Different service settings
The main services that adult social care providers offer are generally divided into the following groups:
- ‘Care at Home’ which is care provided in peoples own homes, including shared accommodation often called ‘Supported Living’ and care provided in Extra Care retirement housing which may have an on-site care team.
- Residential care can be with, or without nursing care. In residential care both accommodation and care are provided. If a care home provides nursing care there will be a nursing team on site 24/7.
- Day time activities can be offered either building based, or in the community, involving a wide range of activities and opportunities. This can include supported employment, rehabilitation and reablement support, social activities and personal care. Role and principles of reablement | SCIE (SCIE – Social Care Institute for Excellence, 2020)
Self-directed care and support provided by a Personal Assistant who is employed by the individual.
Who provides adult social care in Greater Manchester ?
- There are around 1000 establishments providing adult social care in Greater Manchester. Most services are provided by the independent, private and voluntary sector, and the remainder are provided by Local Authorities. Organisations range from very small local providers to large national organisations, and a wide range of settings.
- All services who provide personal or nursing care, either in a residential establishment, or to people in their own homes, must be registered with the Care Quality Commission.
- There are a growing number of people who employ their own care and support workers often referred to as Personal Assistants.
In this section we highlight, using real life examples, some of the advantages of having clinical learners in adult social care settings
Advantages for people who draw on care and support:
People who draw on care and support report a wide range of advantages they have experienced from having clinical learners in their service including;
- improved emotional health and social connectedness: feeling better, excitement, a sense of meaning and purpose, happiness, being listened to
- improved physical health: new activities and exercise programmes, improved mobility and balance
- the opportunity to give their views and support learners with their learning
- more support for people and their needs
- opportunities for engagement with different people
- “The scheme (using learners) benefited their physical health and provided activities that improved their emotional health and also improved their social connectedness”
- “Any form of exercise, anything going on I look forward to it…. Doing nothing is just not for me I can tell you”
- “You can see in their body language they are happy with them (the learners) They love having a chat with them… We’re sometimes too busy to just sit and actually chat with them sometimes”
- “Enlivened atmosphere in the care home that positively impacted the mood of residents”
- “Managers and residents shared examples of some of the outcomes that had positively impacted on residents’ health which included new activities, exercise programmes with learners and how this inherently interlinks with improvements to emotional health”
- “The previous meetings I’d been to, he (resident) was extremely depressed, very down and then the meeting I went to where learners had been doing some exercise work with him his mood was so different and I commented on it and said crikey, that’s really brilliant”
- “Residents not only decided to take part in the placement scheme because they wanted to learn from learners but because they felt learners could learn from them – A contribution they sensed could help them gain an improved sense of meaning and purpose””
- “Learners have made an impact not only on the care people received, but that working with them had also cheered them up”
- “Residents reported how they had benefited from learners not only in regard to improvements in their mobility, balance and use of walking aids, but how learners working with them each week raised their spirits……
- “I’m probably a bit nosey , want to know what’s going on…Them two lads were so cheerful you just felt better in their presence!”
- “It’s the BUZZ, the excitement of new faces, new knowledge, people talking about themselves”
- “The learners did come, and they did listen”
Advantages for people who draw on care and support: examples and comments:
Advantages for learners and higher education institutions
- enhanced understanding of adult social care
- broader experience across different care sectors and settings
- more placements available
- understanding of prevention
- experience of person-centred holistic care and continuity of care
- multi professional opportunities which helps understanding of different and integrated roles in the delivery of care
- experience autonomy and developing a treatment plan
- focus on relationships and communication skills
Examples and comments:
“working in social care gives you greater autonomy as a professional and more opportunity to focus on relationships and communication” (CP)
“It was nice to have that autonomy and just being able to go and see the residents throughout the day and put together our own treatment plan….so yes, I definitely enjoyed it a lot more than I initially thought I was going to do.” IPE
Advantages for adult social care settings
Develops a passion in learners for social care to take forward into their future career
Increase in workforce supply by growing and training the future workforce
Raises the profile of social care as a career
Gives value and recognition for the social care workforce and services
Opportunity to inspire and attract future staff
Aids with recruitment and retention
Increased understanding of the value of the sector
Enables everyone to understand roles in delivery of care – multi-professional opportunities
Opportunity to learn with, and from, each other
Opens up new ideas and different perspectives
Examples and comments:
“Learners are a real benefit to us, with, for example, innovations and current research ideas, as much as we benefit them in our practice exposures and support”
‘learners soon realise that social care is a great place to work and build their skills’ (CP)
They bring fresh eyes, new ideas and make us question the things we do and the ways in which we do things. (GH)