Carer Review

I am a carer. I assist vulnerable people to enjoy day to day life by assisting them in areas they struggle with themselves. This could be making their breakfast, lunch and tea. It could also mean assisting clients with personal care and dressing. I even shop for some of my clients.

I have learnt how to peg feed clients whilst I have been in my position. I have learnt how to change catheter bags and how to attach night bags. I have also learnt how to use slide sheets, how to help train up new carers and guide them into doing an amazing job.

I absolutely love the programme. I have learnt about how to assist clients with dementia better and i have also learnt about legislations and health and safety in the care sector. My assessor has given me the courage to over come my fears about doing a presentation and speaking in front of people.

My programme is very well structured as I get new assignments every two weeks and I get plenty of time to complete them, knowing that I have children and I work. My assessor is always available when I need help for my assignments and has given me loads of places for me to go for help.

My employer has given me a little bit of help. They have given up the back room in the office so that I could do my tests and offered to help me with some subjects I struggled with but apart from that they haven't offered to help with any social care questions I may need answering.

My assessor provides me with loads of help with my qualification. She has sent me loads of hand notes to help me answer some questions and is always available if I struggle at all. She has put me through 2 end of assessment mock tests to make sure I am ready for my final test.

I think my qualification is helping me perform better in my role as it helps me understand the more in depth knowledge about care that you wouldn't know just by doing your job. Like what the different legislations are and what parts of care could be and could not be classed as abuse.

No there are no extra-curricular activities to get involved in at work. We do our normal training like medication and manual handling training but apart from that we get no privileges at work. I have done an end of life course outside of work to excel my skills and knowledge even more.

Yes

We might not get privileges at work but I get enough hours to help support my family. They allow me to work around my girls school and after school activities. They also understand if I ever need a day off due to my girls being poorly. Their also always there if I ever need support while I'm out working in the community.

I would advise people to only apply for a job in care if they really have patience and empathy. I see a lot of carers join care because they think it's an easy job and easy money but after a few weeks they realise it's a lot harder than they first thought.