Induction is your way of telling your PA what they need to know about the job and how you want them to carry out tasks. The induction should be carried out before or on the day that the PA starts their new role if possible. There is a lot of advice and resources to help you carry out an induction. To see advice from the Skills for Care website click here. ARC (Association for Real Change) has developed a toolkit for people who emplot their own PAs on behalf of Skills for Care. There is a section on Induction starting from page 18.  To see ordownload the toolkit click here.

Not everything can be covered in the initial induction. You may need to make a list of the most important, essential things that your new member of staff needs to know when starting their new role. This includes your 'house rules' such as whether you expect them to take off their shoes, eating arrangements, use of the house phone or switching off their mobile phone while working. You will need to continually instruct and assess your PA's development.

Safe Working In The Home
When someone is working in your home you are responsible for keeping their working environment safe. PA Users must provide a safe working environment and you must conduct risk assessments to identify areas that may be a danger to any worker. To see a sample Safety in the Home Checklist click here or to see a sample Risk Assessment click here. You must make sure your PAs know about safe working practices and provide compulsory health and safety training where appropriate.

First Aid in an Emergency
Does your PA know what to do if either of you have an accident? Short courses can teach your PA what to do if you are bleeding, unconscious or in shock and how to deal with burns or scalds.

Food Hygiene
Is your PA responsible for looking after your fridge or preparing your meals? Food hygiene teaches PAs how to store food correctly, to appreciate the importance of personal hygiene and the dos and don'ts in the kitchen to make sure that you avodi getting food poisoning.

Infection Control
PAs need to know how to prevent infections from spreading and good practices to keep both them and you safe and prevent the transmission of diseases. Infection control can be as simple as hand washing or as sophisticated as high-level disinfection.

Moving and Handling
PA users must ensure that they have trained their PAs on how to help with transfers, lifting, hoists and also the safe way of lifting heavy equipment such as a wheelchair. PAs also need to be trained how to use any equipment in the workplace.