Achieving Independence

PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT MANUAL: ACHIEVING INDEPENDENCE THROUGH PERSONAL ASSISTANCE

You can download a free digital copy of the manual. A link to the file is at the bottom of this page.

Written by our Founder, Erica Nash. Erica holds a Master's degree in Non-Profit Management and has worked many years developing policy and programs for healthcare delivery. She suffered a (C4) complete spinal cord injury in a vehicle collision in 1982 when she was 23 years old. She has lived on her own ever since. The information in this manual comes from her over 20 years experience of managing personnel; it brings to the forefront knowledge gained from her trials and errors, struggles and accomplishments, and includes the perspective of other consumers, Personal Assistants (PA) and prominent independent living advocates.

Although our Manual highlights the specific needs of people with disabilities and caregivers, we believe it is a tool that can help improve anyone's interpersonal private as well as professional relationships and that most will find it enlightening and useful.

This manual supplies business management concepts as they apply to the PA-employer relationship and teaches people how to incorporate these concepts into their daily lives.

The goals of this Manual are to help people with disabilities learn to live independently and teach Personal Assistants how to assist them so they can achieve that independence. The Manual teaches when, why, and how to manage Personal Assistants, as well as self-direct one's own care.

"Independent living does not mean you have to do everything by yourself: whereas you may choose to think that having to use a PA robs you of your independence, in reality having a PA may be your means of living your life the way you want," says Nash. "Generally, most of us have had little or no experience as an employer or supervisor. When you hire an attendant, you become a boss, and you enter the complex world of business management."

This Manual is a practical tool for:

• Individuals with Disabilities
• Family Members
• Caregivers
• Hospitals
• Rehabilitation Centers
• Group Homes
• Nursing Homes
• Independent Living Centers (ILCs)
• Teaching Institutions
• Government Agencies
• Community Centers

Top researchers in the field of disability awareness have praised this manual as a training tool for increasing independent living skills for individuals with disabilities.

• Instructors will find the Manual useful as a training aid. There are comprehensive chapters on needs assessment, best practices, advertising, recruiting, training, releasing, and communicating with PAs, as well as an appendix of materials that are designed to be reproduced and used by their students.
• Individuals with disabilities will find details and tools that will allow them to comfortably begin and successfully continue to self-direct their own care.
• Personal Assistants will find details about the psychology of individuals with disabilities, communication skills and conflict management techniques. The information provided will increase their ability to help their clients.