The adult social care sector is starting a new year having come through a time of unprecedented challenge. This narrative, however, is not a new one and is a testament to the incredible work that care providers across the country do daily.
We have come through a year of new challenges and old ones. Through fee uplifts to recruitment and retention challenges, the sector stands resilient. The political landscape has only contributed to these challenges with turbulence and instability fostering anything but a strategic approach to our sector. The current political direction is characterised by a short-term, sporadic approach, which is limiting our progress as a sector.
Social care is not, and can no longer be, a political football that can be kicked into the long grass. Politicians must face the challenge head-on. Continued funding and workforce pressures, against a backdrop of demographic change, have only increased the fragility of our sector, leaving it in a precarious condition.
There remains the absence of a long-term plan for social care reform from the Government. Quality social care cannot be delivered on a shoestring. The continued lack of a long-term sustainable funding solution will threaten the delivery of quality and timely care that enables people to live meaningful, fulfilling lives.
The people who work in adult social care are everyday heroes and must be the cornerstone of any future reform. The sector requires a long-term workforce plan, akin to that of the NHS, where career progression, pay and rewards are identified. Without a long-term commitment from Government to establish a sustainable social care sector the NHS will become increasingly burdened.
Championing our workforce
With a general election likely to take place this year, there is a new chance for change as plans begin to be put forward by major political parties in the coming months.
Before the sector presents its needs to Government, we must ask ourselves: if I had a blank piece of paper which would dictate the future of social care, where would I start?
Ensuring that the people who work in adult social care are seen and valued as everyday heroes must be the cornerstone of any future reform. The notion that the sector requires a long-term workforce plan must now be realised and has become all the more real with a commitment from Skills from Care.
Individuals who work in adult social care play an invaluable part in supporting people to live full and independent lives. This comes with significant responsibilities and, as a role, it encompasses personal care, emotional support and financial management, as well as working with the NHS and other agencies to manage physical and mental health needs.
Fortunately, we have a foundation to work from in the form of the NHS long-term workforce plan published in June of this year, but unfortunately, the NHS plan does not cover the social care workforce. This is despite the knowledge that the workforce challenges in social care have a knock-on effect on the entire system and the people who rely on social care services, contributing to delayed discharges, increased waiting times for treatment, and greater pressure on emergency and acute services.
For a prosperous social care workforce, we must first look through the lens of increasing education and training, as well as increasing the routes into social care through the likes of apprenticeships. We know the visibility of a career in care is not always something seen in secondary education, but also particularly in the informative years of primary.
Improving cultures
Next, we need to improve culture and leadership across organisations whilst also looking at support mechanisms for current staff in terms of health and wellbeing. We need to focus on the importance of recognition and fair pay for care staff reflective of their skills and competencies and commensurate with the work they undertake.
Finally, we need to use new technologies to improve efficiencies, as well as provide more defined career pathways into existing roles as well as new roles which will take account of the changing epidemiological profile of those who draw on care and support.
Unfortunately, no such blank piece of paper exists, nor can we pin our hopes on political actors to deliver the change we require. It’s now incumbent upon us as sector professionals to look around and reflect on how we can provide our own solutions to the problems we face.
Driving digital transformation
A consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic was the acceleration in technological advancements within our sector.
We are witnessing a technological revolution within the sector, moving us towards a more effective and efficient system. We must turn away from an attitude of fear of the unknown and embrace it. When introducing new technologies into care, the first focus must be on enhancing outcomes for people in receipt of care. Developments can lead to more responsive care, more person-centred care, and swifter reactions. Once elevated outcomes are achieved, our focus can shift to using technology to improve the efficiency of systems within the sector.
The Digital Transformation Fund built a foundation upon which providers can build their electronic systems. Moving away from paper records means tools like AI can extract data and analyse it, reducing the administrative burden on staff, and allowing people to focus on the person-facing aspect of their role. This analysis can link with additional technology, such as tools for fall prevention and pain assessment. This can create evidence-based, wrap-around care, that reduces hospital admissions and allows people to spend more time in the places they call home.
A technological focus on care can also help the wider health and care system operate more effectively. Interoperability between care services, GPs and hospitals enables truly joined-up care, bettering outcomes for people.
Using technology can help organisations plan their shifts in a way that is dynamic, and caters to the needs of staff, who may have commitments that limit the hours they can work. Many other sectors allow flexibility in the hours their staff work. It is imperative that social care, wherever possible, keeps up with trends and harnesses technology to aid this shift in working patterns.
Embracing technology not only ensures better outcomes for the people in receipt of care but allows staff to do the work they came into the sector to do: care.
A voice for the sector
Care England continues to look for ways for providers to improve their outcomes for the people in receipt of care and create efficiencies to drive forward their organisation.
The care sector is unlikely to be saved by the Government, so we must be our own heroes. One way we offer support for providers is our new publication in partnership with Care Management Matters, Savings, Solutions, and Sustainability. This magazine is for the sector, by the sector, with contributions from providers of care and providers of services to aid care alike. There are untapped solutions lying at the fingertips of providers which could solve the issue of keeping you awake at night.
Care England speaks to providers every single day, and we hear voices in a sector brimming with enthusiasm, talent, and hope. The resilience of the sector is astounding, in the face of a crushing pandemic and continued exacerbation of deep-rooted issues, we remain united in our goal to support people to live good lives.
Our purpose is to continue banging the drum for our sector, ensuring the Government understands the nature and scale of the challenges we face and is prepared to deliver the necessary reform. But beyond this noise, we are also bringing solutions to the table which can have a real material difference to providers.
With challenges ahead, against an increasingly challenging backdrop of ongoing pressures and in the absence of further Government action, it is imperative that providers are part of a wider community of opportunities to help troubleshoot the issues affecting your service and push you forward to deliver your core ambitions. Care England is the body to help foster those opportunities and we look forward to another year of championing the change our sector requires.
Professor Martin Green OBE is the Chief Executive at Care England. Email: [email protected]Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â X: @ProfMartinGreen