Supporting Care Workers In The Field

While it is the primary role of a care worker to support and care for their clients, at HomeCare Australia, we believe that supporting care workers is just as important. Working in the field can put care workers into unexpected scenarios where they have to make quick decisions so they can provide you with the best care possible. And because recognize that the kind of support they get can impact on their ability to deliver the best possible service for you, we want to ensure that our clients know how we support our care workers and how you can support them too.  

Focus on Communication Those who have the most contact with patients are often the best resources for determining the best course of care. Doctors often have limited contact with our clients and may not be able to form the same relationships that care workers offer. So it is important that you communicate well with your care worker and share vital information that will help them understand where their assistance is most needed. If there are any changes in the client’s condition, let the care worker know so they can factor this into their care plan. For our part, we always ensure that there is a clear channel of communication with our care workers. We let them know of any new developments, including information from the medical team. Through such communication, care workers are enabled to provide services more efficiently.

Offer Training  Especially when they are new to the role, or if their roles are expanded, it is important to provide care workers with the training they need to understand and meet your needs. This helps care workers feel comfortable and quickly settle into their roles. The training you provide could include things like how to operate appliances in the home, how to let themselves in and out of the home etc. For our part, we ensure that the care worker gets the right training for the situation they are in, such as what to do in an emergency, how to offer medication, how to bathe and care for their clients, etc. ​ Career Development At HomeCare Australia, we emphasise staff satisfaction and we provide programs that allow frontline care workers to advance their careers and develop their skills. By offering this sort of support, employees feel valued, have their potential recognised and we have a better employee retention rates than most other agencies. Not only does this benefit the care workers themselves, it benefits clients as they can depend on us for continuity instead of getting new carers frequently. The need for home care in Australia is growing and more workers will be needed as the population ages. Knowing this, we believe it is our responsibility to empower today’s care workers to provide the best possible service and lay a foundation for future ones. Being ahead of the curve means we are able to prevent existing care workers from being overworked as demand increases.