Managing Human Resources In Health And Social Care

Answer :

TASK 1- CASE SCENARIO

The sector in the health and social care that has been selected for the current assignment is a private nursing home named Barchester - Queens Court Care Home, in the United Kingdom. 

Explanation of the factors that need to be considered – operationally and strategically – when planning the recruitment in health and social care setting [AC1.1]

A career in social and health care would require a great amount of awareness about the public health and the positivity and optimism among the individuals seeking a career in social and health care. However, there are a few factors that are required to be considered prior to the planning of the recruitment of the individuals in order to meet the organizational goals of the Private Nursing home.

Operational Factors

When planning the recruitment processes in social and healthcare, it becomes pertinent to consider the operational factors when constructing the job design and the job profile of the social and health care associates. The employers are required to assess the ability of the job profile towards promoting the development of the domiciliary, day and respite services and the capability of enabling the service providers towards offering practical support for service users of high priority (Cascio, 2018). The employers must ensure the diversity in the care roles of the staff and the opportunity for promotion and progression. Furthermore, the employers are also required to consider the viability of cost-effective training models such as the e-learning models along with flexible training providers in order to develop the skills and competency of the newly recruits and enhance the productivity of the existing staff base. The employers would also seek to employ the graduates through various graduate programs and apprenticeships to promote the sector.

Strategic Factors

The strategic factors that affect the planning of the recruitment process rests with the extent to which the job roles will be effective towards accomplishing the organizational objectives (Snell et al. 2015). The recruiters are required to plan the care roles strategically in order to bring about a continuous professional development of the caregivers through different employee engagement programs such as incremental pay scales, effective finding and remuneration process and regular training and orientation programs. 

Key legislations and policies employed to ensure the selection of the ‘right’ individual for the job [AC1.2] (M1)

As the HR officer, the author recognizes the significance of planning the recruitment process in accordance with the legislation frameworks. The key legislations that must be taken into consideration while designing the recruitment processes include the following:

• Equality Act 2010: The Equality Act of 2010 and the Protected Characteristics is a compilation of a range of already existing laws such as the Equal Pay Act 1970, Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Race Relations Act 1976, Disability Discrimination Act 1995, etc. The law covers a certain range of groups that offers equal treatment to each “protected” groups such as groups categorized under age, disability, race, gender, etc (Mintzberg, 2018). Therefore, under this law, the employers are required to ensure that the employees recruited must not be subject to any form of direct or indirect discrimination against the protected characteristics.
• Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974: Under this law, if the candidates are found to have been convicted in an offence then the conviction under some specific condition may be treated as it never took place (Blais et al. 2018). This ensures that the employers will refrain from asking the prospective employee if they have spent the conviction during the recruitment process.
• Criminal records check: It is a legal right of the employers to verify the background of the prospective employee prior to his employment with the organization when working with groups belonging to under 17 and people with mental health issues
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006: This legislation enables the screening of the candidates for the people working in the social and health care services especially when working with children of vulnerable adults (Blais et al. 2018). 
•  Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006: This law is applicable in the current scenario, as Barchester Care Home would like to assess the eligibility of the candidates applying for care specialist posts for working in the United Kingdom.

Evaluation of different approaches that may be used to ensure the selection of the best individuals in health and social care sector [AC1.3]

The different approaches that may be applicable in the current scenario to select the right candidate include:

• The Compensatory approach towards selecting and recruiting the right candidate has been widely used in business sectors (Bratton and Gold, 2017). The approach is based on assessing the alternative good or bad attributes of the candidates and therefore, making a decision by evaluating the different bad attributes that can be traded off considering the possible effectiveness of the candidates in the organization
• Structured selection through interviews is the widely used method of recruitment that assesses the candidates through General Mental Ability tests, Skills and competencies through Structured Interviews and the Situational Judgment Tests. This leads to exposure of the vacant posts to the right set of candidates with appropriate qualifications and make it easier for the recruiters to assess the capability of the candidates with a personal interaction with the candidate and assess the expectations of the prospective employees (Bratton and Gold, 2017).
• Online recruitment approach a novel method incorporated by a wide range of recruiters nowadays to increase the pool of candidates exploiting the effectiveness of online mediums that enable the exposure to the career opportunities available at different facilities (Smee, 2016). Usually, the online recruitment processes include online registration, screening of the CVs and the applications sent online and a possible call for interview (personal or over the phone)

Problems arising during the recruitment process (D3)

The different problems that can arise during the selection and the recruitment process include the inability of the recruiters to evaluate the proper count of the availability of vacancies due to the instability of the health and social care sector caused by the poor retention rates of the sector (Smee, 2016). In addition, problems arise with the recruitment process being slow that delays the hiring and the commencement of the daily operations as the candidates are observed to have multiple offers and therefore, this will cause the poor retention of the newly recruited and lead to inconsistency.

TASK 2- REPORT WRITING

Introduction

In this section, different questions have been addressed concerning with the effective interaction of the individuals working in groups in the health and social care sector. The author accomplishes a critical analysis of the different approaches to effective team working and the manner in which the leadership theories are applicable to the working individuals in Barchester Care Home.

