Inside the Circle – April 18, 2023

May 19 is PSW Day, a day to celebrate and highlight the vital contributions you provide to our clients. Whether you are supporting older adults physically by assisting them with their daily activities, or supporting them emotionally, each action helps our clients live independently at home.

This year, for Personal Support Worker Day, share your story with us by emailing Mary at man@circleofcare.com. Send us a photo of yourself wearing your Circle of Care uniform, and a written response (or video!) to the following question: “Over the last year, what has been your favourite moment of helping a client?”

Circle of Care requires that all PSWs and Homemakers be certified with valid and current CPR training, and that employees be properly fitted for N95 masks. Upcoming sessions for both CPR and mask fit have been booked for November. Appointments must be booked through our vendor, First Aid Care, and can be booked by calling 905-272-9214 or by clicking the button down below.

Important reminders – please read:

• Please arrive at the training session 15 minutes before the class begins.
• After you have booked your appointment, please speak to your Service Coordinator if you need any scheduling arrangements and have clients that you will need to be booked off from to attend the CPR and/or mask fit training. Please try to book a date/time where you do not have client visits scheduled.
• Your schedule will be blocked as ‘unavailable’ for you to attend the session. You do not need to use your phone to sign into the training.
• You will be paid a total of 4 hours for the training (CPR) and 1 hour for mask fit – this will be added to your schedule 1-2 weeks after the session has been completed and you will receive payment. The code will appear on your paystub as ‘Miscellaneous’
• All bookings/cancellations must be managed through the online portal. You will receive a confirmation email/text notification and will also receive a session reminder.

We also encourage you to review our CPR Tips and Guidance below.

As a reminder to all employees, it is important to practice regular hand hygiene, and continue to screen yourselves daily to reduce the risk of COVID-19. Employees who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 should remain home from work and take a COVID-19 test.

To reduce the risk of becoming sick or re-infected with COVID-19, we encourage employees to do the following:

• Practice regular hand hygiene
• Screen yourself daily and screen your clients at each visit
• Follow current PPE protocols such as universal masking and donning additional PPE based on screening, or when advised to do so because of potential exposure. Please note wearing surgical face masks for the duration of your client visit is mandatory.
• Practice masking outside of work, or when in highly populated areas
• Get your COVID-19 booster as they come available to you

Earth Day is an annual event held around the world to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The theme for this year, is investing in our planet. Some actions that you can take to contribute to Earth Day are:

• Reduce the use of single plastics: plastic pollution is one of the most pressing environmental issues we are facing
• Learn about climate change and other environmental issues: https://www.earthday.org/news-and-stories/
• Vote for the earth: use your voting power to protect the environment
• Fight fast fashion and buy more sustainable clothing

Does Circle of Care have benefits?

Yes, Circle of Care does offer benefits to eligible employees. All eligible full time Personal Support Workers and Homemakers have benefit coverage through SEIU and Global Benefits. For any questions about the plan or coverage, please contact: seiubenefittrust@globalben.com

416-635-6000 or 1-800-663-4500.

We invite you to submit your questions or feedback below. Please note that it may take us longer to provide some answers, so if you’ve asked a question that hasn’t been answered yet, we will get back to you in the coming weeks.