Professional Values and Awareness Essay

In this assignment I get out refer issues that affect the wield provided in a home for adults with culture disabilities. use the case submit format I will focus on the inter face-to-face births and identify the underlying detailors that influence them, then provide explanations for these by applying established theories. Churton (2000214) describes a case study as a circumstantial investigation of a single research bea.The case study will form a unique representation of the individuals involved at the time they were observed. As a single study the outcomes may not be representative of all c ar homes, precisely it is reasonable to encounter many an otherwise(prenominal) issues may be similar.As a student I was able to observe both supply and invitees in their normal routines. I was accepted as a member of the premeditation team and took go a stylus in daily activities. This form of research is described in Giddens (1997542) as Participant observation. Becker descr ibe the role of the researcher as somebody who watches the people he is studying to perk what situations they ordinarily meet and how they carry on in them (cited in Marsh I. 1996124), however the by taking on a role within the group that justifies their presence the researcher acts as more(prenominal) than a passive observer and becomes a participant.As a stranger to the group my presence will aim affected the deportment of the thickenings and studies have shown that the presence of students affects the way that fitting faculty tempt (Reed J & Procter S. 199331). My own preconceived ideas of Learning disabilities and the faculty and knobs previous experience of students will all have l shuttingd to the behaviour I witnessed.On my first daylight at the placement I was introduced to my instruct (the deputy manager). We discussed the homes basic ism and the clients disabilities. I was introduced to the nine clients, and the mental faculty approximately 15. During th is first meeting my mentor do me odour welcome and allayed some of my fears round the placement.Unfortunately opposite than two brief conversations this was the only time I serveed with her over the six-week placement. The round ar approximatelyly female with only four male staff. They were of all ages and came from a mix of races and religions, some single and others married with children. All of the staff are support bunkers and most have NVQ level 3 or are currently studying towards it.I open up all the staff very fri balancely and felt up welcome, but I also felt a like a spare part, as the clients were support to do things for themselves, very scant(p) intervention was necessary. Record keeping, giving medicine and supervising the clients at the many activities they at cristalded were the main tasks. The years in brief became very predictable with set activities and opportunities to be achieved. The slowness of the day meant that staff talked a lot, discussin g personal matters as well as how they felt about the clients and their jobs.Conversation included issues around the low regard support modelers had from the prevalent public and other health sustenance professionals, the quantity of paper work to be completed daily and the emphasis placed on it, little support and understanding from the concern, and having to attend college in there own time.My personal performance was influenced most by the lack of a mentor. Without a mentor to shadow I would try to latch onto a member of staff only to find that we were on different activities or were at the end of their shift. My shifts and my mentors were not together, when I asked the manager if I could swap my weekend to the uniform(p) as my mentors, she told me that there was no need for me to work with my mentor at all. I was left feeling very isolated.The need for student and mentor to work together as much as possible to kind successful relationship is set offed in Baillires Study S kills for treats (Maslin-Prothero199732). darling mentoring is a two-way process requiring willingness from both mentor and mentee to build a collaborative relationship (Ellis et al 1995121, Ajiboye P. 200011).Formal mentoring is relatively new to nurse (Maslin-Prothero 199751), and is closely related to Project 2000 (Salvage J.199914). The ENB define mentors asan appropriately qualified and experienced first-level nurse/midwife/health visitor who by exemplar guides assists and supports the student in learning new skills, adopting new behaviour and getting new attitudes (as cited in Quinn F. 1995188).Mentorship has existed for centuries with references dating back to Greek mythology (Ellis R. et al 1995109), and it is wide use for bider take aimment in business, where mentors are role gravels, giving developers and door openers(Tyson S. & Jackson T. 1992121).There are several theories on how mentoring works, most emphasise the mentor as a facilitator allowing the student to experiment succession ensuring the safety of the patient role/clients, and providing a developmental bridge between surmise and practice (Ellis R. et al 1995109). chat and interpersonal skills