Care Worker - what's it really like?

DFWJane

I have to get an evening job to fit round children and have applied for a care and support worker job. I've no experience apart from occasionally helping hubby's disabled granny. I'd be going to people's homes to help with whatever they need.
I've known people do this before and last about a week. The pay seems reasonable, presumably because they can't get anyone to stick at it and there are a couple of companies who seem to have permanent vacancies.
What's it really like? Anyone been there, done it, still doing it?

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lolly-i-pop

Hi,

The thing to remember, is if these people are getting their care paid for by social services they will (or at least should) be in a pretty bad way.

Part of my job involves work similar to this. I imagine that you will be doing things along the lines of -
preparing an evening meal,
general domestic duties, laundry, cleaning, changing beds,
helping someone to get washed and dressed,
cecking they have taken their medication,
emptying commodes,
changing incontinence pads,
applying cream to sore skin.

Its the commodes that get me, I never fail to wretch! But all in all, very rewarding at times. I would thing, if you were just in it for the money, you wont last. If you guinuinly care about people, you might do well.

Good luck!!

sandiep

It's bloody hard work, very physical, and it's also sometimes mentally very hard work as the people you are dealing with may be muddled and confused. I have a friend that has a home care business and she turned up one day becaues one of her old ladies had lost a broach and she's reported the carer to the police as stealing it.

I also think that it's extremely underpaid and undervalued. The people working in this industry so some of the most important work in the UK, yet get paid low wages, and are often get treated pretty badly by the patients and the companies that employ them.

I have uppermost respect for anyone that works in this industry. I think they all deserve far more recognition than they get.

DFWJane

I like to think I am caring and consider the clients needs and feelings and that I could offer something to the role. I have heard of workers with no respect who treat the clients as if they were a nuisance and have no respect for them. Obviously I need a job for the money and am limited with the hours I can do but I want to do something a tad rewarding at least. These jobs are always on the local JC+ site so they must have a high turnover of staff. My other option is probably sitting on a checkout, nothing wrong with that but it would probably drive me nuts!
I've got a potty training 3 yo and an 18 month old so poo doesn't phase me!

nolongerindenial

DFWJane wrote: »

I like to think I am caring and consider the clients needs and feelings and that I could offer something to the role. I have heard of workers with no respect who treat the clients as if they were a nuisance and have no respect for them. Obviously I need a job for the money and am limited with the hours I can do but I want to do something a tad rewarding at least. These jobs are always on the local JC+ site so they must have a high turnover of staff. My other option is probably sitting on a checkout, nothing wrong with that but it would probably drive me nuts!
I've got a potty training 3 yo and an 18 month old so poo doesn't phase me!

My brother has a number of carers come in to the house and care for all his needs, double incontinence etc.

Everyone says at the interviews we have been in (and my parents used to interview as they hired privately initially) that they had a small child so poo wasnt a problem, and from our experience these people where not prepared for a few things:

1. The quantity an adult puts out in comparison with an 3 year old.
2. The smell.
3. Adults bums are nowhere near as smooth as babies bums.
4. This is not a loved one who needs cleaning up, it is effectively a stranger. How would you feel cleaning up the poo of someone you only know through work who has a very hairy bum, meaning you are not in there cleaning up for 2-3 minute including changing the nappy, but 10-15 minutes.

Just a couple thoughts from our experience as service users.

scotsbob

Partner of a family member is a carer.

She doesn't find the actual caring difficult, what she does find difficult is that the companies/agencies have bid for the contracts and she is under pressure to see a certain number of clients in a very limited time. Time is money.
You may want to try to speak to another carer working gor a firm/agency to find out if you are expected to achieve targets and what the targets are.

shelley_crow

Avoid domicillary care. If this is a role you have applied for pm me and I'll explain further.

