n Implement recommendationsthe of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee report and commit to addressing existing inequalities through increased funding to the adult social care sector.
n The introduction of a per-bed energy price cap equivalent to the proposed domestic energy price cap or the reimbursement of providers for the increased energy costs incurred by other means.
It’s time to fulfil the promise to ‘fix social care’
n Zero rate VAT with immediate effect to inject £350m directly to the frontline.
The association has written to Liz Truss and her new Cabinet to detail the issues facing the adult social care sector and outline some immediate solutions that would help reprimand ongoing pressures.CareEngland has called on the new Prime Minister to implement the following:
Issue14.09.22120
“Care England has delivered a blueprint of immediate action to the new Government to start the re-stabilisation of the sector which current support packages have failed to do for energy, workforce, and funding.
n The removal of VAT and the Green Levy on energy bills.
n To commit to a long-term workforce strategy for adult social care which aligns pay and benefits with the NHS and local authority-run services.
n To remove with immediate effect the charges made by the Home Office and for the full reimbursement of recruitment costs by providers for overseas recruitment.ProfessorMartin Green OBE, chief executive of Care England, said: “The adult social care sector is under extreme pressure. Longstanding workforce and funding issues have been exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis, set to worsen in coming months.
CARE providers have warned that the country needs to be wary of a winter spike in Covid-19 cases and urged everyone eligible to have the vaccine booster.TheIndependent Care Group says the country may have been lulled into a false sense of security over Covid-19 and has welcomed the start of autumn booster jabs.ICG chair Mike Padgham said: “As Covid-19 figures are falling there is a temptation to think that the dangers of the pandemic are past us, but we should not lapse into such a false sense of
The online newsletter for the care sector
CARE England is calling on the new Prime Minister and her Cabinet to ensure that the Conservative manifesto promise to ‘fix social care’ is actualised under her leadership and that immediate Government support is made available for the care sector considering the current cost-of-living crisis.
“This is essential to prevent widespread market collapse and to help commence the journey towards a sustainable future for the sector given 45 per cent of providers in the South East are considering exiting the market.”
“We warmly welcome the autumn booster programme and are grateful to the Government and the NHS for making care and nursing home residents and staff a “Covid-19priority.wreaked havoc in care settings during the past two-and-ahalf years, we can’t let it get any sort of foothold again.
n The extension of the £400 energy rebate to vulnerable people in care and supported housing, introducing parity in the way they are treated compared with those living in their own homes.
Providers welcome booster jab
n Directing a greater share of the money generated through the Health and Social Care Levy towards the adult social care sector.
n To address the concerns raised in the Health and Social Care Committee’s reports at pace.
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Residents, staff, families, friends and the relatives of former residents gathered at Cedars Care Home recently to celebrate the home’s 10th birthday. Everyone enjoyed a BBQ in the Southend home’s garden and toasted the big day with birthday cake after manager Victor Zingoni led a quiet moment of remembrance for all those who have passed through the home during the last decade. Guests also enjoyed live entertainment courtesy of local Elvis tribute act Paul Davidson. The home actually opened its doors on February 14, 2012 but, given the uncertain winter weather and the remaining pandemic restrictions, August was agreed as the best time to hold the party. Since February the home has been marking its anniversary in a variety of ways. Staff presented residents with a montage of photos collected between 2012 and 2022, while residents, their families and staff have all been encouraged to provide their thoughts about Cedars and what it means to them, for a time capsule to be buried soon and opened in August 2032.
security. Covid-19 still poses a danger to older and vulnerable people, especially those with underlying health concerns.
“I urge everyone who is eligible to have the booster to have it as soon as they are able and keep Covid-19 at bay.”
“I also decided to do my level 2 housing qualification, so I could enhance my housing knowledge alongside that.
A former driving instructor, Nick loves to work with people and put his organisational skills to good use.
Steph Matthews, who has lived at Roman House care home in Basingstoke since it opened in 1972, asked her carers about taking a short holiday in the UK now that Covid restrictions have relaxed.
Ashleigh Young, who works at the home, suggested that they take the adventurous
He was given the opportunity to do that in June this year when he was promoted to housing officer at Meadow View Court extra care housing scheme in Wateringbury to cover a period of maternity leave.
step of booking somewhere further afield, and Steph suggested Lanzarote because she had fond memories of visiting as a child.Ashleigh said: “We looked at holidays online and Steph picked Lanzarote, so we looked into it to see if there was an accessible apartment available. There was, so we booked it.
