Personal Assistant Training

Are you looking for a rewarding job and interested in gaining practical work experience? People with disabilities in Illinois are seeking compassionate, reliable, and honest people to work as their assistants.

What is a personal assistant?

A personal assistant is someone who aids individuals with disabilities with regular activities of daily living in their homes. A Personal Assistant (PA) is someone who works for a person with a disability, a consumer, to empower that person to live independently in the community. Assignments can include personal care, meal preparation, shopping, or other duties which are dependent on a person’s needs. IVCIL offers regular orientations for personal assistant job seekers. The orientation covers basic communication skills, care techniques, and information about the employee and employer relationship. 

The consumer acts as the employer of the PA even if the PA’s paycheck comes from an outside organization. IVCIL maintains a list of people who would like to become Personal Assistants for people with disabilities. Our Personal Assistant Coordinator conducts initial interviews of people interested in the position and hosts an orientation that all assistants are required to attend before being put on our referral list. A computer database is maintained daily and used to generate the referral lists of assistants to provide to consumers upon request. 

Personal Assistant Tasks

Personal Assistants provide support and services that enable individuals with disabilities to remain living at home. Some tasks include:

• Personal care such as bathing, bathroom assistance, dressing, and grooming
• Assistance with medical needs such as transferring and mobility exercises
• Homemaking services such as cleaning, cooking, shopping, budgeting, and light home management work
• Running errands and setting up transportation

Benefits

Some benefits and opportunities of becoming a personal assistant include:

• Pays $16 per hour
• Flexible schedule
• Personal and professional development