How do I apply for IHSS paramedical hours?

Paramedical services are services ordered and directed by the child’s physician or other licensed medical provider.

Sometimes, doctors will request assistance from parents in filling out the paramedical services form (SOC 321)). If there are a lot of services, it is often helpful to provide your doctor with a spreadsheet of each paramedical service they have ordered, about how long it takes you to perform the task, and how frequently it occurs. The calculation of time should be from start to finish, including the time it takes to prepare, complete, and clean up after any task. It is easy to underestimate time spent on these services, so it may be useful to keep a detailed activity log for a week or two. If your child’s needs extend the amount of time required for a task, that should also be included in the calculation and you should make a note of it in the spreadsheet. For example, a child may have difficulty sitting still for a breathing treatment or venting of a g-tube, which makes it take longer. A child’s inability to communicate symptoms may necessitate more frequent monitoring of measures like blood sugar, pulse oximetry, and assessment for other ongoing symptoms of known medical conditions.

The doctor should review your spreadsheet for appropriateness, and can either translate the spreadsheet to the paramedical services form or write “see attached spreadsheet” on the form and then sign both the paramedical services form and the spreadsheet.

For more details, check out our article IHSS: Protective Supervision and Paramedical Services.