When looking at a care home’s offering, its facilities and location are likely to be the most obvious aspects that enable you to judge its quality.
However, while facilities are clearly an extremely important element, the secret to good care lies in the hands of the staff.
It doesn’t matter how good the shell of a care home is, or how polished its facilities are in appearance and modernity. If the staff are below par, the level of care will be lacking.
A good care home then, is built on good staff – and when it comes to good staff, it isn’t merely good intentions that make them good. The capabilities of staff need to be developed and nurtured over time. A key part of keeping staff at the top of their game is the implementation of continuous development through ongoing training.
Knowledge and skills
Staff have to be proficient in the latest industry standards as part of mandatory compliance procedures, however training goes far beyond that – it helps to ensure that residents are receiving the best care possible, via the latest industry innovations and knowhow. Care constantly evolves, and training allows staff to get to grips with this evolution.
Boosts employee morale
It’s not just residents who benefit from enhanced capabilities via training. Care home employees who are regularly trained will have confidence in their ability, which in turn will translate to improved morale. Those who know they are doing a good job will take satisfaction in a job well done, helping to keep them happy in the workplace.
Improves staff retention
Happy staff stay where they are. If you’re good at your job and enjoying what you do, the chances of leaving are greatly reduced. In a care home environment, this is even more important as carers form bonds with the residents under their care – a relationship that goes both ways. A high turnover of staff breaks this down, and often proves detrimental to residents’ experience.
Drives the standard of care
With individual staff having well-honed skills, the whole care home receives a boost, which serves to drive the standard of care across the board, raising the quality of the home’s offering.
At Goatacre, all of our staff undertake regular training to ensure that they’re performing at a high level. A prerequisite of working here is dedication to our residents, and not only are the staff at Goatacre committed to delivering exceptional care on a personal level, they’re also excellently trained, which ensures that they’re delivering the very latest advances in care.