1.0 Description of a Health Care Assistant Job
1.1 Duties and Responsibilities
My main role as a healthcare assistant is to help in creating and maintain a supportive, secure and homely environment in which the service users can achieve maximum independence, freedom and choice. The job’s main purpose is to provide physical, social and emotional support to service users. My main tasks include assisting patients with their personal care and mobility which involves dressing them, washing them, toileting and helping them in movement as may be appropriate. I also undertake social services for the service users which entail talking to and maintaining contact with their. I accompany the residents to provide encouragement and support. I am also involved in the management of equipments and stocks to ensure their efficient and economic use in meeting the needs of the service users as well safe storage of the same. Finally I also carry out other duties assigned by the registered manager or nurse.
1.2 Expectations
As established by the General Social Care Council in the code of practices for social workers and employers there are six main expectations on my work as a social worker. I am expected to protect and promote the rights and the interests of the service users and of carers. It also expected that I gain the trust and the confidence of the users and the carers in order to work with them. I am expected to promote the independence of the service users while protecting them from harm and injury. Fourthly I am expected to respect and uphold the rights of the service users while making sure they don’t harm themselves or others. I must uphold public trust and confidence and finally be accountable for the quality of my work ensuring that I constantly maintain and improve my skills and knowledge. The six expectations are further broken into specific expectations[ CITATION Gen02 \l 2057 ].
1.3 Values, Belief Systems and Experience
My personal values beliefs and experience have been very useful in carrying out my duties as a healthcare assistant. My caring personality is really handy in caring for the service users which is the gist of my job. I am also secretive in nature which has helped me maintain the necessary confidentiality while dealing with the users. I also believe in respecting the rights, dignity and interests of each individual which are necessary values in social care. I work extremely well with others thus I am able to partner with the service users, the families involved and members of the healthcare team in the planning and execution of actions for the good of the patient. My experience in the healthcare has greatly improved my ability to deal with diverse service users with different personalities without getting frustrated or emotionally involved. Despite not getting emotionally involved I remain in touch with the patients needs and not aloof.
2.0 Reflective Practice
2.1 Value of reflective practice in improving quality of services
Reflective practice is the process of self observation, self monitoring and self evaluating as a tool for professional preparation and development. Reflective practice is divided into reflection in action and reflection on action[ CITATION DSc83 \l 2057 ]. Through the reflection in action one is able to look at their current actions and evaluate whether they are meeting the intended objective. Reflection on action on the other hand involves reflecting on a completed task with an aim to identify areas that need to be improved or maintained. By reflecting on the quality of service rendered the social care worker can identify what he/she must do to offer better services. Reflecting on the expectations of the service users and the standards in place enables the social care giver to always work with these expectations in mind thus he/she is motivated to meet the needs and the expectations of the service users which is core of providing quality service.
2.2 Role of reflective practice in improving ways of working
Reflective practice not only helps in improving the quality of the service rendered but also helps in improving way work is done. As the social care worker reflects on their actions (both current and past) he/she is able to identify easier, more efficient and economic ways of performing their) he/she is tasks. The social care worker revisits his/her tasks of the day and identifies where he/she might have had difficulties with an aim of finding a better way to perform the task. The professional can also reflect on the tasks that are to be performed in the near future and identify what is required in order to accomplish the task with ease. The social care worker may also reflect with an honest colleague who would help identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Reflective practice helps the professional identify alternative approaches of performing the duties thus enhance diversity and eliminates monotony[ CITATION Yvo11 \l 2057 ].
3.0 Communication At work
3.1 Reasons why People Communicate
Human beings communicate for a wide array of reasons but chief among these reasons is basic survival. Human beings are dependent on one another for survival as one person cannot survive through solo self sustenance. This dependency eventually makes communication to become inevitable in the human life. It is worth noting that survival as a reason for communication encompasses many other reasons for communication like persuasion, entertainment, inspiration and information between human beings. Communication may serve the human need to relate with others but it also helps people to understand each other’s differing opinion. People also communicate so as to create and maintain relationships be they personal or business. Other reasons why people communicate include pleasure purposes like through storytelling, so as to conduct business operations, to co-operate with other human beings, to ask for something and to let personal needs to be known among other reasons why people communicate (Zajas & Church, 1997).
