The Swift Management Services consultancy team work with care home providers and have a unique opportunity to positively impact the lives of those living in Care Homes across the UK.
The care home sector provides a vital service to those unable to care for themselves. It is recognised that residents with more complex needs are moving into care homes. The level of complexity can result in the residents and staff facing numerous challenges that can have an impact on quality of care.
Here are some ways Care Home providers can benefit from working collaboratively with the Swift Management Team when engaging our services on a retained basis.
1. Improving communication: We provide clients access to easy-to-use and effective communication tools. These tools enable the management teams to collaborate and work with our consultants to ensure there is a clear pathway to good governance.
We can work with residents and their families and healthcare professionals to resolve issues that have been difficult to resolve internally. Sometimes this will involve developing clear protocols for sharing information, providing training on effective communication, and using technology to enhance the residents experience.
We also conduct Staff Engagement Surveys to help providers understand the staff’s feelings and views on the service provided. These surveys are measured against industry standards and can be an excellent tool for recruiting new staff.
2. Collaborating with staff to improve care planning: Each resident in a care home has unique care needs. Developing individualised and person-centred care plans that address every requirement in detail is essential. We can do this by training staff and supporting the development of care plans and establishing a process to review care plans. We can support staff to write the care plans where necessary to ensure they are tailored to each resident’s specific requirements.
Risk assessment is a fundamental part of the care planning process, as is consent to care and treatment. We can assist here too, by supporting the mental capacity assessments, setting up best-interest decision meetings and completing the subsequent documentation.
3. Implementing Best Practice: The health and social care sector is constantly evolving, and providers need to keep up to date with changes in guidance and best practice initiatives. We can assist providers in staying abreast of the latest developments in care, including new treatment options and modifications to NICE guidance.
Our team can train staff and conduct audits to identify areas for improvement. Develop specific policies and procedures to address issues while incorporating best practice guidelines into them.
4. Improve staff training: Staff in care homes are responsible for providing complex care to residents. As care becomes more complex, ensuring the team has the knowledge and skills to provide adequate care is essential. We can work with care home providers to develop training programs that address the specific needs of their staff. We can then complete competency assessments to demonstrate that the staff members can complete the tasks needed to provide the best care to the residents in the home.
5. Foster a culture of continuous improvement: Improving the quality of care in any care home is an ongoing process, and fostering a culture of continuous learning is essential. Our ongoing Service Improvement planning system can go a long way to demonstrate a culture of continuous improvement. We help providers identify improvement areas, set goals, and monitor progress. Our support packages involve conducting regular site visits every one to two months. We can seek feedback from residents and their families and implement changes based on the information received.
Working with a Swift Management Services consultant to help implement these strategies helps improve the quality of care provided to residents. Our clients find it reassuring that systems are working and that the oversight of the Swift Management team is supporting progress.
If you are a health and social care provider and would like to know more about our services, please visit our website at: www.swiftmanagement.org.uk or call to speak to one of our team on 020 8087 2072.
