Essay Sample on Health and Social Care

Health and Social Care Guidelines:

Q1

The health and safety policy for the hospital with patients who are disabled and partially sighted shows that most of the needs have been met. Legislation on such hospitals requires the institution to consider the needs of the patients in terms of the difficulties they have in moving. By ensuring that the patients’ visits are conducted on appointment, they have time to prepare themselves for the visit and organize what they need for the visit. The hospital has well organized visiting days that consider the difficulties of each set of patients in the allocation of time for visiting.

The floor plan of the clinic allows for easy movement for the patients by having only one floor with all the required facilities. The many consulting rooms enable the patient consultation process to take place faster thus reducing the time spent in the clinic waiting. However, the location of the sole treatment room at the back of the clinic may be inefficient in design. This is because it is further away than the other room and requires more time to get there for the patients.

Q2

Management roles in the construction and implementation of the Happy Haven health and safety plan should be placed on the medical specialists and the care workers in the hospital. The care workers have the responsibility to formulate the health and safety plan with input from the medical specialists. The Handicaps Welfare Association (HWA) staff should also be involved in the formulation of the policy. This is because they are aware of the special needs of the disabled patients that are handled in the clinic. Implementation of the policy would also require input from the different staff members in the clinic. The care workers and the HWA staff are most strategically placed to ensure implementation of the plan (Carnwell & Buchanan, 2005). These workers should ensure that the different needs of the patients are met according to the guidelines. Since they are trained in caring for the special needs of the patients, their input in the plan would enable them to implement it effectively and meet their care needs. The management of the clinic should provide oversight on the project in order to ensure that all the guidelines are followed. In relation to assistance of the patients, the care givers should have responsibility because it coincides with their core duties in the clinic.

Q3

Potential dilemmas, incidents and hazards have to be accommodated in the clinic in order to enable effective response. The clinic allows different patients to consult and have treatment outside their regular appointment days. This means the patients can go to the clinic whenever they have a health emergency irrespective of their last visit or appointment. In relation to the hazards and incidences that may be presented by visitors, the clinic has a sufficient number of employees to handle them effectively and quickly. Having many consulting rooms with all necessary equipment also enhances the ability of the clinic to handle these incidences. One issue that requires attention is the lack of overnight care and weekend treatment for the patients. Although the patients are expected to visit their GPs during the weekend, the hospital should provide emergency treatment in case of emergency (Atwal, 2009). There should be medical professionals that remain at the clinic overnight and over the weekends to ensure that emergency needs for the patients are met as they arise.

Q4

Risk assessment for the clinic in relation to the legislation should consider the priorities of the health clinic. The clinic handles patients with walking disabilities and others with sight disabilities. The disabilities of the patients have been considered in the formulation of health policies. The physical disabilities of the patients have been considered with the construction of the clinic with only one floor that contains all the necessary facilities (Pattison & Pill, 2004). This reduces the risk of physical harm for the patients resulting from falls or difficulty in climbing stairs. By providing all necessary facilities in one floor, the clinic reduces the likelihood of falls making it safer for the patients. However, the absence of overnight healthcare for the clinic presents a risk. This is because it means emergency medical issues occurring at night cannot be handled with priority. The clinic also does not provide treatment during the weekends because the patients are expected to visit their GPs or the local hospital trust emergency department. The clinic considered the special needs of the patients in the construction of many consultation rooms that are adequately equipped. These consultation rooms increase the pace of providing medical care to the patients in cases of emergency.

Q5

The clinic has taken steps in taking care of the patients and ensuring that their special needs do not reduce the level of care given to them. However, some of the strategies applied in the clinic are not effective because they leave the patients exposed to difficult situations. The main issue is the provision of care and treatment for the patients during the weekends and at night. The hospital should formulate a plan for ensuring that care and treatment are provided for the patients at all times. The management of the clinic should formulate a work structure that provides for at least one care taker and health professional to be on duty every night. This would ensure that the patients are capable of receiving medical care even at night when emergencies might occur. The clinic should also have a work structure that provides a team of at least one care giver and medical professional during the weekend. This would be effective in ensuring that the patients are provided with medical care at all times. The appointments system used in providing consultation and organizing the visiting days for the clients is effective. It considers the number of patients in the different categories and the severity of their conditions in arranging the appointments. This system also ensures that all patients are catered effectively for their conditions (Davies & Wallace, 2009). The small area for the children is essential for providing comfort to children that visit the clinic with the patients. The area should be equipped with the necessary toys to encourage the children to stay there and avoid distracting the patients or activities in the clinic.

