Caring For The Carers: How To Lead By Example

More than 93% of carers would be more likely to leave a job that did not support their wellbeing according to recent research from Connect2Care (www connect2care net) And with staff recruitment and retention in the care sector becoming ever harder fostering a supportive workplace is crucial

Here health and social care consultant Neel Radia explains how taking a top-down approach and training managers in supporting staff is vital for nurturing the wellbeing of your workforce

POSITIVE WORKPLACES

There are many rewards to a career in care – but also many challenges, especially since the pandemic There is a lot of feeling of being undervalued Working long hours not having enough respite time to recuperate, which is then causing stress, which is taking people out of the workplace

I am adamant that it’s up to leaders to change this When it comes to wellbeing and positive workplaces it s always about starting at the top and taking that culture down You need to start with the leaders who are managing the team at the bottom because that's where a lot of the burnouts happen

CLEAR COMMUNICATION their day off everyone knows who to contact instead

Then you know that if you are off you are off That’s your time to get your mind and body and soul back into place then come back to work fresh And I think that’s something we should all respect more

Training And Development

So it’s essential to build an open supportive culture An employee should be able to have an open oneto-one discussion with their supervisor if they are feeling overburdened

And just as junior members of staff need training in skills such as catering, supervisors require training “to have empathy and have those conversations without judging

There needs to be sufficient training for the middle manager side and the team leaders because they're representing the company they re representing the care organisation and they re representing your values as a business as well

In Connect2Care s research 61 7% of respondents believed that staff should be given training in achieving a positive work-life balance From a supervisor s point of view it s about giving them the opportunity to understand actually what is a priority and what isn't a priority in the day-to-day running from a care aspect

Another focus is diversity and inclusion, with ongoing training vital to ensure that everyone is supported, regardless of factors such as ethnic background, neurodiversity or disability Unless you’ve got the tools and training and it s something embedded within your culture and in your organisation’s genes and in your values then how do you get past it?

The Perks Of The Job

Leaders should begin with clear communication

It s about keeping the line of communication open to understand where your staff’s challenges are You need to see it from the eyes of the person doing the job day to day

Managers for example, often feel they are on call 24/7, negatively affecting their work-life balance From a leadership point of view it s really important to have a communication plan in place so if a manager is on

With the key planks of open communication and training in place employers can look outside the box for other ways to foster workplace wellbeing Some care homes offer staff discounted gym membership while others have lunchtime walking groups

If you put benefits and perks in place to help your staff s wellbeing that will reduce absenteeism and people going off due to mental health and stress-related illnesses It will help you retain your team