PSW Practice Quiz
Free · 292 Questions.

Covers all 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes from the Ontario Personal Support Worker Program Standard — the common curriculum every approved PSW program in the province follows

📝 200 Qs (NACC-style)⏱ 2.5 hours📕 Closed book✅ Practice pass: 65%
⚠️PSW is not a regulated or licensed title in Ontario — there is no College of Personal Support Workers and no single government exam. ExamHub is an independent study resource, not affiliated with or endorsed by NACC, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, or any specific college. Questions are original, written from the 2022 Ontario PSW Program Standard's 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes and governing legislation — never copied from any other practice site.
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200 questions, drawn proportionally to match each Vocational Learning Outcome's share of the curriculum. No feedback until the end. 2.5-hour timer, full answer review when you finish.
⏱ 2.5 hrs200 QsNo hintsAnswer review
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Explanations after every answer. Toggle voice to listen hands-free. Auto-saves your progress.
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About this quiz

Personal Support Worker (PSW) Practice Quiz

Personal Support Worker is not a regulated or licensed title in Ontario — there is no College of Personal Support Workers and no single government body administers a PSW licensing exam, unlike Registered Nurses and Registered Practical Nurses, who are regulated by the College of Nurses of Ontario under the Regulated Health Professions Act.

What every approved PSW program in the province does share is the Ontario Personal Support Worker Program Standard (Ministry of Colleges and Universities, January 2022) — a minimum 660-hour curriculum (330 hours theory, 330 hours practical placement) built around 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes, taught identically whether the program is delivered by a College of Applied Arts and Technology, a Private Career College, or a District School Board. Many private career colleges additionally use the NACC (National Association of Career Colleges) Final Theory Exam — commonly reported as 200 multiple-choice questions, closed-book, computer-graded, with a 2.5-hour time limit and a 65% minimum passing grade — as their standardized final assessment against that same curriculum. Public college (CAAT) programs typically set their own final exam instead, often at a 60% passing mark.

⚠️ExamHub is an independent study resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by NACC, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, or any specific college. Questions are unofficial practice material, written fresh from the 2022 Ontario PSW Program Standard's 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes and the legislation it cites — never copied from any other practice-test site. Always confirm your own program's specific exam format and pass mark with your school.

ExamHub's free PSW practice quiz has 292 original questions across all 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes, checked against the Occupational Health and Safety Act, the Retirement Homes Act 2010, the Long-Term Care Homes Act 2007, the Mental Health Act, the Regulated Health Professions Act 1991, the Home Care and Community Services Act 1994, the Health Care Consent Act 1996, the Substitute Decisions Act 1992, PHIPA, PIPEDA, the Ontario Human Rights Code, and WHMIS.

What's covered

292 practice questions, by Vocational Learning Outcome

Category breakdown

  • PSW Role & Legislation20
  • Professional Accountability16
  • Interprofessional Team14
  • Ethics & Person-Centred Care22
  • Therapeutic Communication20
  • Observation & Documentation22
  • Safety, IPAC & Emergency Care24

 

  • Body Systems & Alterations26
  • ADLs, Mobility & Personal Care32
  • Assisting with Medication20
  • Household & Caregiver Support14
  • Abuse & Neglect Reporting16
  • Palliative & End-of-Life Care22
  • Mental Health, Cognition & Dementia24

Try a few

Sample PSW practice questions

Five questions pulled from the full bank, with the answer shown — use the quiz above for the real timed simulation.

Question 1
Which statement best describes the regulatory status of Personal Support Workers in Ontario?
  • PSWs are an unregulated occupation with no college or licensing body governing the title
  • PSWs are regulated by the College of Nurses of Ontario under the RHPA
  • PSWs are regulated by a dedicated College of Personal Support Workers established in 2022
  • PSWs are regulated federally by Health Canada under a national scope-of-practice code

Why: Unlike RNs and RPNs, who are regulated by the College of Nurses of Ontario under the RHPA, PSW is not a regulated or licensed title in Ontario — there is no college and no government licensing exam for it.