Q6

Happy Haven has a very large number of patients with disabilities thus it requires focusing attention on improving care and providing assistance services to them. The clinic has patients with varied ages ranging from 18 years to 80 years. The clinic provides medical care to 50 physically disabled patients that have difficulty walking who are seen twice per week, it has twenty physically challenged patients who are seen occasionally, and twenty poorly sighted patients. This large number of patients stretches the resources available for the patients and the management has to be proactive to ensure that hazards do not occur as a result. The HSA staff should focus on implementation of a work structure that improves the efficiency of patient consultations by reducing the time spent on each visit to the clinic. The attitudes and severity of the patients’ conditions should be considered in the provision of care to them. Other issues such as age of the patients should be use in arranging their consultations. The potential hazards emanating from the large number of patients can be handled by increasing the number of care givers and nurses in the clinic. The nurses can help in conducting consultations in cases of emergencies.

Q7

Health and safety can create a happy and efficient environment by ensuring that the patients get the necessary health care in the institution. The legislations on health and safety ensure that the environment is suitable for the patients considering their health conditions and the difficulties they face. This means issues such as movement are eased for them thus making their visit to the clinic more efficient. The difficulties faced by the patients are also used in determining the appointments and consultation hours for the patients. This enables the institution to optimize the time and frequency of appointments in order to provide adequate care for the patients. Efficiency of the institution is increased by organizing resource allocation based on the needs of the clients. This means the institution organizes its resources to provide the best care for the patients in line with the legislation. Health and safety regulations also improve the environment in the institution by reducing the number of hazards and accidents that occur (The Open University, 2009). By reducing the number of accidents and hazards, the hospital avoids unnecessary expenses and improves the environment for the patients. This is beneficial for both the patients and the institution because it ensures that resources usage is optimized and the health of patients is improved.

Q8

Specific aspects of health and safety are essential in improving the efficiency of healthcare institutions and the welfare of the staff and clients. These health and safety guidelines enable the institution to provide necessary medical care for the clients based on their needs and difficulties. This means the medical needs of the clients take center stage in the formulation of strategies and policies for the institution. The design of the institution is made to increase its efficiency in providing medical care for the clients. This means the facilities and equipment are placed in the most efficient locations thus reducing the time required by the clients in accessing healthcare. Through these guidelines, an institution allocates duties and responsibilities to the staff in a way that ensures they achieve their potential in providing for the needs of their clients. By providing shifts based on expertise of the staff members and needs of the clients, an institution increases the ability of the staff to provide care for the patients thus increasing its efficiency (Beauchamp & Duplantie, 2010).

Q9

With an appropriate health and social care policy, the health institution follows the set guidelines in providing care and allocating resources. Judgment is an essential aspect of the formulation and implementation of an effective health and social care policy. By having an effective health and social care policy, the judgment on health and safety of the clients is enhanced. This is because the policy has to consider the current situation in the institution and determine the aspects that require changes to improve the institution. Efficiency and improved welfare for the clients and the staff are achieved by understanding the different aspects of the institution (Gould, 2011). These aspects enable the institution to allocate resources effectively and reduce hazards and dangerous incidents that might occur.

Q10

Non compliance of health and safety legislation affects the well being of the clients and staff because the environment is not conducive for effective care. The clients do not receive the most effective care for their conditions and the staff members are not allocated based on their skills. This results in a situation where the patients get medical care that does not meet their needs and the staff members are not efficient in their provision of services to the clients. Finances of the institution are also affected negatively by noncompliance. This is because the institution spends resources in taking care of hazards and delayed care that would not have happened with compliance to the guidelines (Swinkels, et al, 2002). The institution does not have an efficient method of allocating the resources thus resulting in losses that emanate from inefficient allocation of staff and other resources. Inefficiency in running the institution also results from the lack of compliance (Davies, Bullman, & Finlay, 2000). This arises from poor allocation of the available resources to the current needs of the clients.

