Responsibilities, Training and Person Centred Care

On completion of this section you should have a general understanding of:

Employer and employee responsibilities in medicines safety
The training you should complete for safe and high-quality medicines care
The importance of safe medicines support
Your role in person centred care

Employer

Your employer must:

Provide policies, procedures, and guidance to ensure the safe and proper use of medicines.
Ensure you are trained and competent to handle medicines safely.
Ensure your roles and responsibilities regarding medicines are clear (job description)
Provide on-going support in your medicines training and assessments.
Ensure an annual review of your knowledge, skills and competencies.

💡Responsibility: To carry out duties and tasks that have been delegated, to the best of your abilities (in order to be responsible for your actions you must be trained) 💡

You

You Must:

Follow medicines guidelines, policies and procedures at all times.
Work within your competencies and capabilities.
Keep medicines records accurate, up to date, secure.
Understand and follow directions in care plans for providing medicines support.
Follow instructions provided when administering medicines.

💡Competency: Having proven ability to carry out tasks and duties assigned to you (through documented assessments and regular reviews) 💡

Your training for safe and high quality medicines care

The laws and regulations covering adult health and social care in England say that you must be trained and competent to provide care.

Your training should ensure that you provide safe and high-quality care every time.

Click on each of the following buttons to view what each of them means.

I understand the tasks and duties I have been given

I have been trained to carry out the tasks I have been given

I have been assessed as competent to carry out medicines tasks

I feel confident to carry out the tasks I have been given

I understand and follow instructions given with medicines.

I follow hygiene procedures and cleanliness when preparing and administering medicines to prevent the spread of infection

I ensure that equipment used to prepare and administer medicines is safe to use and used correctly

I provide care which is dignified, respectful and compassionate.

I maintain a person’s privacy and right to confidentiality about their health and medicines.

I support a person to be involved in their care and be as independent as possible.

I act immediately and appropriately when I have concerns about the person I am caring for.

Providing safe medicines support

Supporting people to take their medicines may involve helping people to take their medicines themselves (self-administration) or giving people their medicines (administration).

We will cover basic administration techniques for these medicines later in 'Handling medicines safely for social care staff Module 2: Administration techniques'

We will not be covering Specialist medicines training as staff will need extra and more specific training and competency checks before undertaking these tasks. These tasks include the use of Epipens, suppositories & enemas, and the use of nebulisers.

giving oral medicines such as tablets,capsules & liquids

applying creams, ointments and lotions

applying patches

using eye, ear and nose medications such as drops, ointments and sprays

using inhaler device

insulin pens & other devices

suppositories & enemas

nebulisers

Your responsibilities

Your responsibility is to provide care that is safe.

You must speak up and seek advice e.g from a manager, senior or pharmacy when...

you have not been trained for a certain task

you don’t understand a task you have been asked to carry out.

If you carry out a task you have not been trained for, you could put the person receiving care from you at risk of avoidable harm.

Video: The care plan

The care plan is very detailed and will include many more things depending on the care setting and the person’s needs. Click on ▶️ to play the video clip about The Care Plan.

The Care plan – Transcript

00:00 A care plan is something we've done

00:03 together Me and the patient where we look

00:07 at we've assessed what problems they see

00:09 are their problems and we plan

00:12 together to make goals to achieve these

00:16 goals and how we're going to help them

00:19 feel better about their long-term

00:20 condition that they've got and how to

00:22 live with it better and may be how to manage

00:25 it better. And a care plan gives them

00:28 confidence and control over their own

00:32 condition. It would include emergency

00:34 contact numbers for a patient for when

00:37 the feeling unwell. It also includes

00:40 their medication - what to take them when

00:42 to take it and how to take it. There

00:45 are very individualised care plans too,

00:48 so some care plans may include

00:50 information about diet and exercise

00:53 tailored to that patient's individual

00:56 Needs. The care plan involves looking at

00:59 what Gladys can do when she's well and

01:01 recognising herself when she's unwell

01:05 and what symptoms she recognises and

01:08 what to do when she gets those symptoms.

01:09 “…using your inhaler, using it more through

01:12 the day”. Care plan involves giving

01:14 the patient information about their

01:16 condition so they can take more control

01:19 of their condition to avoid maybe an

01:23 unnecessary possible admission or becoming

01:27 very unwell at home. The patient will

01:29 identify with us what they think their

01:31 main problems are and that might be

01:34 different to our health professional

01:36 thinks their problems are so it's about

01:38 finding out what the patient likes to do

01:40 wants to do and what they understand

01:43 already. “…..even if the other parts

01:46 have worn out it's alright if I can do the

01:48 deciding what's happening,

01:53 I’d like to control my own life”.

01:57 The care plan forms part of the

02:00 confidential medical records for the

02:03 patient and it's reviewed on a

02:05 continuous basis with the patient maybe

02:08 when the patient's condition changes or

02:11 the circumstances change

Remember that when providing support, the care plan will have medicines information e.g.

What medicines a person takes and when?
Why a person takes the medicines?
What will help a person might need?
If their ability to make daily decisions about their medicines could change?
If there are any special instructions to follow?
If any medicines are needed at a particular time?
If any medicines are taken 'When Required'?
If there are personal preferences

Personal Preferences -

People may have different preferences regarding how they receive their medicines such as with a glass of water, medicines on a spoon, taking tablets before inhaling medication, etc. Some people may prefer to receive their medicines in a private room rather than a communal space to maintain their dignity. A gelatine capsule may not be suitable for vegetarians. A person who observes religious festivals by fasting may prefer not to have medicines at certain times. These people must be supported but seek advice from the pharmacy or GP before making any changes. Preferences should be followed, respected, and clearly detailed e.g. in their care plan, on their profile sheet with MARs.

Your role in person centred care

Each of the images below to describe your role in providing person centred care and support with medicines.

Understand and respect the medicines choices and preferences of the person

Know who to contact for advice if you have concerns about the person or their medication.

Understand that changes to a person’s mental, emotional or physical wellbeing may affect the medicines support they require or the decisions they make.

Ensure you have clear instructions on how and when the medicines should be taken, including any special instructions for that person.

Understand the importance of communicating effectively with the person and others involved in their care.

Understand that changes to a medication may affect the person and how they feel about their medicine

Section 1: Responsibilities, Training and Person Centred Care

In this section we have looked at:

Employer and employee responsibilities in medicines safety
The training you should complete for safe and high-quality medicines care
The importance of safe medicines support
Your role in person centred care

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