Question 2
Under the Long-Term Care Homes Act, 2007, may a PSW administer prescribed medication to a resident of a long-term care home?
  • No, except a specific topical medication applied by a member of the registered nursing staff
  • Yes, for any oral medication as long as a nurse verbally approves it first
  • Yes, for any medication as long as the resident's family consents in writing — many families do stay closely involved in a resident's care decisions
  • No, under no circumstance whatsoever, even with nursing staff involvement

Why: Section 131 of the Long-Term Care Homes Act, 2007 restricts PSWs from administering medication to LTC residents, with a narrow exception for a permitted topical medication applied under s.131(4) by a member of the registered nursing staff.

Question 3
A client who is capable refuses to bathe on a particular day, even though the PSW believes it would be beneficial. What does person-centred care require in this situation?
  • Respecting the client's right to decline while documenting the refusal and offering it again later
  • Bathing the client anyway, since hygiene needs are consistently more important than preference — many caregivers do prioritize hygiene tasks highly in daily routines
  • Reporting the refusal as a serious safety incident requiring immediate escalation
  • Withholding another service the client wants until the client agrees to bathe

Why: Person-centred care respects a capable client's right to make their own choices, including declining a task, while still documenting the refusal and offering the service again later.

Question 4
A client suddenly collapses and is unresponsive and not breathing normally. What is the PSW's first priority action?
  • Call for emergency help and begin CPR according to current training
  • Wait a few minutes to see if the client regains consciousness on their own
  • Attempt to give the client food or water to help them recover
  • Move the client to an entirely different room before doing anything else

Why: For an unresponsive person not breathing normally, the priority is activating emergency response and beginning CPR promptly, since early CPR significantly improves survival outcomes.

Question 5
A client asks a PSW directly about Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID). What is the appropriate response, consistent with legislation and employer policy?
  • Listen respectfully and direct the client to the appropriate regulated professional or resource
  • Explain in detail how the MAID process works and personally help arrange it — MAID eligibility involves several specific legislated criteria
  • Refuse to discuss the topic whatsoever and leave the room right away
  • Give a personal opinion on whether MAID is the right choice for the client

Why: A PSW is expected to respond respectfully to a client's inquiry about MAID and direct them to the appropriate regulated professional, since a PSW must never personally administer, arrange, or advise on MAID.

FAQ

PSW practice quiz questions, answered

Is PSW a regulated or licensed profession in Ontario?

No. Unlike Registered Nurses and Registered Practical Nurses, who are regulated by the College of Nurses of Ontario under the Regulated Health Professions Act, there is no College of Personal Support Workers and no single government licensing exam for the PSW title. What every approved program does share is the Ontario Personal Support Worker Program Standard (Ministry of Colleges and Universities, January 2022) — a common curriculum of 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes taught across colleges, private career colleges, and district school board programs alike.

What is the NACC Final Theory Exam, and is it the official PSW exam?

It's the standardized final exam many private career colleges use, since their curriculum is built on the same Program Standard. It's commonly reported as 200 multiple-choice questions, closed-book, computer-graded, with a 2.5-hour time limit and a 65% minimum passing grade, and up to 3 attempts. It is not a government exam — public college (CAAT) PSW programs set their own final exams instead, typically with a 60% theory passing mark.

How many hours is a PSW program in Ontario?

The Program Standard sets a minimum of 660 hours: 330 hours of theory and 330 hours of practical training and clinical placement, regardless of whether the program is delivered by a college, a private career college, or a district school board.

What topics does this quiz cover?

All 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes from the Ontario PSW Program Standard: PSW role and legislation, professional accountability, the interprofessional team, ethics and person-centred care, therapeutic communication, observation and documentation, safety and infection prevention and control, body systems and common alterations, activities of daily living and mobility, assisting with medication, household management and caregiver support, abuse and neglect reporting, palliative and end-of-life care, and mental health, cognition, and dementia care.

Why are there no 'all of the above' or 'none of the above' options?

"All/none of the above" answer choices break down once options are shuffled and rarely reflect how a real scenario-based exam question is written. ExamHub's bank uses exactly one best answer among four distinct options for every question, matching the style described for the NACC exam.

Is this an official practice test?

No. ExamHub is an independent, free study resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by NACC, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, or any specific college or program. Every question is original — written fresh from the 2022 Ontario PSW Program Standard's 14 Vocational Learning Outcomes and the governing legislation it cites, never copied from any other practice-test site — and checked for factual accuracy against those primary sources.

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