Careline SolutionsCare homes need people with many different skills to ensure they can take care of their residents. For example there are carers and nurses, cleaners and chefs, assistants and also managers. Recruiting all these people can be tricky, especially at short notice. Luckily Careline Solutions can help. We make it very simple to recruit temporary care home staff. Continue reading
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The Importance of Patient Care
The Importance of Patient Care
Healthcare providers’ credibility is reflected in whether or not their patients are healing or not. That’s no surprise because that’s exactly what people want from a medical service. However, to achieve favourable outcomes for their health, patients must actively participate in the treatment plan as well as strictly follow the physician’s prescriptions.
So, how do you inspire patients to take part in the process, especially when a healthcare environment often proves intimidating for many of them? Through quality patient care.
The NHS Patient Experience Framework (2012) and NHS Quality Board emphasise the importance of involving patients in shared decision-making related to their care and treatment, where compassion is the key. It also seeks to promote the involvement of patients’ friends and family on whom the patients depend on for accommodation of needs, demonstrating awareness, and decision-making.
Therefore, patient care and satisfaction are becoming top priorities for healthcare executives.
In this guide, we’ll take you through the importance of patient care.
Enhances Patient Engagement
One of the most important reasons why quality patient care translates into successful treatments is that it increases patient engagement. When healthcare providers treat patients as unique individuals, the patients, their families, or other caretakers are more likely to get involved in the treatment process.
The AHRQ also reported that by working on clinical indicators associated with patient care, healthcare facilities can improve numerous health-related outcomes including emotional health, pain control, physiological measures, symptom resolution, and functional status.
When healthcare providers develop a relationship with the patient, they won’t hesitate to ask questions and be more likely to comply with the recommended treatment plans because they’ll have more confidence in the people taking care of them.
More Loyal Patients
Like in any other business, when customers receive exceptional service, they’d keep coming back to it. As opposed to other casual buys, healthcare services are pretty sensitive. When people experience extraordinary patient care, they’ll stay loyal to it for as long as the service quality remains consistent. On the other hand, failing to meet a patient’s expectations means you’ll lose them forever.
Good patient care can be as simple as healthcare staff asking patients what name they prefer to be called by, addressing any fears or worries they might have, providing enough opportunity to their family or guardians to talk to the doctor, caring and helping after they’ve left the hospital, etc.
Pulls in New Patients
When it comes to seeking a healthcare service, people rely on referrals from family and friends more than anything else. While advertisements do help market your service, word-of-mouth or personal recommendations are an entirely different story. If not other experiences, people want to share their healthcare experiences. On average, happy patients share their positive experience with 5 other people.
Unfortunately, it works the other way round too, and in many cases, more harshly. Negative experiences are more often shared and with deeper emotions. A dissatisfied patient will complain to at least 9 other people, on average. With the arrival of social media and review platforms, like Yelp, that number can reach massive heights.
The same digital platforms can also help you achieve skyrocketing growth if you deliver quality patient care. While one might consider the official, government-sponsored ratings as authentic, social media and review platforms provide additional insights about the level of comfort, attitude of the doctor, quality of communication etc.
Only a handful of positive reviews and healthcare ratings can bring in an enormous number of patients because social media platforms and sites like Yelp attract huge online traffic. Hence, personal recommendations on and off the internet prove much more efficient and cost-effective than other marketing tactics.
Nothing is More Special Than Good Patient Care
Mike Comer, the Founder and CEO of Wound Care Advantage, published a blog titled ‘Finding What You Hate’, in which he shared his own feelings and those of his family when his father received poor patient care during his last days in cancer. The experience formed the reason for his launching his healthcare company, through which he seeks to counter the problem he personally faced.
While a healthcare organisation may consider their job as any other business service, the quality of care means a lot to patients. To them, nothing seems more special than receiving good patient care. Thus, taking good care of patients isn’t just about getting good reviews and ratings from clients and growing the business, but it’s also the right thing to do from an ethical perspective.
If they reflect upon their past, most medical practitioners and other staff would realize that they entered the industry to help people. As the medical practice becomes a routine, it’s easy to get numb and let the importance of patient care slip off their minds. The healthcare facility should think of ways to remind this to all healthcare staff, perhaps through the use of signage. Not only will this reinforce the drive to take care of patients but also let the patients know that the entire organisation is committed to ensuring consistent patient care.
Closing Thoughts
With the right mindset, the medical staff in any healthcare facility can play a vital role in delivering high-quality patient care. For any healthcare facility, the responsibility starts from hiring the right medical staff.
Careline Solutions helps you recruit the most capable healthcare staff, including Registered Care Managers, Registered Nurses, and Ancillary staff. To ensure that it meets the needs of the service user, our staff attends rigorous, practical training that’s updated regularly to ensure the latest patient care practices.
