The people who make great care possible

I’ve been thinking quite a lot recently about the word professional.

This week is Professional Care Workers’ Week, which seems a particularly good time to think about it. Because while we’re very comfortable describing nurses, teachers and many others as professionals, I’m not sure society has quite reached the same place with people working in adult social care.

And I think that’s a shame.

The unrecognised skills of Care Professionals

We quite rightly talk about the kindness and compassion needed to work in care. They’re incredibly important qualities of a good care worker. But spend any time alongside a good Care Professional and you quickly realise there’s considerably more going on.

They train and gain qualifications. They continually develop their knowledge and work in an industry that’s becoming more sophisticated all the time. They understand medication, safeguarding, dementia and increasingly complex health conditions. They communicate with families and other professionals, make judgements and carry significant responsibility.

For a family trusting someone to care for a person they love, those things matter.

But beyond formal training, what qualities of a qualities of a good care worker truly make a difference? The skills that are much harder to teach.

A great Care Professional notices things.

They might recognise that someone is quieter than they were yesterday. They’ll know when to offer help and when to encourage someone to do something for themselves. They’ll remember the story about a granddaughter visiting at the weekend and ask how it went.

Sometimes they’ll realise that what somebody really needs isn’t another cup of tea, but their coat on and a trip to the garden centre.

None of that sounds particularly dramatic. But perhaps that’s exactly what great home care should look like.

It’s someone knowing the care plan but also knowing the person. It’s one of the most valuable qualities of a good care worker. 

Creating the environment for great care

Since taking ownership of our business earlier this year, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the sort of organisation I want us to continue becoming.

One thing I’m increasingly certain about is that if I want our Care Professionals to provide exceptional care, I have a responsibility to make sure they have the environment and support that allows them to do it.

Simply telling people they’re valued isn’t enough.

They need opportunities to learn and develop. They need to know somebody will listen when something isn’t working. They should be trusted to use their judgement and encouraged to contribute ideas. And if somebody wants to build a career in care, there should be somewhere for that career to go.

I’m also increasingly conscious that wellbeing isn’t something you can simply bolt onto a job with an app or an employee benefit.

Care can be wonderfully rewarding, but there are difficult days too. People need colleagues around them, somebody to talk to and the reassurance that the organisation they work for notices them as people, not simply as names on a rota.

We’re continuing to learn, listen and look for ways to make that experience better. And there is no better time to do so than Professional Care Workers Week. 

Not because being a good employer is separate from providing excellent care, but because I think the two are inseparable.

Why this matters to families

When good Care Professionals feel valued and choose to stay, relationships have time to grow.

Someone arriving at the front door gradually becomes a familiar face.

They learn how a person likes their tea, what makes them laugh, what they’re capable of doing for themselves and when something isn’t quite right.

For families, that familiarity can bring reassurance too. Knowing that the person visiting Mum or Dad knows them, understands their routines and is more likely to notice a change can matter enormously.

That’s when care becomes about far more than completing a list of tasks.

We’re enormously proud to be rated Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission, but I’ve never seen that as a destination. If anything, it gives us a responsibility to keep questioning how we can make the experience of care even better.

For me, increasingly, the answer starts with people.

More than saying thank you 

So, this Professional Care Workers Week we’ll certainly be saying thank you to the people who care for our clients every day.

But I’d like our commitment to mean rather more than a thank you.

I want us to continue building a business where talented people can learn, develop, contribute, feel supported and become exceptionally good at something that really matters.

Because ultimately, the quality of a home care company isn’t experienced in its policies, awards or plans.

It’s experienced in someone’s home.

In whether Mum feels safe.

In whether Dad looks forward to the doorbell ringing.

In whether a family feels reassured that someone they trust is there when they can’t be.

And in the Care Professional standing on the other side of that front door.

Finding the right support at home 

If you’re beginning to think about care for yourself or somebody you love, sometimes the hardest part is simply knowing where to start.

We’re always happy to have a conversation about what is happening now, what might be needed in the future and the different ways support at home could help someone remain connected to the people, places and routines that matter to them.

There doesn’t need to be any obligation or pressure.

To find out more about how our Care Professionals could support you or someone you love, please get in touch with our York team on 01904 530 118 to arrange an informal, no-obligation conversation.