Explanation of the theories of how individuals interact in groups, particularly focusing on teams that work in health and social care [AC2.1]

The Tuckman’s Teamwork Theory is the most well known theory that governs the team-building activties of different sectors and facilities that work with a group of individuals. The model is often referred to as the Four Phases of Tuckman’s Teamwork Theory of which the four phases are the Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing that offer the suitable guide on team building activities (Dickinson and O'Flynn, 2016). 

Figure 1: The Four Phases of Tuckman’s Teamwork Theory

(Source: Smee, 2016)

The initial stage of Forming refers to the team development or team forming stage where different factor such as sizing and placing of the individuals take place in accordance with their skill and competency levels take place. The second stage of Storming consist of the different interaction of the team members that take place in the form of group discussions and healthy arguments  in order to enhance the performance of each member (Macinko and Harris, 2015). However, there is a possibility for the discussions to go south leading to conflicts and confrontations. This is illustrated with a dip in the curve in figure 1. The stage of Norming refers to stage where certain ground rules are established and this consequently lead to effective Performing stage where the members perform taking into account the norms that are established. This effective approach would accomplish well-organized interaction of the members in Barchester Care Home workplaces as a team.

Evaluation of different approaches that might be used to develop effective team working in health and social care [AC2.2]

It has been observed that there exists four main approaches to develop the effective team working in health and social care include Goal Setting, Clarification of roles, Problem solving style and Interpersonal-relations management. The goal setting is a pertinent towards the development of an effective team-working environment in the social and health care facilities as there will be a considerable amount of ambiguity about the objectives of the tasks among the team members. In addition, it is pertinent for the members to be clear about their roles in the team to avoid confusion, which may result in loss of productivity (Mitchell et al. 2015). The problem solving style is also important as this governs the action planning and the implementation of the solution to the problems that have been identified within the organization. 

Furthermore, the approach of developing the Interpersonal-relations within the social and healthcare workplaces will result in facilitating the communication and sharing skills among the members. This will be possible only when there is mutual respect for each other among the team members that will enhance the team working abilities.

Theories of leadership applicable to health and social care workplace [AC4.1]

The most relevant leadership theories that hold importance in social and health care sector considering amount of uncertainty associated with the sector include Situational and Behavioral Theoretical Model. The Situational Theoretical model of leadership would imply towards the change in the leadership style according to the situation. For instance, during the times of crisis the leaders may assume a less authoritative leader trait rather than an autocratic leadership style or become a result-oriented leader that wishes to see noticeable improvements in the results of the services provided by the caregivers (Cameron et al. 2014). Therefore, the Situational Model is am apt theoretical approach towards managing the operations in a social ad health care workplaces and motivating the espkws as per the situation.

However, another appropriate Leadership Framework that is applicable in the social and healthcare sector is the Behavioral Leadership Model. This rationale behind this is the fact that the Behavioral Leadership model facilitates the process of arriving at the conclusion. By the means of this model, many health and social care provides have been able to manage their daily operational activities and engage in daily learning through their activities (Glasby, 2017). The Behavioral Leadership allows the leaders to learn through their role of leaders, which is pertinent in the health, social care sector considering nothing is certain, and the situations keep changing on a regular basis. 

Analysis of the manner in which health care working teams can be managed [AC4.2] (D2)

The foremost activity towards managing the working team in Barchester Care Home may be the identification of the requirements of the patients and the care users. This will facilitate the team-oriented goal setting to identify the areas where the team requires to collectively working accomplishing the team goal. For instance, the identification of the requirements of the patient in terms of medications or durable medical equipments is an important task that will require the effective goal setting for delivering high-quality DMEs and medications. This will additionally require effective communication skills and effective interpersonal relations among the team members to accomplish the different tasks (Glasby and Dickinson, 2014). The tasks may include activities such as the ordering of the requirements for the patients, accomplishing quality checks for the equipments ensuring smooth transition of the patients into the equipments. Therefore, this manner of team tasks would require effective goal setting, clarification of the tasks allocated and the interpersonal communication is vital.

Critical self-evaluation of the manner in which own development has been influenced by management approaches encountered in own experience [AC4.3] (D1)

Critically examining my own development over the course of my assessment, the following realm of management influences has influenced my personal development:

Recruitment

As per the understanding developed in this very topic, I have observed there a range of complexities associated with the recruitment of the candidates as the recruitment processes are also linked with a range of regulatory and legislative frameworks that are required to be obeyed during the job design phase of the recruitment process. This has been able to enlarge my knowledge body about the legal aspects of the job role of an HR in the social and health care

Leadership

The leadership aspect has illustrated that a career in health and social care is influenced by the different leadership styles and requires a more spontaneous leadership model that is flexible to the situational changes and is result-oriented.

Teamwork abilities

The assessment of the team work abilities have enlarged my knowledge body which was at average levels previously, by developing the understanding of the importance of effective goal setting and interpersonal relations with the team members for managing the team tasks in the social and health care services. 

