Female Personal Assistant (care)

R.A. Independent Living Fund

Personal Assistant Job Description

Job Title             Personal Assistant

Responsible to The Trustees of R.A. Independent Living Fund

Hours:                25 hours per week plus sleepovers

Rate of pay:       £9.64 per hour; £36.08 per sleepover

Purpose of Job

I am a professional disabled woman and need assistance with most aspects of daily living.  I live in my own home and am accustomed to organising the assistance I need.  I am involved in a number of voluntary, statutory and community organisations, and I have family commitments which you will enable me to do.  This involves visiting relatives and other social activities.  You will be working on a one to one basis with me as part of my team of 4 full time staff. This position is permanent.

As my Personal Assistant your job will be to provide the personal, domestic and social assistance that I need to enable me to live in the way I require.  My personal assistants work under my direction to meet my needs and will be accountable to me in all aspects of their work.  You should always ask first what my needs are and should always listen to and act on my requests and directions.  I prefer that my assistance is given by a woman, who must be reliable and able to work flexible hours.  She must also be able to respect my privacy and have an understanding of the need for confidentiality in all areas of her work.

My Personal Assistant must be able to handle the physical skills of moving, hoisting, pushing and bending.  You do not have to be physically strong to do the job well.  However, good general health is important.

Rota

There is an existing rota in place.  There are 5 x 24-hour shifts to be worked over the 3 week period, this includes working over 1 weekend.  The rota repeats on a 3 week cycle.  The payment for a shift is 15 hours at the hourly rate plus the sleepover rate.

Main Duties

The Personal Assistant will be expected to do the following tasks.  Some tasks are daily, others weekly or monthly.  As my needs will vary it is important that the personal assistant is flexible about what the work involves and agrees to undertake any other reasonable Personal Assistance tasks that I request.

Personal Assistance

Assisting with transfers to and from bed and wheelchair (using a hoist ‑ training will be given). Positioning and turning in bed and wheelchair. Getting washed and dressed.  Assisting with preparing, cooking meals and drinks.

• Eating and drinking.
• Toileting, including bowel and bladder routines. Administer medication under direction. Day to day management of the tracheotomy including all aspects of hygiene and other management including action in the event of any emergency.  Full training will be provided.

  Domestic Assistance

  The following tasks on a regular basis throughout the week:

  Shopping and/or assistance with shopping. Opening the post. Setting up reading and writing materials. Clerical assistance, filing and mailing correspondence, taking messages/notes and assistance to prepare materials for presentations.
• Moving objects.
• Collection of prescriptions, paying bills and under direction making of deposits and withdrawals from my bank account. Household cleaning, simple household tasks (i.e. changing light bulbs) and keeping the garden and exterior of the house tidy. Laundry. Changing bedding.

  Social Assistance

  With going out shopping. With getting to and taking part in meetings and various social activities, including visits to the theatre, cinema and conferences, (this may entail occasional overnight stays).To maintain contact with family and friends, including driving to social outings.

  Other Needs

  Driving.  Being a driver with a current, valid, licence to drive in the UK is an essential requirement of this position. Assistance in and out of my car. Simple maintenance (oil, water, cleaning etc.) of my car. Charging and general maintenance of my wheelchair and other equipment such as my hoist.
• General maintenance of the outside of my house such as clearing snow, leaves and ice and small amount of gardening under my direction for example planting and occasional weeding.
• Enabling me to carry out any chosen activity whether inside or outside my home, by carrying out any other requests that the Trust feel is reasonable to make.

   

   

   

  Training

   

  There are no formal qualifications needed to do this job.  For the most part the tasks and assistance involved can be learned through the personal assistant and I working together.  Training will be given regarding the day to day management of the tracheotomy including all aspects of hygiene and other management including action in the event of any emergency. I am the person best qualified to know what my needs are and how they are best met.

  Where it is required, such as in Health and Safety matters, practical training and guidance will be arranged and the personal assistant will be expected to attend.

                 

  Personal Assistant Person Specification

  To be a personal assistant you should:

   

  • Be willing to work under my direction
  • Be flexible
  • Not smoke in my home or in my presence
  • Not drink alcohol when working for me
  • Have good general health
  • Not be squeamish
  • Be reliable and trustworthy
  • Be a good time keeper
  • Be able to work at short notice
  • Be able to work in different settings
  • Be able to keep a confidence
  • Be able to accept responsibility and work on your own initiative
  • Be able to occupy yourself when required
  • Be clean and tidy to our specification
  • Be good at visual description
  • Be patient when doing repeated tasks
  • Have at least basic reading, writing and number skills
  • Be able to commit yourself to giving at least one months’ notice before leaving the job, except in extreme circumstances
  You do not need any formal qualifications but you must be willing to learn how to do the job under my direction