3.2 Factors to consider when promoting effective communication
Communication as explored above has a number of benefits and a breakdown of the communication process can lead to ineffective communication. To avoid this and to promote effective communication and more so in the healthcare sector, a number of factors need to be considered chief among them ensuring that the atmosphere is right with no visual or noise distractions. A plethora of research has also established that body language is one of the causes of ineffective communication. Body language or nonverbal communication is therefore another factor that needs to be considered as a match between verbal communication and non verbal communication enhances effective communication. Other factors that should be considered as they contribute to effective communication include active listening, awareness of differences in people’s perceptions, assertive communication, effective feedback, characteristics of audience, ability to differentiate between facts and opinions, agreement of words and an understanding of social cultural differences (James, 2010).
3.3 How Communication Affects Relationships at Workplace
Effective communication is a vital skill in building relationships in any set up and in the case at the workplace. In effective communication between colleagues limits the ability to connect and creates a ground for conflict. When the managers communicate instructions in a commanding tone for example the juniors tend to fear them. This hampers the relationship and by extension the work environment because the juniors find it difficult to approach the managers and seek clarification. Misunderstanding as a result of poor communication could lead to tasks not being performed properly and eventually arguments ensue. Effective communication at the workplace creates a platform for depending on each other and supporting each other. Communication helps in enhancing partnership, respect for individual differences, trust, confidence and independence all of which are vital for a healthy work relationship. On the other hand inappropriate communication mostly leads to inappropriate and unprofessional relationships.
3.4 Use and interpretation of communication methods by people from different backgrounds
There are different communication methods including the verbal, nonverbal, written and symbolic communication. Due to the different experiences, environments and cultures from where people emanate they communicate differently and interpret communication differently. Some languages may have identical or similar words that have different meanings and hence interpretation. Also one symbol may mean one thing to one culture and mean a totally different thing to another culture; for example nodding of the head from left to right means no in the western world while it means yes in parts of Asia. Written expressions may also differ from one culture to another; for example while most cultures write from the left the Arabic writing is in the opposite direction. It is therefore vital to understand the backgrounds involved in order to interpret the message (verbal or non verbal) correctly.
3.5 Confidentiality
Confidentiality refers to the practice of not disclosing information especially of a highly sensitive and personal nature. A social healthcare worker is expected not to share sensitive information about the service user and about the employer because disclosing such information calls for disciplinary action. However confidential information may be shared with the appropriate healthcare professional in cases where the client may suffer if the information is kept secret. If discloses that he/she is being abused then this should be reported to the manager in order to protect the vulnerable client from any further abuse. Also if the client discloses that their health and/or social wellbeing are at risk or that they are suffering symptoms which may be signs of ill-health (mental or physical) this should be reported so that it can be integrated in the healthcare plan. The Clients must be told that the information cannot be kept secret, must be reported and why.
References
General Social Care Council. (2002). Code of Practice for social care workers and employers. London: General Social Care Council.
James, J. (2010, October 11). Factors That Promote Effective Communication. Retrieved May 24, 2011, from E-How: http://www.ehow.com/list_7320966_factors-promote-effective-communication.html
Moon, J. (2000). Reflection, learning and professional development. London: Kogan page.
Nolan, Y. (2011). Level 3 Health and Social Care (Adults) Diploma: Candidate Book (Level 3 Work Based Learning Health and Social Care) . London: Heinemann.
Schon, D. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. New York: Basic books.
Zajas, J. J., & Church, O. D. (1997). Applying telecommunications and technology from a global business perspective. London: Routledge.
