In order to purchase one of the NACC’s highly regarded programs, the college must be a member of the National Association of Career Colleges.

The NACC Personal Support Worker (PSW) Distance Education program is based upon the Ontario Personal Support Worker Training Standard released in January 2022. The NACC program content, standards and guidelines, combined with the clinical component of the program, ensure that the graduates have the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful as a Personal Support Worker.

The PSW Distance Education program prepares graduates to provide supportive care to individuals, including clients experiencing cognitive impairment, physical disability, and mental health challenges across their lifespan by assisting them with their activities of daily living.

The NACC program was developed and maintained by a committee consisting of consultants, program design experts, subject-matter experts from both the Regulated College sector, employer groups and NACC staff. This program is available to colleges with a Learning Management System (LMS).

Graduates may find employment in a variety of care settings including:

  • Long-term care facilities
  • Home care services giving care to clients living in their own homes in the community
  • Supportive housing settings including senior’s apartments and retirement homes
  • Group homes
  • Hospitals
  • Adult day programs
  • Educational facilities

The range of services provided by PSWs depend upon the individual needs of each person they support and may include personal care such as dressing, personal hygiene, mobility, and other routine activities of living in accordance with the Regulated Health Professions Act.  Home management such as shopping, light house cleaning and meal preparation, family responsibilities such as routine care giving to children and assisting with social and recreational activities might also be expected.

As front-line workers, PSWs must develop a broad range of abilities beyond dexterity skills. They must provide not only for the comfort, safety and well-being of their clients, but also demonstrate sensitivity and respect for those in their care. The attitude, abilities and approach of the PSW are critical to the well-being and health of the people they support.  The PSW will develop a skill / knowledge level that includes basic care and social service training. 

The scope of responsibilities for a PSW is as follows:

  • Co-operates with all members of the health team
  • Promotes safety and works in a safe manner
  • Assists with walking, movement and positioning
  • Assists with mechanical and physical lifts and/or transfers
  • Assists with personal care, personal hygiene, dressing, including laundry related tasks
  • Assists with meal preparation, grocery shopping, feeding, dietary planning, food handling
  • Answers call bells
  • Checks and records vital signs
  • Teaches life skills
  • Assists with range of motion exercise and other rehabilitative measures
  • Practices universal precautions and maintains a clean working environment
  • Provides emotional and social support services to care-receivers and their families
  • Is aware of common allergies and related first aid measures
  • Works as a supportive care worker for palliative care and hospice patients
  • Observes and reports clinical and treatment findings, behavioural changes and changes in ongoing conditions.
  • Maintains records, documents procedures

The NACC Personal Support Worker program provides quality education and training for aspiring PSWs through comprehensive theory classes and two practicum placements. 

Why You Should Hire a NACC PSW Graduate

Benefits to potential employers hiring graduates of the NACC Personal Support Worker Distance Education Program include:

  • Assurance that graduates have been trained to meet established learning outcomes and program standards.
  • Assurance that the graduate has the knowledge required to do the job as verified by third party testing.
  • Assurance that the skills required to do the job have been verified in clinical settings prior to graduation.
  • Assurance that graduates receive training from an approved program that produces more than twice as many PSWs per year than all public colleges combined.

Program Length:

Total Program hours: 700 hours

NACC Final Theory Examination:

The NACC final examination is an on-line examination that evaluates the theory component of the training and determines whether the candidate has the required level of knowledge to do the job safely and effectively. The external setting for the exam and marking provide unbiased and consistent evaluation of adherence to the NACC PSW Distance Education Program standard. To schedule your final exam, please speak with your college representative.

All students write the NACC final theory examination after completion of both placements. 

Our Curriculum Partners:

We are pleased to partner with the following organizations to enhance the quality and effectiveness of our NACC Personal Support Worker curriculum:

Life and Death Matters
lifeanddeathmatters.ca

Life and Death Matters has created the resources used to deliver Module 9 “Assisting the Dying Person” in the NACC Personal Support Worker Curriculum. These resources include the textbook and workbook, Integrating a Palliative Approach: Essentials for Personal Support Workers (2nd Edition) by Katherine Murray (Life and Death Matters), as well as a catalogue of internet based resources, including presentations, podcasts, and videos. All materials help your students understand a palliative approach to care.

Advanced Gerontological Education (AGE Inc.)
ageinc.ca

NACC partners with AGE Inc. so that students can learn Gentle Persuasive Approaches (GPA) in Module 13 (“Gentle Persuasive Approaches in Dementia Care”) of the NACC Personal Support Worker Curriculum. GPA is a multi-disciplinary education program for everyone who interacts with older adults in the workplace.

To order curriculum please contact NACC’s Curriculum Team by email at curriculum@nacc.ca.