New research published on Personal Assistants’ wellbeing
Researchers from IMPACT (Improving Adult Care Together) have for the past year been looking at the wellbeing of Personal Assistants in Scotland.
The work, which is part of the national Personal Assistant Programme Board, was about finding out what factors influence PAs’ wellbeing, and to make recommendations to improve PAs’ wellbeing.
The researchers, Rhiann McLean and Richard Brunner, looked at evidence to find out what factors impact on PAs’ wellbeing, and found six themes emerging:
- Job satisfaction and perceptions of PA work
- Employment conditions and security
- Access to training and support
- Isolation
- Relationships and blurred boundaries
- The nature of the work.
Working with expert groups of Personal Assistants and Employers, the researchers put together a set of recommendations to improve the wellbeing of PAs in Scotland. These include:
- Recognising the value of the PA role with better wages, higher public awareness and stronger enforceable employment rights.
- Offering access to tailored emotional support and connecting PAs to other PAs to reduce isolation.
- Guaranteed funded access to training for both PAs and their employers, including pathways for PAs to pursue formal qualifications with the support of their employers.
- Support for PA employers to be the best employers they can be, with accessible information, training and support available to help them uphold their legal obligations, as well as training on the softer skills of people management.
- Nurturing and supporting the PA/PA employer relationship through access to mediation and brokering, and shared investment in both PA employers and PAs.
The recommendations will now be taken forward by the Personal Assistant Programme Board.