“It took a lot of planning and she required two carers to accompany her, but we made sure we had plenty of time to get organised.”Stephspent a week having fun in the sun, enjoying local food, visiting the beach and
“I didn’t expect it to happen this quickly but it’s going well so far.
swimming in the hotel pool.
Nick Stapleton, housing officer at Meadow View Court in Wateringbury.
Steph has learning difficulties and osteoporosis, for which she uses a wheelchair. She is also registered blind but can see shapes and colours.
NICK Stapleton, housing officer at Meadow View Court in Wateringbury, has got two qualifications and a promotion under his belt in just a year.“Ijoined Rapport Housing and Care in the capacity of housing support worker at Rosewell House, just over a year ago in June 2021,” he said.
Ashleigh added: “Steph had the best time. She wanted to go swimming and, because we had a swim vest and swim shoes for her, I knew we could support her safely in the swimming pool. She now wants a pool in Roman House’s back garden.
“It is incredibly important to the team at Roman House that we help the people we support to live their best lives. Although taking someone with complex needs on holiday requires a bit more work, it is its own reward. Steph will remember this for years and I’m delighted to have been part of it.”
“Being part of the academy has been great since day one, it’s brilliant because you’re implementing what you’re learning in your current role, so it’s very practical, encouraging you to look at how you work. I’ve also received ongoing support from the learning and development team and my mentor.”
CARINGWEEKLY2 THE UKCARING2022AWARDS Thursday 1st December 2022, THELEICESTERATHENA, SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES STILL AVAILABLE NOMINATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED LOOK OUT FOR THE SHORTLIST COMING SOON! SEE YOU IN LEICESTER ON DECEMBER 1 Call 01226 734605 or email tb@scriptmedia.co.uk for details For general enquiries call: 01226 734630 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SPONSORED BY My career in housing – Nick’s story
thought it’d be great for professional development and to give me the skills to work with and manage a team.
Carers makes holiday dream come true for resident
“I just want to develop my knowledge in the role I’m in now, there’s a long way to go but I’m enjoying the process.”
Inspired to take the next steps in his career, Nick decided to join the organisation’s in-house training academy, to boost his skills and improve his chances of a promotion.
“I’ve been at Meadow View Court for just over two months now, it was a bit of a challenge undertaking two courses and starting a new role at the same time, but it was a good challenge,” he added.
A RESIDENT with complex additional needs was able to swap the care home for the Canary Islands when her carers helped her jet off on a dream holiday to Lanzarote.
He added: “In early 2022 I decided to sign up to the academy because I
“As soon as I mentioned that I wanted to take these steps, I was supported by both the head of housing and the learning and development team.
“More and more I found myself assisting the housing officers with the work they had left over at the end of the day and over time I thought this was something I’d like to progress to.”
A GROUP of military wives and girlfriends is getting ready to take on a challenging hike to raise money for a charity close to its heart.
“All our residents came for the grand opening and we celebrated with Dennis’ favourite drink of lemonade. He thanked everyone for coming and shed a few happy tears.
The mountain is used by the military as part of its selection process for the UK’s Special Forces personnel.Itisthefifth time the not-for-profit organisation is undertaking the Pen y Fan challenge, but the first time they
Forces Wives Challenge’s founder and director Heather Sharp (left) and Steph Quintrell with resident Sue Southern who climbed Pen y Fan in 1949.
New care practitioner role to tackle nurse shortages
“I’m delighted to pilot the role at Havenmere, a first for Exemplar
To become a certified care practitioner, candidates must complete a bespoke 12-week induction, which covers specialist topics such as medication, PEG feeding tubes and ventilators and includes shadowing nurses in the home.
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The home has introduced the new care practitioner role to upskill its colleagues and bridge the gap between health care assistants and registered nurses to provide an additional layer of clinical expertise.
The exhibition was held in The Aldbury’s ground floor Elgar living area, one of four small house group sections named after great composers. The others are Strauss, Beethoven and Mozart.
Operator bids fond farewell
Group to take on hike for military charity
are raising money for Royal Star & Garter.Army wife Stephanie Quintrell helps run FWC and will be supporting participants as they begin their ascent.Shesaid: “Each year we choose a different charity to raise money for. My husband was going through a list of charities whose focus is the military community, and when we read about the work Royal Star & Garter do, it struck a chord with us.
orchid for her new room.
“Until our last visit with her, Joyce has always been polite and a pleasure to care for. She always thanked the carers for their work after every visit.
