Home care: delivering personal care and practical support to older people living in their own homes

Recruiting

The recruitment process should be fair and transparent (recommendations 1.7.1–1.7.2). Value‑based selection processes help to ensure that new recruits have the personal attributes essential to delivering person‑centred care. Providers should consider involving people who use home care and their carers when recruiting home care workers.

Learning and development

The Care Certificate, developed by Skills for Care, is a set of standards that social care and health workers follow in their daily working life. The standards should be covered as part of induction training for all new care workers. The Care Certificate includes a standard for working in a person‑centred way.

A skilled home care workforce supports the idea of home care as an attractive career with a defined professional identity. To cultivate a stable workforce, providers should consider current and future training needs.

Networks of support

Frontline home care workers can find the job isolating. They may feel unsupported in their role if they are not easily able to seek advice and support from their manager and peers. It is important that an organisation offers direct and indirect support networks to increase self‑esteem, promote reflection and critical thinking, and encourage resilience among frontline workers.

Care diaries are one way to help home care workers feel less isolated, but organisations should offer proactive managerial support, too. Protecting time for frontline workers to meet and share both positive and difficult experiences is part of employee support. Ensuring other practitioners (for example, social workers, community nurses, occupational therapists) can offer support to the home care workers will help build on person‑centred values, as well as equipping home care workers with the knowledge and skill to deal with complex care.