What Qualifications Do You Need Before Applying for Social Care Jobs?
The Health and Social sector plays a vital role in caring for the elderly and disabled in society. Caring for those who are not able to care for themselves and giving family members, who are full time carers, a break from time to time. Candidates applying for Social Care jobs will apply for vacancies depending on the areas they wish to specialize and have an interest in. There are a number of academic qualifications that need to be obtained before being considered for a role in the health and social sector, and a number of these can be obtained from secondary school and college when undertaking full-time or part-time courses. Examples of qualifications include a Level 1 Award and Level 1 certificate in ‘Introduction to working in Health, Social Care and Children’s and Young People’s Settings’ which can then be followed by a Level 2 and Level3 certificate in ‘Preparing to Work in Adult Social Care’. There are a range of different qualifications that can be obtained in health and social care. In addition to this, NVQ’s can be obtained from a college or A-level course and there are additional health and social care courses that can be completed.
How Are Candidates of Social Care Jobs Assessed?
During selection, candidates will be observed and assessed to determine whether they have the required skill-set and ability to cope with the demands and requirements of social care jobs. The role of the candidate has to be stabilised and relations between both the candidate and the client have to be strong, so that issues arising when caring for a patient can be easily understood. Different areas of social care require different skills and requirements, hence a candidate is evaluated on these skills and capabilities, and is either given the vacancy or not based on this evaluation. The vacancy is said to become a permanent position if the requirements of the patient are fully met by the candidate and the appropriate level of care is given.
Once give a position, the candidate must then give 100% effort and determination to help improve the lives of their patients and make them as comfortable as possible. All care workers have a deep passion for caring for others, and it is this passion that drives employees in the social care sector to be the best that they can be. Not only are they helping to improve the quality of life of their patients, they are also gaining invaluable life skills and experience. In saying this, a health and social carer will face and deal with a number of obstacles in their work on a daily basis, and must be able to deal with these in an appropriate manner.
As advancements in medical research and treatments continue to improve, people are now living for longer, which is increasing the demand for people to work in the health and social sector. This opens a number of opportunities and vacancies for those wanting gain employment. Social Care jobs are relatively easy to find, but that is just the beginning. Candidates will be required to sit a number of tests and assessments to ensure that they are capable of carrying out the work. It is after this that candidates are then given their roles. Health and social care workers form a team or platform of workers who not only have the same roles, but also interact with one another. They are asked to work as part of a unified team in which they are given similar tasks and responsibilities to complete in order to ensure the highest quality of care is provided.
There are a number of different roles that fall within the health and social jobs sector, where the possibility of progression is available. Some of the roles ranges from care management, residential management to a district nursing, non-residential social care and so forth. Each role will require specific skills and requirements, with good communication and social skills being one of the most important.
So if you are considering a career in the health and social care sector, there are a few things you should take into account before doing so, such as deciding on an area of the industry you want to be a part of and obtaining the correct qualifications and skill set suited for that role. As with any health and social care job, you will need to have a passion for helping others and patience to tolerate some of the obstacles you may encounter along the way.
This article was written by Zoe Bean.
Social Nursing Care 