They include life on the farm, his beloved dog Smudge, horses he used to shoe, and motorbikes, bicycles, tractors and cars he maintained and repaired.TheAldbury Arts Exhibition – the home’s first such showcase devoted to an individual resident – prompted staff, fellow residents and visitors to come along and view the pictures.
“It was a great success and hopefully we can showcase another resident’s work in the future.”
“Joyce will be missed by all of us here at Bluebird Care Waltham Forest, and we wish her all the best as she moves on to a residential care home.”
And in that time Joyce has become an ever-constant customer and friend of the Forest franchise. Now, at the age of 103, she is moving into a residential home to receive full time care.On her final visit registered care manager Karen Doe and field care supervisor Terri Gibbs gave Joyce a special send off with a card and an
HAVENMERE, an Exemplar Health care home in Immingham, has introduced a new role which has helped to combat nurse recruitment challenges in the area and provide development opportunities for experienced care assistants.
Manager Hannah Blundell said: “When I first started here in 2020, not only was there a pandemic, but there was also a national shortage of nurses. We felt that we had a lot of experienced and skilled health care assistants, who really wanted some career progression.
Dennis Edwards at the exhibition of his artwork in the Elgar living area of The Aldbury dementia care home in Poole.
Dennis said: “I couldn’t believe the interest in my drawings and I was overwhelmed that people put so much effort into creating the show. It was just like being in a real art gallery. I thank everyone involved.”
Around 100 women from all around the UK will set off on Saturday to conquer the 886m-high mountain – situated in the Brecon Beacons in South Wales.
“We thought it fitted in really nicely with our organisation. We’re an organisation made up of female partners of military personnel, and because Royal Star & Garter helps veterans and their spouses, it immediately felt very close to our heart.”Ahead of the walk, Steph and FWC founder and director Heather Sharp, visited Royal Star & Garter, where they saw firsthand the care provided at the home to veterans and their partners.
“We wrote up a biography, just like galleries do when featuring an artist, and we mounted the drawings on card.“Fellow resident Joyce Holden helped decide in what order and how the drawings would be displayed while Tina Thorne helped write the wording for a promotional poster and invitations, which we gave out to residents. We also invited Dennis’ family along.
Care practitioners work under the supervision and support of registered nurses and take on delegated clinical tasks including administrating medication, recording vital observations and training junior colleagues.
Dennis Edwards spoke of his disbelief and joy at the behind-thescenes efforts of fellow residents and team members at The Aldbury in Poole.Together, they mounted a collection of his pen drawings from the past six months on a corridor wall alongside views into a courtyard at the Colten CareThehome.works, done in biro pen, illustrate a mix of flowers in the courtyard and scenes from Dennis’ childhood and working life in St Michael’s, Cornwall.
The Forces Wives Challenge, a group made up of female partners of UK serving and veteran military personnel, is scaling Pen y Fan for Royal Star & Garter.
BLUEBIRD Care Waltham Forest’s first customer Joyce Hunt has transitioned into full time care at a residential home.
A RETIRED Cornish farmer has been encouraged to pursue his life-long hobby of drawing after staff at his Dorset dementia care home staged an exhibition of his latest work.
The role provides an opportunity for experienced care assistants, as well as helping to improve overall care for residents, by adding additional expertise and knowledge.
Cara Duroe, companionship team member, said: “We know how much Dennis loves drawing and we thought it would be a lovely idea to show some of his work.
Exhibition celebrates resident Dennis’ art
“The care practitioner role was introduced to provide this progression and also enable us to continue to deliver excellent care for our residents.
The homecare operator has provided services to support customers to live life in the way they choose since February 2018.
They hope to raise £2,500 for the charity, which provides loving, compassionate care to veterans and their partners living with disability or dementia from homes in Solihull, Surbiton and High Wycombe.
Karen said: “Joyce is a very happy, easy-going lady who loves gardening. She does not look her age at all and was always very accommodating with our care assistants. Joyce loves BBC One and we would often visit her while she was relaxing in bed watching her favourite shows.
Health Care, and am pleased to share that the role has been a success.“Wehave already had the first cohort of care practitioners graduate from the training course, but we’re still looking for more people to join our team.”