Conclusion

This report has attempted at adjoining the different factors plant for managing the people working in groups in the social and health care workplaces by illustrating the importance of team working and the application of appropriate leadership styles. 

Recommendations

• The recruitment of the working individuals are required to be accomplished carefully considering the sensitivity pg the healthcare sector as in small mistakes can cause harm to human life subjected to the care processes
• There should be regular monitoring of the performance of the employees in accordance with the different technological advancements and ensuring that the workforce is compatible to work with the new technologies in health and social care
• The employers are required to accomplish a sustainable competitive advantage

TASK 3- PRESENTATION

Slide 1: Introduction

• This section of the assignment aims at developing the profound comprehension about the different performance management strategies adopted by the Barchester Care Home in UK (Bronstein et al. 2015)
• The main purpose is to understand the benefits of performance management in social and health care workplaces 

Speaker Notes: The Monitoring of the performance standards of the employees working in the social and health care workplaces enables the employers to devise appropriate retention, engagement and leadership activities to facilitate the working culture of the organization (Körner et al. 2016). In addition, this lets the employers to assess the extent to which the workers are able to accomplish the organizational objects and contribute to the enhanced productivity.

Slide 2: Monitoring strategies adopted for analysis of performance of employees working [AC3.1]

The different monitoring strategies adopted by the Barchester Care Home for evaluating the performance of its employees are:

• Supervisory visits
• Targeted field supervision
• Routine Reporting (Valentine et al. 2015)
• Sentinel Routine Reporting
• Special studies

Speaker Notes: There exists a wide range of methods utilized for the monitoring and review of the activities of care fiving that are provided and assess the effectiveness of the tasks completed (Ginter et al. 2018). The monitoring revolves around tracking the effectiveness of the program units such as the staff, facilities, supplies, funding and training. In the health and social care services, the evaluation refers the process of measuring the progress of the employees towards accomplishing the objectives and meeting the results.

Slide 3: 

Supervisory visits refer to the informal and direct monitoring of the performance of an id visual working in the social and health care units of the organization. The supervisor or any superior establishes the monitoring.

Targeted field supervision refers to the supervisory activity aimed at monitoring the performance of a targeted health care pr social care institutions the officials of the MoH that have been financing the health programs and the targeted field supervisor is therefore, a crucial part of the programs.

Routine Reporting refers to the regular reporting of the different records of the patients that are maintained by the healthcare and social care workers about the subjects (Arnaboldi et al. 2015). The reports include feedbacks and the results of the different procedures accomplished on the subject

Sentinel Routine Reporting refers to the carefully collected information beyond the minimal essential information that is aimed at assisting the routine reporting.

Special studies refer to the monitoring and supervision of the different gathered information such as the names, dosage forms and value of recently expired medicines (Cherry and Jacob, 2016). These notes are specially monitored by the medical officers to ensure the ethical conduct of the medical institutions.

Slide 4: Analysis of different techniques for promoting development continuity in these employees in health and social care workplace [AC3.3]

The different techniques to promote the development continuity in employees in health and social care are:

• Job enrichment
• Mentoring and Coaching
• Job Rotation
• Promotions
• Lateral Moves (Van Dooren et al. 2015)
• Training
• Orientation Programs

Speaker Notes:The organizations are required to emphasize on development of the competencies and skills of the working individuals through different techniques such as job enrichment and job rotation to renew the experience body of the employees, which is observed as an effective way to motivate the employees.

Slide 5:

Figure 1: Continuity Development in employees of social and health care sector

(Source: Self-developed)

Speaker Notes: The development of continuity among the existing employees can be accomplished through enlargement of the current ob experiences that has been illustrated in figure 1. The figure shows the interrelation of the different techniques with the expansion in experiences.

Slide 6: Assessment of individual training and development needs in health and social care [AC3.2]

The assessment of the individual training needs can be accomplished through the Training Needs Analysis frameworks that include:

• Training need analysis
• Designing the training course (Holden et al. 2015)
• Delivery of the designed training material
• Evaluation of the effectiveness of the training

Slide 7: 

Figure 2:  Training development cycle

(Source: self-developed)

Speaker Notes: Figure 2 illustrates the training development cycle that helps in devising the training need analysis (TNA) of the employees in social and health care in Barchester Care Home (Wager et al. 2017).  The TNA is a cost-effective way that helps in evaluating the training needs and to weight up the training priority within the organization.

Slide 8: Recommendations 

• Regular review of the wellbeing determinants of the healthcare and social care workers
• Effective assessment of risks that  may surface in the monitoring systems is crucial
• Effective actions are required to be taken on the determination of negative determinants such as low job satisfaction, psychological distress, etc

Slide 9: Conclusion

It may be reasonable to conclude that the different techniques that have been identified through this report aims at measuring the health and social care workers effectiveness in his or her job role. It also assists in measuring the workers well-being that would be able to lead to the indications of being proactively engaged with the job and enhanced performance of the workers.