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Job aids

Personal care and physical needs: the steps to remember

The short step lists from each lesson of Personal care and the physical needs of older adults, on one page. Print it for the station or the break room. Each list points back to its lesson, where the sources are linked.

Open the coursePrint a poster with a QR code

Decision guide

A personal-care change on your shift: what next?

Is this an emergency under your site's procedure, such as a person who is badly hurt or not breathing?

  • Yes

    Start your site's emergency process and call 911 when it applies. Then report through your procedure.

  • No

    Did the person fall, slide to the floor, or say or show that they feel unsteady?

    • Yes

      Do not rush the person up. Follow your facility's fall procedure, and report the fall to the person it names, even if there is no pain.

    • No

      Do you see new redness, a darker spot, a sore, a rash or a bruise you cannot explain?

      • Yes

        Do not treat it or name a stage. Report what you saw, where and since when, through your procedure, and document it.

      • No

        Is the person eating or drinking much less than usual, coughing at meals, or having trouble chewing?

        • Yes

          Report the change in eating or drinking, with what you saw and since when. Do not hold back fluids, and follow any diet the plan names.

        • No

          Did the person refuse care today, such as a bath, help dressing or help to the toilet?

          • Yes

            Respect the refusal. Offer another time or choice if the plan allows, and report it so the team can look at the plan.

          • No

            Give care as the plan says, let the person do what they can, and note anything unusual for them in your facility's record.

This guide helps a caregiver decide what to do next. It does not diagnose, set urgency for a licensed professional or change a plan: the resident's physician, the licensee and the team your procedure names decide those.

Step through it one question at a time: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#decision-guide

Lesson 1

How aging changes daily care

Every shift you help older adults with daily tasks. Their bodies change with age, and those changes shape how you help. This lesson shows what help the home must give, which changes of aging matter most in daily care, and why you let people do as much as they can.

  1. Check the plan: which help does this person get?
  2. Let the person do what they can; help with the rest
  3. Watch for changes in sight, hearing, strength and balance
  4. Give time to sit before standing; report dizziness
  5. Notice changes in thirst, appetite and chewing, and report them

Lesson: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#lesson-pc-aging-and-care

Lesson 2

Bathing, dressing, grooming and toileting with dignity

Bathing, dressing and toileting are private. Most people did them alone all their lives, and needing help can feel embarrassing. This lesson shows how the rules protect dignity, privacy and choice during personal care, and what to do when a resident says no.

  1. Close the door; cover what you are not washing
  2. Offer a choice of time or way
  3. A no is a right: do not force; follow the procedure and report
  4. Their clothes, their toilet articles, their look
  5. One step at a time; let them do what they can
  6. Toileting on the plan's schedule; clean, dry and private

Lesson: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#lesson-pc-dignity-and-choice

Lesson 3

Skin care and early signs of skin breakdown

Older skin bruises and breaks down more easily. You see a resident's skin more often than anyone, during bathing, dressing and toileting. This lesson shows what to look for, how to keep skin clean and dry, and why you report a change early instead of treating it yourself.

  1. Clean hands before and after care; gloves do not replace it
  2. Look at the skin and folds during every bath and change
  3. Watch heels, hips, lower back and back of the head
  4. Darker or red spot, sore or rash: report it early
  5. Do not treat it or name a stage; a physician or skilled professional does
  6. Report bruises you cannot explain

Lesson: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#lesson-pc-skin-care

Lesson 4

Falls prevention and safe moves

Falls are common in older adults, and many can be prevented. You help residents stand, walk, sit and reach the bathroom many times a shift. This lesson shows what raises fall risk, what the home must keep safe, how to help within your training, and what to do after a fall.

  1. Clear halls, fixed rugs, night lights on
  2. Shoes with backs and nonskid soles; no socks on bare floors
  3. Sit first, then stand, with something to hold
  4. Move and transfer only as the plan and your training say
  5. After a fall: do not rush to lift; follow the fall procedure
  6. Report every fall, and any new unsteadiness

Lesson: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#lesson-pc-falls-and-moving

Lesson 5

Eating, drinking and when to report a change

Meals and drinks are care, not just service. Older adults may not feel thirsty, may chew less well and may eat less. You often notice first. This lesson covers what the home must offer, how to help with eating within the plan, and when a change goes to the person your procedure names.

  1. Offer meals, snacks and drinks as the plan allows
  2. Never hold back fluids to prevent accidents
  3. Cut food and use eating tools as the plan says; seat the person upright
  4. Report coughing at meals, chewing trouble, eating less or loose clothes
  5. Report a change: what, since when, what you saw
  6. Emergency: start the emergency process; call 911 when it applies

Lesson: alwbeta.com/training/courses/personal-care-physical-needs#lesson-pc-eating-and-reporting

Beta’s ALW team, course version 2026.10.4, text checked against its sources on October 22, 2026. Educational only. Not continuing-education, licensure or regulatory credit. Follow your employer’s current procedure and the person’s current plan. Call 911 for a medical emergency.

Call the ALW teamFit check