Based on this experience, I’ve thought at length about what could make a significant difference to the sustained success of a social care business, especially for small care groups and stand-alone providers. There are a number of factors, but for me, the single most important one is effective risk management Some might read this and say what about care delivery? What about occupancy and weekly hours? What aboutThosestaffing?areallimportant. But a care provider that doesn’t assess the risks in all areas of the business and doesn’t put measures in place to reduce or remove the risks, will always be compromised to a greater or lesser extent.
Once the systems are in place to support risk being managed correctly, a care business has more time to focus on care delivery, staff culture, quality assurance and the profitability of the service.
3) Marketing
n Supports an open and transparent culture.
n DBS checks aren’t completed. Or they are, but risk assessments aren’t done when an issue comes back on a DBS.
n The early identification, analysis and on-going management of risk, will promote a safer and more stable care business.
Whether you’re caring for an 85-year-old with advanced dementia, or a 37-year-old with a spinal cord injury, or dealing with more competitors, risk is everywhere. The key is how you identify and counteract all risks. If you get that right, everything else falls into place.
Benefits of managing risk correctly n Minor issues are ‘nipped in the bud’ well before they become a significant problem.
FOR MORE than 20 years, I’ve developed care businesses, operated care businesses and successfully resolved a multitude of crisis management scenarios.
n Quality assurance and governance improves.
n Identified risks must be accurately and comprehensively recorded.
n Risk affects every element of a care business, on both the care side and the business side.
5) Communication
A care home doesn’t have systems or checks in place to monitor residents’ funds, the petty cash or when a resident’s ATM or Debit card is being used. This lack of control can result in money ‘disappearing’.
Below are some principles and benefits related to effective risk management. They support why managing risk correctly is so critical to the sustained success of a social care business.
n The care business will be safer, more stable and more robust on both the care side and the business side.
n The objective assessment of risk highlights what is being done well, but also where the care business needs to improve.
n Staff have greater awareness of how to recognise a possible risk and what to do about it.
I’m hoping that a few care providers will be able to use the info in this article to manage risk better. If more than a few make changes, that’s brilliant!
Some care businesses don’t monitor that monies owed to them by the local authority, by NHS Continuing Healthcare and by self-funders are paid on time, which can lead to delays in receiving the money or result in bad debts.
And they’ll never again have to worry about a poor CQC inspection.
1) Recruitment practices
If you’d like advice on how to start mitigating and managing risks on both the care side and the business side of your care business, please contact us on 0330 133 5720 or enquiries@ careideals.com or contact us via our website at www.careideals.com
team. As a result, they’re always short-staffed and frequently have to use agency staff.
Care Ideals Managing Director David Beattie
4) Staffing
2) Care plans
I don’t list the above to criticise care providers. They’re merely examples of what I’ve seen many times. At first glance, these examples seem minor, but without effective risk management, they can become significant problems.
n Not interviewing applicants, or if an interview takes place, no record is made of the interview.
Not marketing the care business and not analysing local competitors, despite the fact that the social care market is increasingly more competitive.Afterayear, occupancy or weekly hours has dropped by 10 per cent. At this point, some providers aren’t sure how to solve this.
There is a significant shortfall of care staff across the industry. Despite this, many care businesses don’t change how they try to recruit staff, or where they advertise, and they don’t focus on the culture of their
6) Petty Cash and Debit Cards
n The induction process is poor, or it doesn’t happen.
My Background
must be reviewed on a regular basis. Depending on the issue at hand, the review could be weekly, every two weeks, every month, etc.
Key principles of risk management
Not keeping staff informed, and not thanking staff for their efforts. Because of this, morale and staff retention are negatively affected.
n If a risk is identified, something must be done about it.
n Stakeholders such as CQC, local authorities, banks, lenders and relatives have more confidence in the safety and stability of the care business.
Common examples of risk not being managed correctly
7) Debtors
n Risks can change frequently and
n Proactive and pre-emptive risk management work hand-in-hand with effective decision making.
It’s both paramount and integral!
4 CARINGWEEKLY Advertiser’s announcement
These aren’t updated in good time, or when they are, they aren’t triangulated i.e. the change in the residents or service users presentation is noted in the care plan, but how that change affects their physical health, their risk of developing pressure sores, their eating and drinking, and so on, isn’t recorded.
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relationships with certain carers, who know their preferences and specific type of care they need, or whether they receive care from whoever’s available.However, continuity of care isn’t just about the carers on the front line, inter-professional issues, the quality of administrative task and organisational factors all have an impact on continuity of care.