Whether you’re an NHS Hospital, a Private hospital, or a Nursing home, we’re here to supply you with experienced healthcare staff. To get in touch, fill out our contact form.
What role can a support worker fill?
In an array of different settings, support workers play a fundamental role. This allows the people who rely on them to have a positive experience. In addition they ensure people get the care and attention they require. Continue reading
How to Hire the Right Care Staff
As more people turn old, the need for carers increases. According to research, a shortage of carers is one of the top three reasons why care agencies are in high demand. There are various people to take care of – but not as many carers since the hiring process is long and difficult. If you are wondering how to find the right care staff, then you have come to the right place. Here are some tips that will help you attract the right candidates for care assistant jobs.
Advertise
The first step is to advertise that you are looking for carers – it will make it easier to attract the right kind of people for the job. Make sure to clearly state what you expect from the employee in a separate section. You should also mention the values of your care home and what you aim to achieve with your work.
Don’t forget to use the right tone and language that represents your care home and what you stand for. Lastly, not everyone can be a carer since you need a certain level of empathy and patience to do this job. Keep in mind to add the reality of what this job entails so that only serious and committed candidates apply.
You can advertise in many different ways. You can advertise in newspapers, use job boards or post on social media pages.
Screen Your Potential Employees
Once you advertise that you are looking for responsible staff, you will have many applicants. To narrow down the applicants, you will have to screen potential employees. You can do this by carrying out extensive background checks and administrating personality tests. Both of these will help you learn about potential employees and their behaviour. These may take some time, but it will help you learn more about the people who you might end up hiring and working with.
A carer’s job is extremely crucial and can’t be taken lightly. Hence, it is essential to screen the candidates thoroughly so that the client’s health and lives are not at risk.
Interview Them
After zeroing in on potential employees, your next step will be to interview them for care assistant jobs. Make sure to start off with standard interview questions. For instance, ask them why they want to do this job and how they think their strengths will apply to their work.
Deciding what questions to ask during care assistant interviews is extremely difficult. It is always better to be prepared beforehand. This will make you seem professional and will save plenty of time. Here are a few types of questions you can focus on during the recruitment interviews.
Direct Questions
As the name states, these questions are straight to the point, which makes it easier to let the candidate know what they are signing up for. For example, a direct question would be, ‘How much experience do you have dealing with seniors?’ This will help you learn more about your candidate and make it easier to filter out what you want in an employee and what you do not. It will also give you insight into your candidate’s skill set and make it easier to shortlist candidates.
Behavioral Questions
Behavioral questions will mostly focus on your potential candidate’s behavior with the care home and the seniors. Tell them that you will most likely contact their previous employer to learn more about their work ethic and behavior. A good way to learn about their behavior on the job is to ask them for examples from their previous workplace. For example, ask them how they behave around seniors and how they provided excellent service to a client. This way, you will learn more about the employee’s personality and how they will blend in with the people around them.
Hypothetical Questions
Another way to question the potential candidates is by putting them in certain situations and asking them how they will react. Dealing with seniors is not always easy – you need patience and have to be gentle at all times. Someone who has a short temper might not be the most suitable candidate for this job since they may lash out at clients.
Put your potential employees in hypothetical situations. To see if they are good under pressure, ask them how they would react if a client shouted at them. You can also ask them how they would react if the client asked them the same question again and again. Many senior clients suffer from dementia; hence, the staff that you hire must be patient and passionate. Don’t hide this fact from them – let them know that the job can be stressful at times, so they are aware of what they are signing up for.
Skill Questions
These are similar to direct questions, but they focus mostly on what skills and qualities a potential candidate possesses. Before hiring a carer, it is essential to ask them if they have enough medical knowledge to handle the situation if things get out of control. Your candidate must know how to help someone through a seizure or a panic attack. It is best to go with candidates who know exactly what to do if their client has a stroke or a heart attack since they need to act immediately.
Once you have interviewed all the candidates for care assistant jobs, evaluate their answers without any bias and make your decision.
Monitor Your Employees
After you have gone through the hiring process, it is vital to monitor your employees to see if they are doing a satisfying job. You can do this by asking your clients for feedback and if you get any, ask your employees to commit to it.
Finding the right care staff may seem difficult, but once you find the right people, it will be worth it. To learn more about care assistant jobs and care agencies in Slough, visit our website by clicking here.
Qualities of a Good Care Worker
A senior citizen with his care worker
Working as a Carer can be challenging but at the end of the day – it is extremely rewarding. A care worker’s job is to look after vulnerable clients and improve the quality of their life. It may sound easy, but not everyone is equipped to do that. If you’re wondering what qualities a good care taker possesses, you’ve come to the right place.
