After 30 years working in social care, ill health pushed Jim Thomas, former Head of Workforce Capacity at Skills for Care, into early retirement. While he recovers, he's using the time to gather and share people's stories of care - and also ponder how careers in care could become even more attractive propositions...
Young Carers Action Day aims to shine a light on the pressures and challenges young carers up to the age of 25 face on a daily basis. The UK-wide campaign is designed to raise public awareness of the incredible contribution they make to society. A mix of local and national initiatives are taking place across the country to help their voices be heard, as Carers Trust's Andy McGowan explains...
Student Nursing Associate, Mercy Sharp, 52, was born in the Philippines and moved to England in 2007. She has worked at Royal Star & Garter in High Wycombe, since the care home opened in 2019. She is nearing the end of her nursing associate course, which she began in 2020. Royal Star & Garter is a charity providing compassionate care to veterans and their partners living with disability or dementia.
Moving from paper-based to digital systems can be daunting and this is no less true for the social care sector . With so much information out there it’s hard to know where to start. Breaking it down into manageable stages is the best approach, as Alison Ainsworth, Deputy Director for Social Care Technology Policy in DHSC, explains...
International Women’s Day is one of the most important awareness raising events of the year for Deborah Sturdy, Chief Nurse for Adult Social Care, not least because around 80 percent of people working in the social care profession are women...
Social care nursing advisory councils have now been launched in every ICB (integrated care board) in England and will be chaired by nursing colleagues from across the sector. Zoe Fry, a Director of The Outstanding Society and one of the chairs, explains her enthusiasm.
Data is fundamental to achieving good quality, person-centred care and has the power to transform its delivery. Michelle Dyson, Director General for Social Care at the Department of Health and Social Care, explains its importance and how you can help transform services through information, evidence and collaboration.
Chelsea Batchelier, 25, joined Royal Star and Garter at the start of lockdown. She has just begun her student nursing associate (SNA) course and is looking forward to what the next two years have in store. "I wanted to challenge myself, because I’ve always had a passion for caring for people."
Hayley Robertshire is a senior manager working in residential and nursing care in the north east of England. Here, she shares her thoughts on how care colleagues can provide solutions to hospital discharge pressures and support admission avoidance strategies
As winter takes hold, it is tempting to try and keep residents warm and fuel costs lower by hunkering down until the weather gets warmer. But keeping all the windows and doors shut may not be the best idea: homes need ventilation and care homes are no different. Professor Cath Noakes and fellow experts give the reasons a good airing...
The further embedding of delegated healthcare interventions in the care workforce represents the ongoing initiative to marry social care experience with clinical excellence to deliver enhanced, high quality and consistent care. Deborah Sturdy, Chief Nurse for Adult Social Care, and Oonagh Smyth, CEO Skills for Care give an update.