Health Minister Speaks About Home-Care Funding Increases, Meets with Personal Support Workers

Ontario’s Health Minister Deb Matthews recently visited Waterloo to promote the government’s decision to increase funding for home-based care services by four percent per year for three years.  However, in the town-hall meeting hosted by the Quality Care Alliance and the Service Employees International Union, Matthews was told by some personal support workers who work in the homes of clients who are elderly and disabled that they felt overworked and underappreciated.  Several personal support workers told the minister that they essentially felt like cheap labour.  One participant described herself as having the lowest paid college-educated job of all.

The issue of the wide discrepancy in pay between personal support workers in long-term-care facilities and those who work in home-based environments was brought up as well as the differences in the amount of time they have with clients.  Matthews acknowledged the discrepancies in both and noted that these were most likely the result of workers who work in the home-care environment not being unionized while those in long-term-care facilities are.  Matthews told the audience that she knew who was working their heart out in the healthcare system, and acknowledged that more needs to be done to support them.

Financial Aid for Personal Support Worker Students

By Cynthia Herron

When you make the decision to return to school, the last thing you want looming over your head is the cost of the education. Stressing about paying for school defeats the motivation to do well in school, creating a lack of comprehension to the program altogether. Personal support worker students today have a great range of options when it comes to financial aid to pay for their education, offering as much as 100% towards the overall costs of schooling.

Grants for Personal Support Worker School
When it comes to personal support worker school financial aid, grants can be the most desirable as they never have to be repaid. Getting grants today can be so simple with several resources online that can connect you directly to the grants you qualify for.

Scholarships for Personal Support Worker Students
There are also many scholarships offered for personal support worker students, offered through several organizations today. Finding these scholarship programs is simple online with large databanks of different programs available.

Student Loans and Fellowships
Other financial aid options offered to personal support worker students include student loans including the Canada Student Loans Program and the Pell Grant Program.   Fellowships are also offered through various to offer that extra helping hand in affording a degree today. The education you receive will mandate the course of your career and you should be able to afford the best. These loans and fellowships just offer extra funding on top of others you may qualify for.

Non-Loan Options for Personal Support Worker Students

It's also possible to gain aid in the form of work study. That way you don't need to take out a loan, but instead 'work your way through school'. Even if you can't afford school on work study wages, you can help offset your loans by gaining some employment.

Getting financial aid for personal support worker certification is a common practice of students today that understand they need the education but just may not have college funding set aside. Many people these days just don’t have a college fund waiting for them to make their decision to pursue higher learning, but certification is a highly critical element of successful advancement into the healthcare industry today. If you desire a personal support worker career, you don’t have to hesitate because of the lack of finances, with many governmental, public, and private funding resources available for students in college today, offered throughout your entire education.