Social Care Managers Role
A social care manager is a lead professional in a service. A manager is a role model for all the staff. The skills, knowledge and values that drive a managers work also set the standard. A manager has a statutory role and a wide range of responsibilities but above all they are the heart of the service. Social care managers are the people who get on with turning the services vision and purpose statement into real practice on the ground. To do this well means putting the people who use the service at the centre of everything and constantly reflecting on whether or not you are doing the very best that can be done. The five key aspects of social care managers role are planning, organising, leading, controlling and evaluation. (National Skills Academy
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for Social Care 2014). A social care manager takes part in professional social care practice. Professional social care practice is a ‘profession committed to the planning and delivery of quality care and other support services for individuals and groups with identified needs’ (Lalor and Share 2013 pg 4). The economic crash of 2008 has had a profound impact on professional social care practice. The greatest impact has been unemployment, with high levels of men aged 25 – 44 and young people unemployed. This unemployment has resulted in high levels of emigration for young people. There has been a great increase in demand for public services as a result of the economic crisis while the expenditure on budgets, staffing and programmes has been reduced. These reductions have had a great impact on the provisions of public services. The community and voluntary sector has been severely affected by the crisis. With the increased demand for services many organisations have has there budgets cut with many services have been closed down or been made smaller (National Economic and Social Council 2013).
Professional social care practice includes all jobs that aim to help overcome difficulties related to physical, mental, environmental or lifestyle problems at any stage in a persons life. Social care practice works in many different areas. Theses areas include supporting the eldery, working with people who have substance abuse issues, the homeless or victims of violence as well as adults with mental health, learning and physical disabilities. Social care practice also works in the area of child protection, adoption or fostering, young offenders, young people or families who are homeless or unemployed and young people who have learning and physical disabilities (Quadir 2011). A manager is responsible for the social care practitioner. A social care practitioner refers to those holding an approved qualification in social care in accordance with the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 satisfies the social care workers registration board that he or she is fit and proper person to engage in the practice of the profession. The social care practitioner has 5 key skills, they are communication, assessment, planning, intervention and self- reflection. Social care work can be very challenging emotionally and physically, it can lead to working in very difficult environments which can lead to great stress (Lalor & Share 2013).
Stress is a persons reaction to change It is a physical and mental response to feelings, situations, other people or places (Gregson 2000).
A stressor is any “real or perceived physical, social, or psychological event or stimulus that causes our bodies to react and respond” (Donatelle 2012 p). Several factors influence how a person responds to a stressor including the characteristics of the stressor, the biological factors and past experiences. Each person has a unique way of dealing with stress, what stresses out one person may not even bother the next person. There are two types of distress which can also be called negative stress they are acute and chronic stress. Acute stress is typically intense, flares quickly and disappears quickly. Chronic stress may not feel as intense but can linger for longer periods of time and be a risk to your health. A death in the family may cause chronic stress. Concerns over money, work, family and health are the main sources of stress among adults. Having awareness of these sources of stress can help avoid, prevent and control the things that cause stress in your life (Donatelle 2012). Not all stress is bad. Stress can make life more exciting. It can motivate people to make a needed change or to figure out a problem (Gregson 2000). Positive yet stressful events can have positive effects on a persons growth and well being. Positive stress is known as eustress. Eustress can energise a person, motivate them and actually improve health. Events such as getting married, having a child or getting a promotion at work can be associated with eustress. In general, people perform at their best and live their lives to the fullest when they experience a moderate level of stress just enough to keep a person challenged and motivated if dealt with in a productive way (Donatelle
2012).
