I chose to be a psw at the age of 19 when my grandfather had fallen ill and my family decided to provide care for him at home until his last day . From then I have worked in Long term care facilities as well as with private cases and now at TNG for the less than 4 years.
As a psw with tng we are catering to all walks of life , young and old ,rich and poor . I remember providing care for a girl 21 years of age with autism , non verbal, assisting her with a shower 1 hr per day just to give her mother a break to go shopping and pick up her medicine. While her mother stepped out , the client would scream at the top of her lungs and charge me with head butts, slaps, kicks. I thought to myself this is 1 hour a day, her mother experiences this 365, 24/7 I can manage. I have catered to a client that was 106 years old and watched them decline mentally to the point where they can’t remember where their precious items were kept. Developing a close bond as if she were my own grandmother and then years down the line being accused of stealing her precious items because you’re the most common face they see.
I’ve seen cases that have unsanitary conditions such as bed bug and mice infestations, hoarders of things and animals. Often at times not being resolved for months due to lack of resources and no family members or friends to jump in and help. Constantly advocating for changes in clients home. With covid present some of these resources are prolonged and cease to exist.We are the eyes and ears for isolated individuals promoting better care and better living conditions .
I’ve experienced long days working from 0700 in the morning till 2300 at night due to lack of staff with no breaks and only honored 1 hour travel time per day when traveling up to 4 hours of unpaid travel time and providing care for 10-14 people . Now with covid present you can not stop and sit down at a coffee shop to get a bite to eat . I also use to eat on the bus while commuting to my clients . With covid present you cannot remove your mask while sitting on the ttc and sneak in a little snack. Often at times I would go the whole day without eating . And I know many other psws that can relate to this due to the fact that they are not privileged in owning a car.
Working late in areas that are unsafe. I’ve been subject to robbery where my phone as been snatched right out of my purse while waiting in the lobby for someone to open the door because the entry code didn’t work for a client. I’ve witnessed someone being stabbed several times July 2018 at Dundas and Jarvis while commuting to a late visit for a client to help put them to bed. And still show up with professionalism as if nothing happened even though I was mentally scared.
I’ve experienced cases where a female client while being in the late stages of dementia lived with their son and who neglected her. Walking in each day finding empty bottles of alcohol and told empty promises to buy food or incontinence products for their own mother. I would bring donations from my own home, family and church to make sure the client had sufficient bed sheets , clothing, hygiene products , food and diapers . Witnessing financial and emotional abuse to a client from their own family member. Being the only hope she has to maintain dignity, independence and good health. Furthermore, being the only eyes and ears she has to advocate for her. All while being sexually and verbally harassed on each visit by her intoxicated son.
Furthermore, we are spending extra time with our clients either because the client moves slow, their having an off day, or they ask you to do an extra task like showers, bedmaking, activities of daily living, meal prep ext that cannot all be done in 1 hour. Usually these extra things you do for your clients , are within the scope of your practice but are not paid for because you were only allotted 1 hour per visit at the most. When we are late with one client , we are late for them all. Some of the clients you see are not understanding of the scope of your practice and will scold you for being late.
As a psw in the community we are healthcare chameleons adapting to new clients, new family members, new homes, new ttc and walking routes , new medical conditions , new behaviours , new personalities and so many other diverse challenges . And yet we remain to keep professionalism, adaptive personalities, flexibility , support , compassion, caring , strong willed and our superhero capes on while improving the lives of others. With covid present all the challenges I mentioned above are now amplified by the fear of contracting the virus itself. Not to mention the stress that you absorb from your clients and the interactions you make on a daily basis such as touching door knobs, keypads for buzzer codes, clients social groups, the client themselves, only stresses my point in making psw wages higher. We need to honour our psws adequately. I look forward to pushing the governments perception in the right direction .
