What is Personal Care?

Personal care, also often referred to as custodial care, focuses on assisting individuals with their daily activities and needs, particularly those that they can no longer manage independently due to age, illness, disability, or injury. It's about helping people maintain their dignity, comfort, and well-being by providing support with basic routines and tasks.

What Personal Care Entails:

Key Features of Personal Care:

• Focus on Activities of Daily Living (ADLs): Personal care primarily addresses ADLs, which are the fundamental tasks necessary for independent living.

• Support, Not Medical Treatment: Unlike skilled nursing care, personal care does not involve medical procedures, treatments, or monitoring requiring licensed medical professionals.

• Provided by Caregivers: Personal care is typically provided by Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs), home health aides, family members, or other trained caregivers.

• Maintains Comfort and Dignity: The goal is to enable individuals to live comfortably and maintain their sense of self-respect and independence as much as possible.

• Can be Provided in Various Settings: Personal care can be provided in the individual's home, assisted living facilities, adult day care centers, and even in some skilled nursing facilities.

Person Care includes but is not limited to:

• Bathing and Showering: Assisting with getting in and out of the tub or shower, washing, and drying.

• Dressing and Grooming: Helping with choosing clothes, putting them on, and with tasks like hair brushing, shaving, and oral hygiene.

• Toileting and Incontinence Care: Assisting with using the toilet, managing incontinence, and changing soiled garments.

• Mobility and Transferring: Helping individuals move from bed to chair, get around the house, or use assistive devices like walkers or wheelchairs.

• Eating and Meal Preparation: Assisting with feeding, cutting food, or preparing simple meals.

• Medication Reminders: Reminding individuals to take their prescribed medications, but not administering them.

• Light Housekeeping: Performing light tasks like laundry, vacuuming, and dish washing.

• Companionship and Socialization: Providing social interaction, engaging in conversation, and participating in activities.