Residents at Preston House in Glenrothes were left speechless by The Kelpies, the pair of 30-metre-high statues depicting the mystical shape-shifting water spirits of Scottish folklore. It was a fantastic day out in the sun for staff and residents and they enjoyed a picnic and ice-cream. The trip was organised as part of a weekly programme of activ ities put on by the care home, which is part of the Holmes Care Group. Manager Tracey Sayle said: “Residents had a wonderful day out at the Kelpies, the sculptures were remarkable and there was plenty of sun and smiles for our picnic.”
Lucy Harrison, general manager at Durban House, said: “Interaction with different creatures helps stimulate our residents’ brains and helps to keep them mentally active and“Regularengaged.visits also mean the residents can create bonds with the animals and build up an emotional connection with them.
Continuity of care is important in all areas of healthcare, from visits to the GP to repeated hospital visits and homecareContinuitysupport.ofcare has been recognised to ensure service users can receive high-quality, consistent care. Continuity of care has been proven to improve results, such as patient wellbeing and improving illnesses across many disciplines to enhance the overall quality of care, according to studies carried out by theHowever,CMS. over the last 10 years, continuity of care has actually reduced for some forms of care, for example visiting their GP, which is likely a result of budget cuts and overwhelmed services.
“Animal therapy also helps to decrease agitated behaviours of residents who have dementia, as it helps them to remember and
talk about past pets and animal experiences.“Thanksgo to Alpaca Adventure for bringing Guinness and Almond – it was an absolute delight to see the reaction on the residents’ faces. I know it will be the source of conversation for days and weeks to come.”
By taking the time to consider how you can embed continuity of care with small changes to your processes, your homecare business can drive forward a higher standard of care across the sector.
RESIDENTS at Durban House in Romsey received a visit from a different pair of guests recently – in the form of two South American alpacas.Thefurry visitors dropped into the nurse-led care home as part of an organised animal therapy session, and both residents and staff couldn’t help but lavish the loveable animals withUsedattention.tovisiting care homes in the area, Guinness and Almond were taken into the lounge, where residents and their families were able to feed, walk, stroke, and interact with the four-legged friends from Alpaca Adventure in Dorset.
Continuity of care can seem to be at a distance from many homecare businesses, who, with tight budgets and time constraints, feel like they don’t have time to embed continuity of care into their business.
How can you improve your business’ continuity of care?
Continuity of care is especially important for homecare, as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence now looks for continuity of care in adult care services as a quality standard to meet a service user’s individualContinuityneeds.ofcare is a key aspect of homecare services, as homecare providers support service users to continue living in their own home while receiving consistent and quality assistance.Ensuring a patient achieves
By implementing a simple but effective system your processes can remain the same – but in one alldigital, safe and confidential place.
Mike Williams
You can easily embed continuity by: n Reducing time spent on admin. In the homecare industry, admin is important to ensure that things are done right. However, that doesn’t mean your carers should be spending large amounts of time filling out care plans and writing down notes when they could be spending that time building relationships with service users. Paperless systems can support your carers to keep on top of administrative tasks without taking up valuable time filling out forms.
continuity of care relies on effective communication and the prompt and correct sharing of information. This means that a service user’s records will need to be easily available and up to date to ensure consistent information in your homecare business.
Without continuity of care, the quality of care for a person can potentially decrease over time.
Embedding continuity of care
n Encouraging carer training.
As the homecare sector expands, it’s time for businesses to do their bit to ensure that care quality remains high, as the industry experiences various pressures, including tight budgets and an recruitment crisis. Tagtronics MD Mike Williams discusses the importance of continuity of care, and how you can use it to maximise your business’ strengths and improve quality.
By implementing homecare software, resources can be allocated for you at ease, so you can save money without increasing your workload.
Boosting care quality
By supporting your carers to widen their skillset, you can help them to increase the types of care they can perform, which means you won’t need to send new carers in if a service user develops a new, specific need. Your carers’ training needs can be easily stored on your homecare system, so you’re aware of what training your staff might require.
Overcoming continuity of care challenges Achieving continuity of care can be made possible with a paperless system, as all of your carer and service user information is stored in one easily accessible place.
Alpacas bring joy to residents
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for clients who live close together can save on petrol costs and time travelling between clients, while ensuring the same team members are visiting the same service users.
n Efficiently allocating resources. Allocating resources effectively can help you to improve your continuity of care and support you to improve the profits of your businesses. Things as simple as employees caring
You can measure whether your homecare business is delivering continuity of care by determining if your service users are cared for by a regular carer or group of carers. This will highlight whether your service users able to build
