The role of a care worker has many aspects and this document sets out the principal functions of the role. It is not an exhaustive list of the tasks involved, they will vary from one service users to another, but instead it is intended to be a guide to the type of work involved.

It is important that all employees of Helpful Home Care follow the policies and procedures as laid out in the staff handbook and the ‘policies and procedures’ book which is kept in the office and available for any care worker to use.

The role of the care worker is to perform duties and tasks to facilitate our service users to live at home in a safe secure and comfortable way and to participate within their community.

It is sometimes difficult to generalise about what the role of a care worker is. The best way of summing it up is that we might perform the tasks carried out by a close friend or relative but in a trained, professional and knowledgeable way.

In order to do this successfully the care worker must be aware of the needs and requirements of the service users and must communicate successfully not only with the service users but also with other stakeholders such as family, friends and other healthcare professionals. The care worker also has a responsibility to alert the supervisor of any changes or causes for concern in the service users condition or presentation.

There will be specific tasks identified for each of our service users. These may include cooking and/or preparing meals and possibly assistance with feeding. House keeping and laundry as well as personal care may also be part of the role.

The care worker will be briefed before undertaking any new assignment with the specific tasks involved but in every case it is incumbent upon the care worker to carry out the work in a safe and professional way and to adhere to the specific instructions as well as the policies and procedures of the company.

Care Workers are frequently the only people that a service user may see on a daily basis and clearly there is a responsibility to report any relevant information back to the supervisor. It is not the role of the care worker to become involved in notifying family, friends or relatives of changes. This will be carried out by the Helpful Home Care admin team, based on the advice received from the care worker. The care worker does not have responsibility for staff. The role carries with it a weight of responsibility and therefore we are looking for reliable and hardworking carers to join our team.

Anyone who does not genuinely care about the welfare of other people will not be suitable for this job.

The permanent equipment provided by Helpful Home Care such as uniform, identity badge and any other equipment required to carry out the role, are the responsibility of the care worker as is making sure that consumables such as disposable gloves and aprons are available and not in short supply.

Whilst the supply and upkeep of any equipment such as wheelchairs and hoists are not the responsibility of Helpful Home Care or its employees, it is expected that causes for concern with any of such items would be passed by the care worker to the supervisor.

By its nature domiciliary care requires care workers to travel from place to place. Care workers must therefore have the ability to do this, either by public transport or by their own means.

A thorough training programme is applicable to every member of the Helpful Home Care team. This constitutes both initial and on-going training and is a requirement of all staff. Every member of staff will be required to apply for, and achieve, a satisfactory Criminal Records Bureau check.

(The role may involve some or all of the following. This is not intended as a complete list and is supplied for information only)