performing light housekeeping duties like sweeping and mopping floors, vacuuming, washing dishes, and laundry.
• Helping with grocery shopping, meal planning and preparation, and even walking the family dog or attending to their pets, when necessary.
• Assisting the client with any activity they would do if able to live independently.
  

What did you think of this wide array of PSW roles and responsibilities? Do you know any other that we could add to the list? Leave us a comment below.