My ABC's to Managing PCA's

"I'm moving to Georgia!"
"What? Why?"
"I was offered a great job in Atlanta."
"Oh… Who is going to take care of you?"

That's basically how the conversations went, whenever I shared that I was moving to a state where I didn’t know anyone, and don’t plan to move with anyone. This opened my eyes to other important factors to consider as a person who needs to be comfortably reliant on others to be independent.

Who do I know that I trusted enough to work as my caretaker/personal care attendant (PCA)?

Where do I find people who work as PCA’s, if I didn’t know anyone?

How do I handle this responsibility?

The fact is, I need support every day in order to pursue my daily responsibilities (i.e. going to work to earn an income to maintain self-sufficiency.) Which means that another human being is heavily involved in my life – personally and professionally. A, or multiple, PCA’s. Their job is to physically help me with the anything known to be day-to-day activities (e.g. transferring for me to use the bathroom, transferring me to use the shower and then taking a shower, meal prep, putting on and taking off my clothes, etc.) My job is to be a proper employer. Because this involves my care, I need to be included and take lead. How do I manage PCA’s a.k.a. my employees? Here are my ABC’s:

Image description: a green A building block placed
on a blue B building block and a red C building block.

A – Assertive. I have to assertive with what I need accomplished, and how to do so by my preference. E.g. If I need to be transferred a specific way, then it must be done, to avoid harm or damage to anyone involved.

B – Boundaries. It is very easy to become friends with a PCA. Especially, if so much time is going to be spent together. But if I am working with just one PCA at home and work, I address how I am different in both environments, and if they can do the same. If not, a shift/schedule change is pursued. There are certainly more realms in our lives. Having more than one PCA to share those times is less stressful as an employer.

C – Communication. The communication lines must be open with a PCA. I always ask, during the first meeting, “is there anything you have no tolerance for?” because I do not want them to feel as though they have to do it, that their paycheck depends on it. That, then, brings in passive-aggressiveness and tension. Having regular conversations to give each other feedback is something I practice too. They may not like the way I said something, or asked for help. During this open dialogue, such concerns can be discussed

I guess, it’s more a matter of interdependence to be independent. Everyone has their skills and deficits. Therefore, we all rely on each other equally in one way or another.