Finding Clients: How the IHSS Public Authority Registry Works

IHSS recipients hire their own providers, and most hire someone they already know. For everyone else, every California county has a Public Authority (in a few counties a nonprofit consortium) that keeps a registry of enrolled providers and refers them to recipients who need someone. If you want more hours or your first client, the registry is where to start.

What the registry is

The Public Authority is the "employer of record" for collective bargaining, the body that negotiates your county wage with the union, and it runs provider enrollment and training in most counties. Its registry is a list of enrolled providers who want work, with each provider's availability, languages, experience, and the kinds of care they are comfortable with. When a recipient calls, registry staff match the request to providers on the list and send the recipient a few names, or send the providers the recipient's.

Getting listed

1. Be enrolled in that county. The registry only lists providers who have completed the SOC 426, orientation, SOC 846 and background check; see becoming an IHSS provider. Some counties let you enroll and apply to the registry at the same time.
2. Apply to the registry. Most Public Authorities require a registry application, an interview (in person or by phone), and references, usually two or three people who can speak to your reliability or care experience. Expect a short screening on availability, transportation, and the tasks you will and will not do.
3. Complete any registry training. Many counties ask registry providers to finish a short orientation or skills class; some pay for it through the paid-training programs covered in our training pay guide on IHSSHours.com.
4. Keep your listing current. Registries drop providers who do not respond or who let their availability go stale. Call back within a day, and update the Public Authority whenever your schedule, phone number or service area changes.

How a referral works

A recipient (or a family member) calls the Public Authority with the hours authorized, the schedule they need, the tasks involved, language, and sometimes a preference about gender or pets. Staff send a short list of matches. The recipient then calls the providers, usually interviews one or two, and picks. The recipient hires you directly: the registry does not assign you, and it does not set the schedule. Once chosen, the recipient files the designation with the county and your hours are added to the case.

Standing out when a family calls

• Answer, or call back the same day. Most placements go to the first qualified provider who responds.
• Lead with the practical facts: your availability by day and time, how far you will travel, which tasks you have done before (transfers, incontinence care, dementia, pediatric), and languages.
• Bring proof. A certificate, references, and a one-page summary of your experience answer the question every family has: can I trust this person in my home? That is what the Care Provider Readiness Certification and the provider card are built for.
• Be clear about limits. Saying no to overnight shifts or heavy lifting up front is better than a placement that ends in a week.

Beyond the registry

Hospitals' discharge planners, Regional Centers, senior centers and home-care agencies all send families toward IHSS, and all of them hear "do you know a provider?" every week. Once you are enrolled and on the registry, letting those people know you have openings is the other half of a full schedule.