Westmorland Homecare invests in more trainers to boost care workers' skills

Westmorland Homecare, based in Kendal, has increased the number of its full-time trainers so they can support care workers to deliver specialist care in areas such as end of life care, brain injury and dementia.

The company has appointed a third trainer, Tracy McConnachie who will join Sarka Svobodova and Kelly Haygarth as a team of three.

The trio will be able to pass their expertise on to the company’s teams so when assessing clients’ needs, which can change and become more complex very quickly, are supported as swiftly as possible.

Ms McConnachie started her career as a qualified staff nurse working in a hospital and in the community. She joined Westmorland Homecare in August where she worked as part of the scheduling team.

Ms McConnachie said: “The attraction of the training role was that it is very varied and enabled me to draw on the skills, knowledge and experience I have gained over the years and put that into practice in supporting other people to develop.”

The appointment of Ms McConnachie will allow trainee care workers to spend a full day doing in-house practical training on basic skills, such as helping a client to eat, cleaning dentures, administering eye-drops and dealing with catheters and pads, before they go out into the community and shadow existing experienced staff for a period.

A major development in training at the company’s central office has been the opening of a suite, which simulates a client’s bedroom and living room, complete with a bed, chair and dining table.

While one trainee acts as a client, a trainer can teach another moving and handling, washing and dressing techniques and how to transfer a client in and out of a wheelchair and on and off a commode.

Training will also involve observation by trainers of new care workers. The trio will also be responsible to carry out staff appraisals and support team leaders in the community.

Bernadine Davies, care manager for Westmorland Homecare said: “Most companies of our size only have one trainer so the fact we have three is testament to our commitment to develop our staff.

“Training, support and development are vital in this profession. All staff must have an in-built ability to care but they also have to be confident to be able to deliver the care to the highest-possible standards. Westmorland Homecare is investing to provide high-quality training, something which is also absolutely vital to attract new people to work in the care environment.

“There is a lot of equipment for hoisting so a trainee can experience first-hand how it feels to be hoisted and rolled on a bed.”

It is hoped Westmorland Homecare will offer training externally to other services and to relatives of clients, who want to learn skills such moving and handling or looking after people with dementia.

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