Work related stress is the conditions, practices and events at work which give rise to stress. Work related stress is stress caused by or made worse by work (Health Service Executive 2012). It simply means that when a person perceives the workplace in a certain way that enables them to have feelings of an inability to cope. Workplaces that have good communication systems, respectful relations and a healthy system of work can help people recognise and manage the type of stress which may have more than one cause. There are many different causes of work related stress, the role at work may not be clear and the roles may be conflicting, there also could be a strain in work relationships, training may not be adequate, and the work could be too much for what the social care practitioner is capable of Health and Safety Authority 2009). Because stress affects people in different ways, the experience of stress in work can cause unusual behaviour and can contribute to poor physical and mental health. Long term stress or a traumatic event in work can lead to psychological problems and can develop into psychiatric disorders such as depression resulting in absence from work and preventing the worker from being able to work again. When under stress it is difficult to maintain a healthy balance between work life and non-work life. This may lead to them engaging in unhealthy activities such as smoking, drinking or abusing drugs. Stress may also affect peoples immune systems impairing the ability to fight infections ( Leka, Griffiths & Cox 2003).
According to the Health Service Executive (2012) managers should be aware of the legislation put in place for health and safety at work including workplace stress. The safety and welfare at work act 2005 applies to this. Under this act managers have a duty of care and shoud be able to provide a safe workplace for all the employees (Health Service Executive 2012). There are three strategies that are aimed at the managers and the workforce to prevent and minimise the occurrence of stress, They are primary, secondary and tertiary stages. Level 1, the primary stage focuses on the entire workforce as a whole. The workforce should create a supporting environment in which the welfare and safety of the staff is the priority. Policies for health and safety and dignity at work should be implemented. Information should be given out to all staff on the supports that are available to them. Managers should work with the staff to identify and deal with potential stressors Level 2, The secondary level focuses on the managers strategies to help the employees to manage and cope better with stress. An important thing for the manager is to encourage the staff to take responsibility for their own health by giving them information about safety health and welfare and their own health and wellbeing. A manager should also increase the staffs ability to cope by running stress management and wellbeing workshops. Secondary interventions involve the manager recognising stress at an early stage and acting appropriately to prevent the stress from getting worse. This involves acting quickly to provide the support immediately after a major stressor or a critical incident in work. Level 3, the tertiary level focuses on the minimisation of stress. This focuses on managing, rehabilitating or treating symptoms of existing stress. It involves referring employees to suitable support services once a problem has been identified (Health Service Executive 2012).
If stress is not identified by the manager the workers may become increasingly distressed and irritable, they can also become unable to relax or concentrate an have difficulty thinking logically and making decisions. The stress may lead to enjoying work less and being less committed to it, leading to feeling tired, depressed and anxious (Leka, Griffiths & Cox 2003).
for Social Care 2014). A social care manager takes part in professional social care practice. Professional social care practice is a ‘profession committed to the planning and delivery of quality care and other support services for individuals and groups with identified needs’ (Lalor and Share 2013 pg 4). The economic crash of 2008 has had a profound impact on professional social care practice. The greatest impact has been unemployment, with high levels of men aged 25 – 44 and young people unemployed. This unemployment has resulted in high levels of emigration for young people. There has been a great increase in demand for public services as a result of the economic crisis while the expenditure on budgets, staffing and programmes has been reduced. These reductions have had a great impact on the provisions of public services. The community and voluntary sector has been severely affected by the crisis. With the increased demand for services many organisations have has there budgets cut with many services have been closed down or been made smaller (National Economic and Social Council 2013).
Professional social care practice includes all jobs that aim to help overcome difficulties related to physical, mental, environmental or lifestyle problems at any stage in a persons life. Social care practice works in many different areas. Theses areas include supporting the eldery, working with people who have substance abuse issues, the homeless or victims of violence as well as adults with mental health, learning and physical disabilities. Social care practice also works in the area of child protection, adoption or fostering, young offenders, young people or families who are homeless or unemployed and young people who have learning and physical disabilities (Quadir 2011). A manager is responsible for the social care practitioner. A social care practitioner refers to those holding an approved qualification in social care in accordance with the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 satisfies the social care workers registration board that he or she is fit and proper person to engage in the practice of the profession. The social care practitioner has 5 key skills, they are communication, assessment, planning, intervention and self- reflection. Social care work can be very challenging emotionally and physically, it can lead to working in very difficult environments which can lead to great stress (Lalor & Share 2013).
Stress is a persons reaction to change It is a physical and mental response to feelings, situations, other people or places (Gregson 2000).