are the foundations on which a successful relationship is built and are therefore essential skills in a mentor (Ellis R. et al 1995121).However the mentor themselves may be the most important divisor. A mentor is a role model satisfactory or bad. Hopefully the student will witness a high measure of practice and set their own touchstones similarly. that when the standard is low it depends on the students friendship of the theory as to whether they choose to pursue the mentor or apply their own higher standard. Bandura (cited in Ellis R. et al 1995116) describes this process as Social Learning Theory, a three-stage process. horizontal surface 1 Observational Learning Imitating a unspoiled role modelStage 2 Inhibitory/Disinhibitory Effects bad practice rejected or imitatedStage 3 Elicit ing Effect good practices learned and core knowledge reformd.The break down of the mentor mentee relationship on my placement may have been for variety of reasons, poor communication, unrealistic expectations or time constraints. supernumerary students have time to observe and reflect, but mentors may have an already busy schedule and supervising students can become just other pressure (Reed J. & Procter S. 199336). Students in this environment may find themselves beingness used as another pair of hands (Ajiboye P. 200011).Many texts cite good drawing cardship of the manager as vital to forming an atmosphere conducive to learning (Quinn F. 1995182). A good manager will find time to instigate staff to enthusiastically provide high quality care (Grohar-Murray 1997125). In the philosophy of care/service values of the placement it states that we have a well trained staff who have achieved a NVQ in care or are working towards it (not referenced to protect confidentiality). However t he staff studying the NVQ had to attend college in there own time. This caused resentment towards the management as the staff felt that the booking was for the companys benefit, but at their expense.Tappen (199569) recognises that by allocating staff time to attend lectures or college days without them incurring financial penalties the outlook is changed from just get toing a paper qualification to an opportunity to develop skills and increase personal knowledge.Encouraging staff to develop new skills is a great motivator. Motivation has been described as the oil colour that keeps the machinery turning (Dell T. 198859) and is a key element in many leader/management theories.Many motivation theories are based around the creation of fulfilling call for. Maslow (1968 cited in Hogston R. & Simpson P. 1999295/303) devised a hierarchy with seven levels, the first level are basic physical needs such(prenominal) as food and pee progressing up to more psychological needs of self fulfi lment. Individuals climb the pyramid a step at a time motivated by fulfilment at the previous level (see appendix 1).Kafka (1986 cited in Tappen 1995304) offers pentad basic factors for motivation, Economic security, Control, Recognition, Personal self-worth and Belonging. But unlike Maslow the five may be placed in any order, as one person may be motivated more by the need to snuff it than the need for money (see appendix 2).Self-esteem/worth and belonging are needs common to both Maslow and Kafka. If managers boost self-consciousness by acknowledging good practice and recognising achievements they enhance the feeling of belonging. Without provenderback staff lots feel unnoted and isolated. To be constructive feedback should contain both positive and veto elements and be based on observed behaviour, given objectively it can highlight areas that need strengthening and increase motivation. Kron (1981 cited in Tappen R. 1995420) described this positive feed back as a psychologi cal paycheque.The need to belong affects students, when they are included in procedures, and given opportunities to express opinions and dont feel in the way they become part of the team. Being accepted boosts self-esteem and motivates learning (Oliver R & Endersby C. 199494)Dell statement that people work harder for scholarship than for money(Dell T. 198859) is supported by a study of the affect of incentives such as pay increases and shorter hours. When each incentive was implemented productivity was found to increase. When the incentives were removed and working conditions returned to normal it was expected that the productivity would fall. In fact productivity rose to the highest levels ever. Mayos conclusion was that being in the study had caused the group to bond (belong) and that the interest (recognition) showed by researchers had encourage the workers to achieve the level they believed the researchers expected of them (Mayo E. 1933 cited in Barratt M. & Mottershead A. 199 974).If the security of belonging is move out self-esteem deteriorates which can lead to an increase in complaints and fatigueand absenteeism is plausibly to rise(Barratt M.