paulabear

I've been a carer on and off for over twelve years and have worked for three different agencies. The job is fairly dependent on the agency as to the sort of support you get, e.g. if you're being asked to move and handle someone inn a particular way and finding it difficult, or if a client's behaviour is troubling you. Some agencies or individuals can be quite unhelpful and sometimes you need to ask the right questions and remember no question is stupid if it helps you care for a client properly. The first thing I think you need to remember is that people who have carers in are constantly being presented with new people, some of whom might not be particularly caring in their attitude towards clients - not the majority, I have found, but you just get the odd carer who comes across as abrupt or uncaring. So you might find that the client is already on their guard and wary of these new people who keep coming into their home and doing things essential to their daily routine. My first move is always to be nice. If they shout and swear at you, be nice. If they are confused and don't want to cooperate with what you've been told to do, be nice. You can always phone the office to get help on what to do. Keep a positive attitude and try to do the job as well as possible. Try to have good communication with your managers and remember that you have a right to ask for help; sometimes you'll double up with other carers, who are a great source of information, as they will usually have been to the other clients you have on your rota. As for bodily functions, yes sometimes you can't help it making you feel a bit ill, but I've found that if you breathe through your mouth and use all the items available, gloves, aprons, hand disinfectant etc you get used to it. You have to have a professional attitude but also be down-to-earth and always try to have a chat with the client; this might mean talking about the same thing over and over with some, as they might not get out much, or have memory loss; or it might mean being brave and talking to someone who is very off-putting. A sense of humour is your best friend as a carer; I once got stuck in a pub toilet with a disabled client, who was in tears, waiting for another carer to come in car and help us out; I ended up singing daft songs and making stupid jokes and the next time I saw her we laughed about it. It's a great job if you want to feel like you're making a difference, even if only in small ways. Hope you do well and get on well with your agency

collingbone614

Hello,

I work in a call centre for social services and am on the phone to carer agency and care workers all day ringing up with different things, organising care, problems, etc. I don't know what it's like to physically have to go and do the care but I really admire the carers - they seem to get treated unfairly all the time, and get a lot of complaints thrown at them. Here are some of the things to bear in mind maybe it will help:

(1) People complain when they have too many different carers - the older people in particular tend to prefer seeing the same one or two people, which is very understandable, wouldn't we all in that situation? However the unfortunate reality is that there is a lot of staff sickness, high turnover, etc, meaning that people don't frequently get the same carer.

(2) accusations - people receiving help from paid carers do sometimes accuse the carers of taking things, taking money, etc. It's sad to say, but they may often be right.. other times, they might have a memory problem and have confusion or other mental problem.

(3) abuse - some people are just ungrateful, others might have legitimate grievance and are expressing it at you. Some might swear and shout and other things. I once spoke to someone at work who was a carer in a previous job and he said that this actually isn't too common.

Just a few random thoughts. I would say to find an employer that might have been around for a while so that you can talk to experienced carers, as someone else has mentioned.

pixiehouse

I was a care assistant for 15 yrs,i had to give it up in 2005 de to a back injury in a EMI nursing home in 2002. if i could go back and do my job tomorow,i would, just think to yourself How would you like to be treated if you were in a home,lost your independence and for some,lost their didgnaty as others have to wash you,feed you, dress you and toilet you? then you have a slight idea on how to treat them...Never Mever manually handle the elderly, ALWAYS use any equipment available. ALWAYS ask for help if 2 carers are needed to see to a resident (or service user as we are told to call them now) But most of all..enjoy your job,love your residents,talk to them at all times to let them know what you are doing, i.e washing or dressing them. i would give anything to go back to my job but i cant.

pollywoggle

:TI work for s/s and c/c and am one of the new reablement carers, I've done this job for 6 years and love it, previously we where Homecare.

I agree that you have to love the job, it's not enough to do it for the money, I came in to it as a job to earn money and soon grew to love it, I don't know if I'd do anything else now, apart maybe to move up to where the decisions are made.

Just remember that the people you meet are facinating, they have wonderfull stories of their lives before ill health, I think of how I'd like my elderly parents to be treated and I act acordingly, remember when dealing with the "messy" jobs that some people have no one to help and if you don't, they will have to stay like that. I can count on one hand the amount of people I havent got on with, and it's a fantastic feeling when you walk out of someones front door and know you've helped.

The feel good factor is amazing, however that could be because of who I work for, the team I work with and the fantastic support we get from managers. Remember not everyone gets that so do your home work first.
Good Luck:j