Passion
Perhaps the most important quality of a good care worker is their passion. You’ll only excel at what you do if you’re passionate about it. As a care worker, you should have the passion to help people who need your support. Your dedication and passion will help you put others before yourself. Despite all the pressure, you will focus on the clients and the difference you are making.
Experience
The more experience you have as a care assistant, the better you will be at helping other people. If you are a Carer, you need practical experience to get better at what you do. Think about it— everyone would want to go for a Carer who has experience dealing with other people over someone who is new to the field.
Friendliness
It is essential for a good care worker to always have a friendly demeanour. You have to be understanding, empathetic, and kind to the people around you when you’re working as a Carer. If you are easy to get along with, the people around you will start trusting you and will feel safe in your presence.
Before reacting to any situation, put yourself in your client’s shoes. How would you feel if this was happening to you? And more importantly, how would you react in the same situation? This will allow you to be more understanding and you will be able to give your client the support they need. This will help you develop a better working relationship with your clients.
Communication
A good care worker also has to be open to communication. It is your job as a care worker to always let your client know that you are willing to listen, communicate, and work on your relationship. A good level of communication ensures a long-lasting relationship.
A healthy level of communication will ultimately make it easier for you and your client to understand each other better and make things easier for the both of you. Make it obvious to your client that you are always there for them. This way, they will never feel uncomfortable when talking to you, and both of you will have a much better, more understanding relationship.
Attentiveness
A big part of your job is to simply listen. If you are working as a Carer, you always have to be attentive to your client’s moods and whereabouts. Your client may be used to feeling isolated and this is why it is your job to give them company. Humans are social beings and need others around them to feel heard and validated. Besides being physically present for your clients, it is vital for you, as a care worker, to always be attentive to your client’s needs.
Sense of Humour
Many may not realize this but a sense of humour is essential when you are working as a Carer. Laughter can truly be the best medicine for people who are suffering from health issues. A good care worker will always know the right time to make their client smile – even if it is just for a while.
Positivity
A positive attitude can do wonders – not just for you, but for your client, too. Working as a care assistant is not always easy and, like any other job, it comes with hardships and different challenges. Because Carers spend so much time with their clients, they develop a bond with them. So, it is not always easy for them to see their client’s suffer when they are unwell. You should not only be positive yourself but also remind them to stay positive as and when needed. Positiveity can be infectious and, sooner or later, your client will start feeling better.
Going the Extra Mile
One of the most important qualities of a good care worker is that you have to roll with whatever comes your way. As a care worker, you may not have regular hours. Whether your client is unwell or simply wants you to stay with them while you might have other plans, you will always have to prioritize their needs. Going the extra mile can include learning more about the client’s past and getting to know their family.
Open-Mindedness
Open-mindedness is another key quality that a support worker must have. You are bound to work with people who come from different backgrounds, have different religious beliefs, and lead a completely different lifestyle than yourself. Make sure you always remain unbiased and give them the care they deserve under your supervision. Do not let your own judgements and biases get in the way of the support you provide to people in need. Remember, as a Carer, it is your job to make your client feel comfortable and valued at all times.
Patience
It is hard to see other people in pain, whether they’re suffering from a psychological problem or a physical one. You always need to remain calm to make sure your client is at ease. For example, a client with dementia may tend to repeat things and ask the same questions over and over again. Dealing with such a situation will require a lot of patience on your part, which is why you should only apply for a care assistant job if you have the temperament for it.
A good care worker will always remain calm under pressure and think critically when they need to. To learn more about care assistant jobs, visit our website today.
What you need to know about recruiting seasonal care staff
Care staff play an important role, but sometimes there is a shortage of workers. This may be due to a lack of available hands or an increase in need. While the festive season brings joy, it can also bring about these situations and issues. Careful planning for the recruitment of care staff for this period is essential. You will then be able to avoid issues and make sure that you take the right approach. Continue reading
Care settings require the right people for the job
The care sector includes various settings and it takes a lot of people to ensure individuals receive the level of support that they require. We can help provide you with professionals such as nurses and registered managers. This will leave you not having to worry about filling vacancies, even if it is only temporary. Continue reading
How to Improve Patient Care?
Increased awareness of medical errors and rising healthcare costs have drawn attention to improving the quality of care patients receive in healthcare facilities. To ensure improvements in healthcare quality, various care redesign initiatives are being taken and evaluated as well as efforts are being made to improve care coordination, safety, patient outcomes, cost-cutting, and efficiency.
Primary care providers are more connected to patients and are in a better position to understand an individual patient’s journey and needs. Hence, they’re best positioned to impact the quality of patient care. When it comes to patient-centred care, primary care providers can act as a hub.
