LOC/DP/02/17
Job Description
Job TitlePersonal Assistant
Hours10hourshours per week to be used flexibly
(Additional hours during the week to cover staff absence/holidays may be required and there may be a requirement for the occasional overnight stay to support my daughter)
Rate of Pay£8 per hour gross
Purpose of Job
The purpose of this job is to support my daughter Lyndsay. Lyndsay has a profound learning difficulty and has significant health issues. This includes arthritis that affects Lyndsay’s mobility and means that she has touse a wheelchair. Lyndsay also has a compromised immune system which makes her very vulnerable to infection and care has to be taken to ensure she is exposed to as few infection risks as possible, in particular she needs not to be exposed to measles or chicken pox. Lyndsay does not use public transport.
Lyndsay requires assistance with most aspects of daily living. Your job will be to provide Lyndsay with the personal and social assistance that she needs to enable her to live a fulfilling life. Lyndsayhas a range of interests such as swimming, bowling, going to pubs and cafes and generally being out and about. She also enjoys discos and socialising.
Lyndsay speaks well, however she struggles to understand sentences longer than four words and can often give the impression of understanding more than she does. This can cause her a great deal of frustration. Lyndsay is however a very visual person, she has a ‘How do I feel’ book that she uses to communicate her feelings and moods. When dealing with difficult or unfamiliar situations she sometimes uses Social Story Books to help her understand better what is happening.
As Lyndsay’s Personal Assistant you will work under my direction to meet Lyndsay’s needs and will be accountable to me in all aspects of your work. You must be reliable, be able to use your initiative and be able to work outside the 9 to 5 day. You must also be able to respect our privacy and have an understanding of the need for confidentiality in all areas of your work.
As Lyndsay’s Personal Assistant you must be able to support her around transfers from bed to chair, wheelchair to car, etc. She does sometimes need physical support to move around the house depending on her pain levels on a given day. You do not need prior experience, however must be willing and able to learn these skills, and although you do not need to be physically strong to do the job, good general health is important.
Main Duties
The main duties of the job are outlined below. However, because Lyndsay’s needs vary on a day to day basis, it is extremely important that your approach to work is flexible. You will be expected to carry out any other reasonable personal assistance tasks that I request.
Some of the tasks outlined below are daily, others weekly or monthly.
Personal Assistance
Assisting Lyndsay to get up in the morning
Supporting Lyndsay to get washed and dressed.
Assisting with bathing/showering and dental hygiene
Support Lyndsay to be as independent as possible around the home, where appropriate assist her to prepare meals and drinks for herself (although be prepared to do it for her if necessary).
Assist Lyndsay to keep her own room clean and tidy and support her to tidy up after herself around the home (e.g. in the kitchen if she has made food for herself).
Assisting with eating and drinking – Lyndsay has problems swallowing and can choke when eating and needs to be supervised at all times when eating. The person supporting her must be aware of the signs that she is about to choke/is choking.
Prompt Lyndsay to drink.
Change her bedding if you notice something has been spilled on the bed or she has been ill in her bed.
Give Lyndsay her medication when required and ensure that all medication given is recorded accurately in the relevant log book. Some of the medication she has must be given at certain times within a limited time frame and some are given as and when needed. If in doubt about what has been given/needs to be given please check with me.
Lyndsay has a medic alert card in her purse that details the medication she takes/cannot take and in the event of her needing medical assistance away from the home it must be handed to the medical professional dealing with her.
Monitor Lyndsay for signs that she might be in pain.
Support Lyndsay with transfers, these may be out of bed into her chair or wheelchair or in and out of transport.
Ensure that Lyndsay is supported and supervised at all times. Lyndsay has no sense of danger and can be very trusting with strangers.
Routine is very important to Lyndsay and if her routine is broken this can cause her distress.
It is important that Lyndsay’s Personal Assistant is very sensitive to her moods and how her health is on a given day and takes this into consideration when planning/encouraging Lyndsay to carry out tasks/activities.
Social Assistance
Assisting Lyndsay with her daily social activities. These include accessing activities which Lyndsay enjoys, for example hydrotherapy pools, accessing the day centre she attends, etc.
Assisting Lyndsay to access her local community for example, going into town, attending appropriate social activities.