& Mottershead A. 199973).Lack of appreciation and support are two of the ten factors cited by Tappen (1995455) that contribute to burnout. As the most affectionateness and most super committed are often the ones most prone to burnout (Eisenstat & Felner cited in Crawford J. 199048) its frequently linked to health care. Burnout is defined as, (Kozier B et al 20001387). an overcome feeling that can lead to physical and emotional depletion, a negative attitude and self concept, and feelings of helplessness and hopelessnessThere are many methods to prevent burnout. One of these I observed, and have been guilty of my self, is the ability to abruptly become deaf. For example one client would continually ask for a cup of tea, to which staff would respond youve just had one and the client would reply Ive just had o ne and walk away. But if the frequency of requests increased or they interrupted another activity staff would often pretend not to hear, they would ovoid eye contact and turn away. By ignoring the client it extended the periods between acknowledged requests. For the same reason this client was alship canal last to receive his cup of tea when it was being made for the group.This coping mechanism denial is one of many established ways to deal with stress (Kenworthy N. 199691). In denial you reject the thing that is unsatisfactory choosing to believe it isnt there. Denial is very similar to repression where although aware of the feelings you obstruct them out, Tappen suggest that this can leave the caregiver with a vague consciousness of unease towards the client. Having denied hearing the request staff would then repress their guilt, sledding them with an uneasy feeling towards the client. This practice while not satisfying, had no long-term affects on the client as he would sim ply ask once more a a couple of(prenominal) minutes later, however if all requests where dealt with in the same way it could become harmful to the client (Tappen R. 199511).Another behaviour I witnessed was the reliance on PRN medication a different client was very vocal following staff around the home intercommunicate questions about her forthcoming blood test. After a couple of failed attempts to lull her it was decided she needed PRN to clam her down.The staff had coped by rationalising the situation. systematization uses one explanation to cover up a less unimpeachable one i.e. their reason for giving the medication was to calm the client down. But the real reason was it would stop her bothering them with questions. (Tappen R.199511).Often in learning disabilities carers see a clients failure to behave in an acceptable way or achieve targets as a personal failure ( browned H. Smith H. 199295). These failures or client losses are another factor that contributes to burnout ( Tappen R.1995455).Other factors often experience by learning disabilities cares also contribute to burnout such as low pay, discrimination and inadequate feeler opportunities. Learning disabilities are often referred to as the Cinderella of the Cinderella services(Parish C. 200113), and as such tend to attract the least skilled workers, who are given a low status even in relationship to carers in other fields (Brown H. & Smith H. 199293). worry is traditionally seen as womens work and therefore unskilled and unworthy (Brown H. & Smith H. 1992162/166). This is reflected in the fact that care staff are predominately women working part time, earning low levels of pay and having few opportunities to advance their careers (Hudson B. 2000 88). Care work is rarely undertaken solely for financial gain often the motives are more altruistic (Dagnan D. 1994127). A study into staff satisfaction found that in spite of low pay care staff found rewards in the close nature of the caring relations hip (Hudson B. 200089).Recent government white papers NHS and Community Care practise and Valuing People aim to enhance the status of learning disabilities by reorganising the way that the service is provided (Beacock C. 200123), and give those working in social care a new status which fits the work they do (Hudson B. 200099).These proposals may ultimately improve the status of the service, but in the short term the changes are creating more paperwork, require new skills, and are leading to greater job insecurity. These factors are adding to an already stressful job (Hudson B. 200096). Studies found that the main causes of stress for care workers were the inability to provide service users with what they needed, accountability or responsibility without power, foiling at office politics and uncertainty about the future (Hudson B. 200090). impotence and unresponsiveness to client needs added to too much paper work are more factors that can contribute to burnout (Tappen R. 1995456). Care staff are under a great deal of pressure, in their daily work they face all of the ten factors that contribute to burnout. This must ultimately have an affect on the way care is provided. I have no doubt that the staff at my placement are genuinely caring people who do their best to provide a high standard of care for their clients. However sometimes the quality of care I witnessed reflected the pressures they were facing. hardly when the attitudes towards care work improve will its status be increased. 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