The Personal Assistant (PA) program is a referral program that provides services and support to enable individuals with disabilities to receive in-home care for activities of daily living. The PA program is self-directed by the consumer, giving the consumer the ability to hire, train, maintain, and terminate, if necessary, their Personal Assistant. The PA program covers PACE’s five-county service area: Champaign, Douglas, Edgar, Piatt & Vermilion.
The PA Program offers the following services:
- Preference-based Referrals — We assist consumers to find PAs they want to hire. When making referrals, PACE staff match consumer preferences with PA information in our registry as much as possible. In each referral, consumers receive up to six prospective PA contacts who they reach out to and interview for hire.
- Statewide PA Registry — We maintain a statewide registry of people interested in working as PAs. We contact all PAs on the registry quarterly to keep their information and availability current.
- PA Outreach Orientations — Staff complete regular outreach across our service area to recruit prospective PAs. All prospective PAs are required to attend an orientation before they are added to our registry. We host orientations every other month in Champaign County and quarterly in all other counties we serve.
- Quarterly Advisories — At our PA Advisory meetings, we gather feedback from consumers about the program and their suggestions for improvement. These gatherings also provide an opportunity for consumers to connect with potential PAs.
- PA Management — We are available to answer PA service questions and assist consumers in effectively managing their PA staff.
COVID-19 Update: PA Orientations and Quarterly Advisories are occurring virtually on zoom until further notice. Reach out to PACE staff for zoom meeting information.
Please email paula@pacecil.org or contact us for more information.