Q11

In a health and social care setting, the health and safety practice on the clients and staff are meant to ensure that the needs of the clients are met with the most effective allocation of staff and other resources. By placing the health and care needs of the clients’ central in health practice, I provided the necessary care for the patients in a home for the aged. This home provided care and medical attention for the aged clients, most of whom required assistance in meeting their most basic needs. These clients required routine health checkups with some of them suffering from health conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and hypertension (National Occupational Standards, 2006). The facility had two floors and each floor had all the necessary resources such as consultation rooms, treatment rooms and recreational areas. There was a garden for those who did not have much difficulty with movement. Compliance with the health and safety practices required the clients to have care givers on call in case of emergencies at all times. Visitors had to be vetted as a way of reducing incidences and hazards.

Q12

Different sources of information are used to assess and implement legislation in health and safety. These sources include the health and social care act, which highlights the code of practice for adult social care and health. The department of health provides other guidelines on the provision of public health. Information for the guidelines is also sourced from other organizations such as the quality care commission, the health protection agency, and the national patient safety agency. The national institute for health and clinical excellence also provides information on how to improve care for the different categories of patients in healthcare and social institutions. The different organizations provide information on different aspects of healthcare. By having information from the varied sources, the institutions formulate a plan that considers all issues and provides the most effective care for the patients.

Q13

In a health and social care setting, the health and safety guidelines have to be adhered to effectively. As a resident nurse in a health clinic that provided care and treatment for clients with hearing disabilities and others with sight difficulties, it was challenging to make the environment suitable for the two different categories of clients. The plan for health and safety meant that the institution had to be equipped with railings for support and guidance for the blind patients. The deaf and those with hearting difficulties required a sign language technician in the reception and other areas in order to ensure that they got effective care. Their visits were based on appointments with the blind patients coming on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday. The others with hearing problems would come in on the other days except for Sunday. There was a nurse, an NWA staff member and a doctor on call on weekends and during the night. The plan was effective but the number of sign language specialists was not sufficient.

Q14

Monitoring is essential in the implementation of any plan. It enables the implementing authority to observe compliance and determine whether the staff members understand the plan. Monitoring ensures that the all stakeholders understand their responsibilities and the implementing authority has the opportunity to change the plan in case of inefficiencies (Nzira & Williams, 2009). After implementing a plan for the first time, some of the assumptions made are inaccurate and have to be reviewed to improve the formulation and implementation of the plan in future. Monitoring provides an opportunity to get feedback on different aspects of the plan and their effect on the clients and staff (Department of Health, 2009).

Q15

Health and social care practices are monitored by observing the level of care provided to the clients and whether their needs are being met. The rate of recurrence for some conditions can also show the efficiency of care provided to the clients. Expenses are another aspect of the care that can be used in monitoring the policies. This is because they influence the ability of the institution to provide care. The comfort level achieved by the patients is another aspect of monitoring the care that is provided by a health and social care institution (Clark & deSilva, 2005). Review is necessary in policy implementation because it provides insight into the inefficiencies resulting from the policy. By reviewing the policies, the authority can change the different strategies to improve care provided (National Health Service, 2010). Improved policies are necessary because they increase the efficiency of care given to the clients.

Q16

Problems arising from implementing health and social care policies can be addressed by determining their root causes. This is essential because it enables the determination of core aspects of the policy or practice that have to be changed. Using the health and social care act, the health aspects of the clients has to be central in the policy formulation (Department of Health, 2009). This means the policy makers should consider the reasons why the policy is not implemented effectively and determine strategies that should be changed according to the health and social care act. This provides guidelines on the type of care that should be provided in the social care setting and what is necessary. By understanding the act, the institution can determine how best to improve care and ensure efficiency.