Other Needs
To accompany Lyndsay to her medical appointments when necessary (eg. Hospital or dental check-ups).
Lyndsay can experience high levels of anxiety, she is also reluctant to discuss things that she finds upsetting or worrying. As her Personal Assistant you need to support Lyndsay to manage her anxiety, this may involve using her ‘How I Feel’ book or if she is not willing to discuss her feelings trying to distract her and stop her from dwelling on things. Please inform me if you have become aware that she is worried or anxious about something.
Ensure that you document your shift with Lyndsay in the appropriate log book so that I or the staff taking over after you have a clear understanding of what Lyndsay has done and how she has been during the time you have spent with her. Please flag anything that you think me or the next member of staff working with her need to be aware of. Anything serious should be communicated verbally to myself or another family member before you finish your shift.
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.
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.
Person Specification
To be Lyndsay’s Personal Assistant you should:
- Be willing to work under my direction
- Be non-judgemental, respecting everyone’s beliefs and lifestyle choices.
- Be able to remain close by at all times when working for Lyndsay.
- Have good communication skills
- Have a positive attitude towards social inclusion
- You must not smoke when working
- Be confidential in your work and understand the importance of this.
- Be patient when doing repeated tasks.
- Not drink alcohol when working for me
- Have good general health
- 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 accept responsibility and work on your own initiative
- Be clean and tidy to my specification
- Have at least basic reading, writing and number skills
- Be flexible
- Must be happy to work in a house with dogs
- Not use personal mobiles during work hours except for emergencies.
- Be a driver with full, clean driving licence.
APPLICATION FORM
For the job of: Personal Assistant
IMPORTANT:The form must be completed in full. A curriculum vitae will not be accepted as a substitute.
YOUR PERSONAL DETAILS
Title:
First Name: Middle Name:
Last Name:
Address:
Postcode:
Telephone number (Home):(Mobile):
E-mail address:
National Insurance Number:
Do you hold a current full, clean driving licence which is valid in the UK?
If yes, for how long?
Do you have your own transport?
TELL US ABOUT YOU……
What makes you a good candidate for this post?
What achievements are you most proud of?
What do you like to do in your spare time? What are your interests and hobbies?
YOUR EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
What is your current job (paid or unpaid) and what do you most enjoy about it?
(Continue this information on a separate sheet if necessary)
Please tell me briefly about your previous occupations (paid or unpaid):
Date / Employer / Position / Reason for leavingYOUR EDUCATION AND TRAINING
Please give details of your education/training including any qualifications relevant for this role:
Date / School/College/ University/Trainer / Qualification/Training Course / GradeA FEW MORE QUESTIONS……
Could you work extra hours at short notice?
I may need assistance with form filling, paying bills and shopping. Would you be able to help me?
Would you be prepared to work in a house where smoking is not permitted?
Please tell me if there are any Personal Assistance tasks that you couldn’t perform, either for religious, cultural or medical reasons or just because you wouldn’t want to.
When would you be able to start work?
Where did you see this advert?
DETAILS OF CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS
Because of the nature of the work for which you are applying, this post is exempt from the provisions of Section 4 (2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exemptions Order 1975). Applicants are not entitled therefore to withhold information about convictions which, for other purposes, are 'spent' under the provisions of the Act unless they are subject to filtering. Any information given will be completely confidential.
Declaration: Have you had any criminal convictions that are not subject to filtering?
Yes/No
If yes, please give full details. Use a separate sheet if necessary
REFERENCES
Please give the details of two people who have agreed to act as referees for you. One must be a current or most recent employer if you have one; they should not be a member of your close family.
1.Name:
How do they know you:
Address
Tel no:
e-mail:
Contact following Interview but Prior to Job offer?YES or NO
2.Name:
How do they know you:
Address
Tel no:
e-mail:
Contact following Interview but Prior to Job offer?YES or NO
DECLARATION
I confirm that, to the best of my knowledge, the information on this form is accurate and that I have not omitted any facts, which may have any bearing on my application. If I am employed and it later becomes apparent that the information is not accurate, I will be dismissed.
Signed Date
Please return this form by 23rd June 2017 to:
Direct Payments, Disability North, Castle Farm Road, Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE3 1PH. Or by e-mail