If you’re not sure how to improve patient care, this guide offers some effective tips:
Prioritize Improving Patient Experience
Research shows that negative patient experience is among the top reasons why patients switch providers. Studies also suggest that patients receiving high-quality care remain more committed and engaged with the treatment plans and are more receptive to healthcare advice.
Therefore, start prioritizing patient experience in your healthcare facility. This should help improve all aspects of patient care, such as communication, documentation, supplying records, shaping attitudes, and more.
Consider Using Language Your Patients Understand
Effective communication has always been a critical component of healthcare service. To build patient trust and increase satisfaction, you need to enhance the communication skills of the medical staff.
Clearly communicating the course of action and health information often translates into better health outcomes, especially in connection with certain chronic diseases, including greater control over diabetes, better medication compliance for high blood pressure, and a decrease in mortality associated with heart diseases.
When it comes to communication, though, few healthcare providers talk to their patients using terminology they can easily understand. The medical field is full of jargon that’s hardly understood by ordinary people. Besides this, not being able to set aside your own personal reactions and your own perception of the world are some other factors that may hinder effective communication.
Healthcare providers need to do their best to eliminate these obstacles and ensure their messages are clearly understood by patients. While clear communication helps improve patient care, ineffective communication often results in increased readmission rates and poor follow through leads to worsening of disease. If communication involves negativities such as degrading or humiliating patients, a healthcare facility can even face malpractice claims.
Work with Patients’ Advocates
To engage patients and keep them committed to treatment plans, healthcare providers must also understand what’s there in patients’ minds. In many cases, however, it’s not easy to make out patient’s views and opinions, preventing the healthcare providers from delivering patient-centred care. That’s where a patient advocate can help.
A patient advocate can be the patient’s family member or friend, or even a hired independent professional that serves as a bridge between the healthcare provider and the patient. Not only do they help you obtain a better understanding of what the patient feels, but they also assist the patient in understanding the treatment process and various options they have.
Make the Most of Healthcare Data
According to the modern data-driven world, you can’t manage things without analysing them. A sophisticated and highly efficient way to improve the quality of patient care is to analyse the existing healthcare data to identify areas of opportunities and improvements. Advanced IT-based systems have made a wealth of data available that drive more connected and patient-centric care.
Healthcare data includes both patient data and information regarding organisational operations. Healthcare providers can use the insights obtained from data analysis to set minimum benchmarks for patient care and outcomes, which can then serve as metrics for evaluation.
While Electronic Health Records (EHRs) were primarily introduced to foster patient-centred care, it mostly focuses on documentation, efficient billing, and more revenue generation.
If you really want to improve patient care, you’ll need to start tracking patient experiences, including negative ones, just as you track your billing. Closely monitor overall well-being of patients, patient outcomes, and costs for individual patients throughout their healthcare journeys.
You can do that through EHRs, conducting patient satisfaction surveys, outcome studies, and other information sources to collect data. If you’re a large healthcare facility collecting massive amounts of data, you may even consider using Big Data solutions such as Apache Hadoop, which helps organise large volumes of structured and unstructured data and make insightful interpretations from it.
Collaborate with Specialised Organisations
Once you’ve identified operational errors and areas of improvement in patient care, your focus should shift on how to improve the quality of care. One tremendous strategy is to connect with companies or agencies that specialise in providing patient-centred care services. Backed by in-depth research, these organisations can suggest ways to eliminate shortcomings and solutions to problems.
Choosing an organisation is not simple, though. You’ll need to extensively research online, read literature, and attend conferences to track the best care agencies. Once you’ve identified certain companies, connect with them and take the opportunity to learn from them. The best care companies will be happy to share experiences like how they’ve helped healthcare providers make a positive difference in the lives of certain patients.
Once you find the right care agency, partner up with them to enhance patient care and patient outcomes.
Let’s take an example to clarify this. Suppose you find out that your healthcare facility lacks staff with a patient-centric mindset, which is impacting the quality of healthcare. A specialised care agency such as Careline Solutions can help you recruit the right care staff, including nurses, ancillary staff, managers, etc.
Final Thoughts
Now that you’ve obtained valuable insights into how to improve patient care, it’s time to execute these strategies. Besides the points mentioned above, you also need to consider your staff, as their attitude has a huge impact on the patient and their experience.
For recruitment of experienced staff, contact Careline Solutions today.
Attributes that make a care home great
We live in a world with an aging population and many people with specific needs that need caring for. When you consider this, you can understand why care homes are a big business. It takes support workers and other staff to ensure a care setting runs at the level it needs to. Luckily we can help with recruitment. Continue reading