A stressor is any “real or perceived physical, social, or psychological event or stimulus that causes our bodies to react and respond” (Donatelle 2012 p). Several factors influence how a person responds to a stressor including the characteristics of the stressor, the biological factors and past experiences. Each person has a unique way of dealing with stress, what stresses out one person may not even bother the next person. There are two types of distress which can also be called negative stress they are acute and chronic stress. Acute stress is typically intense, flares quickly and disappears quickly. Chronic stress may not feel as intense but can linger for longer periods of time and be a risk to your health. A death in the family may cause chronic stress. Concerns over money, work, family and health are the main sources of stress among adults. Having awareness of these sources of stress can help avoid, prevent and control the things that cause stress in your life (Donatelle 2012). Not all stress is bad. Stress can make life more exciting. It can motivate people to make a needed change or to figure out a problem (Gregson 2000). Positive yet stressful events can have positive effects on a persons growth and well being. Positive stress is known as eustress. Eustress can energise a person, motivate them and actually improve health. Events such as getting married, having a child or getting a promotion at work can be associated with eustress. In general, people perform at their best and live their lives to the fullest when they experience a moderate level of stress just enough to keep a person challenged and motivated if dealt with in a productive way (Donatelle
2012).
Work related stress is the conditions, practices and events at work which give rise to stress. Work related stress is stress caused by or made worse by work (Health Service Executive 2012). It simply means that when a person perceives the workplace in a certain way that enables them to have feelings of an inability to cope. Workplaces that have good communication systems, respectful relations and a healthy system of work can help people recognise and manage the type of stress which may have more than one cause. There are many different causes of work related stress, the role at work may not be clear and the roles may be conflicting, there also could be a strain in work relationships, training may not be adequate, and the work could be too much for what the social care practitioner is capable of Health and Safety Authority 2009). Because stress affects people in different ways, the experience of stress in work can cause unusual behaviour and can contribute to poor physical and mental health. Long term stress or a traumatic event in work can lead to psychological problems and can develop into psychiatric disorders such as depression resulting in absence from work and preventing the worker from being able to work again. When under stress it is difficult to maintain a healthy balance between work life and non-work life. This may lead to them engaging in unhealthy activities such as smoking, drinking or abusing drugs. Stress may also affect peoples immune systems impairing the ability to fight infections ( Leka, Griffiths & Cox 2003).
According to the Health Service Executive (2012) managers should be aware of the legislation put in place for health and safety at work including workplace stress. The safety and welfare at work act 2005 applies to this. Under this act managers have a duty of care and shoud be able to provide a safe workplace for all the employees (Health Service Executive 2012). There are three strategies that are aimed at the managers and the workforce to prevent and minimise the occurrence of stress, They are primary, secondary and tertiary stages. Level 1, the primary stage focuses on the entire workforce as a whole. The workforce should create a supporting environment in which the welfare and safety of the staff is the priority. Policies for health and safety and dignity at work should be implemented. Information should be given out to all staff on the supports that are available to them. Managers should work with the staff to identify and deal with potential stressors Level 2, The secondary level focuses on the managers strategies to help the employees to manage and cope better with stress. An important thing for the manager is to encourage the staff to take responsibility for their own health by giving them information about safety health and welfare and their own health and wellbeing. A manager should also increase the staffs ability to cope by running stress management and wellbeing workshops. Secondary interventions involve the manager recognising stress at an early stage and acting appropriately to prevent the stress from getting worse. This involves acting quickly to provide the support immediately after a major stressor or a critical incident in work. Level 3, the tertiary level focuses on the minimisation of stress. This focuses on managing, rehabilitating or treating symptoms of existing stress. It involves referring employees to suitable support services once a problem has been identified (Health Service Executive 2012).
If stress is not identified by the manager the workers may become increasingly distressed and irritable, they can also become unable to relax or concentrate an have difficulty thinking logically and making decisions. The stress may lead to enjoying work less and being less committed to it, leading to feeling tired, depressed and anxious (Leka, Griffiths & Cox 2003).