Social care consultancy, or write policies and procedures yourself, use template services, or use fully digital solutions. There are now more options than to create, manage and maintain policies and procedures in your care service, but you’re probably wondering which one is best for you?
Many care providers have find themselves in a similar situation, and there are now more options than ever to develop and manage your policies and procedures. So to help, I’ve written this article.
Care policies and procedures are essential to registering and operating a care service anywhere in the UK. You need to keep your policies and procedures up to date; with regulations, legislation, best practice and the manner in which your service operates. Failing to do so could land you in hot water with your regulator, and could even impact the quality and safety of the care you provide.
Working out the right staff to resident ratio is a common and pressing concern for both care homes and nursing homes. It’s a trickly balancing act involving both financial and ethical considerations. You want to run your home as efficiently as possible while still safeguarding the safety and wellbeing of your residents.
The CQC’s official position on staff ratios is set out in Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: Regulation 18.
In the guidance to Regulation 18, the CQC states:
“Providers must deploy sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff to make sure that they can meet people's care and treatment needs and therefore meet the requirements of Section 2 of these regulations (the fundamental standards).”
If you’re wondering “How many carers for 30 residents?” or “How many carers should be on a night shift?” or any other similar questions, the regulations do not offer one-size-fits-all answers that can apply across all services.
As set out in the CQC’s guidance, the correct approach is to learn how to answer these questions in a way that is unique to your service. This article will show you the most effective methods and tools to use to determine the right staff ratio for your needs.
Feedback in health and social care is often overlooked. When it comes to understanding the experiences, perspectives and needs of people drawing on support, caregivers and regulatory bodies, nothing can compare to care feedback. In England, CQC feedback forms are the cornerstone of continuous improvement and quality assurance in care, so should be taken advantage of.
Good communication in health and social care is the first step to developing good relationships with people and generating consistent feedback that can be used to praise your team or motivate them to change and improve the care your service offers. It’s also key to promoting empowerment in health and social care, which gives people in your care the feeling of control and autonomy over their lives.
We at The Access Group have been working with care services across the country for over 30 years, providing them with high-quality digital services, support and information to help them succeed. We have put this article together along with other useful resources to help you understand feedback in health and social care, its importance and how you can use feedback to improve your quality of care.
Knowing how to achieve an outstanding CQC report starts with considering the CQC’s five key questions: are services safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led? These questions form the basis of the CQC’s inspection and assessment framework, and they address what the CQC needs to see in terms of high-quality, safe, and person-centred care.
This article will break down the methodology behind the CQC’s rating process. We will share proven strategies that you can implement to improve your CQC rating. By committing to these strategies and continuously striving for excellence, you can work towards getting your own outstanding rating.
Person-centred care means the person is placed at the heart of their care. This ensures that the person has a choice in how they want their care and support delivered. By keeping the person fully informed they can contribute to their own safeguarding.
Person-centred care is especially important in care planning where it is now recognised as a key driver of the provision of high quality care.
Person-centred care’s benefits are:
- Flexibility: Individuals are free to tailor their care to their own needs instead of having a one-size-fits-all solution forced upon them.
- Responsibility: By giving individuals the responsibility to make their own care decisions, they become more empowered and engaged.
- Autonomy: Individuals who are responsible for their own health are more incentivised to make better lifestyle choices such as healthy eating and regular exercise.
- Independence: By enhancing the quality of individuals’ care they become less reliant on health services and more able to remain independent for longer.
- Happiness: Individuals who know they are receiving the most suitable care for their needs will be less anxious, more confident, and more happy.
In this article, we will define person-centred care, share examples of person-centred care in action and explain why it is important for health and social care.
Reflective practice in health and social care brings a wide range of benefits for health and social care professionals, patients, and their loved ones. With the approach often being embedded within training across many industries, reflective practice predominantly started in healthcare where the approach was heavily adopted across different industries with health and social care now at the forefront.
But, what exactly is reflective practice and why is reflective practice important in health and social care?
At the Access Group, we are aware many different approaches are being advised to help improve outcomes and care delivery. We understand that reflective practice goes further than talking or writing about your day, instead, it is about analytically evaluating your experiences to deliver better person-centred care in the future.
By the end of this article, you will have a better understanding of what reflective practice is in health and social care and how it may differ between the two, as well as how it works, why it is important, and how often reflective practice should be used.
Medicines management or medicines optimisation is defined as ‘the clinical, cost-effective and safe use of medicines to ensure people get the maximum benefits from the medicines they need, while at the same time, minimising potential harm’ by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency.
Unfortunately, the frequency of medication errors in UK care homes has increased, which compromises the safety of residents across the UK and tarnishes the reputation of care homes.
Are you concerned about medicine errors and the associated risks in your care home? Perhaps you’ve recently had a near miss, or are anxious about when one might happen?
Innovation in home care can’t solve every challenge domiciliary care providers face. If you are a care provider in the UK, you probably feel extremely held back by the low price paid for care and the impact this has on staffing, your capacity and even care quality.
That said, the fact you have found yourself here shows you want to succeed despite these challenges, to utilise the best new innovative ideas, approaches and technologies, to help improve care quality and safety, in an efficient and sensible way.
Our sector is not necessarily the quickest to utilise these innovations. Probably in no small part due to the financial pressures faced and the disparate ways in which innovation is shared across the UK’s care networks, if at all.
At The Access Group we provide a complete suite of home care software to tens of thousands of home care services across the UK, through our relationships with clients and partners like the Home Care Association, National Care Forum and others, we stay ‘plugged in’ to how home care providers are innovating.
So, while I can’t help you getting a better rate for care services, I can show you some of the best examples of innovative home care and how they could help you and your care services.
In this article I will highlight some key examples of innovation in home care, including self-managing teams, artificial intelligence, next generation telecare and robotics.
After reading it, you should have a selection of practical approaches and technology that you can consider using in your own care services, and which you should avoid.
Assistive technology (AT) has transformed the way care services support people with age-related conditions and disabilities. These assistive technologies are beginning to play a crucial role in care homes, as they enhance the quality of life for residents, promote independence and improve overall health and wellbeing. From helping people living with dementia maintain cognitive function, to aiding those with physical impairments to perform daily tasks, assisted technology offers a wide range of solutions.
The Access Group have been supporting care services across the world for over 30 years through digitisation. We know more than most about the fantastic impact technology can have on a business and how it can save time, money, space and resources in the long run.
As the use and development of assistive technology increases, we thought it would be a great idea to put together this comprehensive guide, so you can gain a better understanding of these devices and learn how they can improve the lives of your service users. We will take a closer look at the importance of assistive technology in care homes and provide examples of assistive technology being utilised to address a variety of needs.
Outcomes focused care is an approach in health and social care that concentrates on tailoring specific goals and outcomes to best suit an individual’s needs. It’s one of the most crucial ways to help improve both the quality and the continuity of care delivered.
But what is outcomes-focused care and how can the Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework help to achieve better outcomes for adults who need care and support?.
With the UK population changing and almost 11 million people being aged 65 and over, the needs for older people keep changing. The demand for social care keeps increasing and social care providers are struggling to meet the demand.
At The Access Group we are aware of the challenges facing the social care market and the importance of improving the quality of care delivered.
By the end of this article, the importance of outcomes focused care and what it is will be explained as well as, what the benefits are from using this approach, and how to overcome challenges when implementing outcomes focused care to get the best outcomes possible, prolong independence, and improve the overall health and wellbeing of your community.
