As October draws to a close, we're excited to reflect on a month filled with…
Mental health and the carer
Care workers, caterers, cleaners, nurses, occupational therapists, personal assistants, registered managers, social workers, and others all have a crucial role in ensuring that people’s needs are met. We may now be learning to live with COVID-19 but for care professionals, there still remains an uncertainty. Stress and burn-out are real issues for adult social care staff and with the added challenges and restrictions of the pandemic, workforce wellbeing has never been so important. Supporting the health and wellbeing of the workforce is essential in making sure that people with care and support needs and their families receive good quality care so they can live as independently as possible.
The Five Ways
There has been longstanding concern and interest in promoting public health. The New Economics Foundation developed the Five Ways to Wellbeing, a set of evidence-based public mental health messages. The aim of the Five Ways is to improve the mental health and well-being of the whole population.
Connect
Having good relationships is important for your mental wellbeing. There is a strong amount of evidence that suggests feeling close to, and valued by, other people is a fundamental human need and one that contributed to functioning well in day-to-day life. Social relationships are critical to promoting well-being and acting as a buffer against mental ill-health. Connecting with people around you such as family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors is a great way to build connections and enrich your everyday.
Consider this when connecting. When you socialize with others, does it have a positive impact on your life? How can you incorporate positive connections into your life?
Keep Learning
It can be hard to feel motivated to learn all the time, especially when we are busy with work or life. A life-style that includes valuing learning is positively associated with mental health and wellbeing. Engaging with the Five Ways is about learning what you can do to be more satisfied and fulfilled in life. Learning new skills and practicing and refining old ones are key to both personal and professional growth. It keeps us interested and focused, breaking the monotony of life and opening up to new possibilities.
What we learn and how much effort we put into learning something new will be different for different people. As long as we pursue learning for our interest and gain satisfaction out of doing so, it will enhance our wellbeing.
Give
Giving is associated with mental wellbeing. People who enjoy giving and are open to receiving have improved mental health. Every relationship we have is one of give and take. The more we give the more we receive. There is a difference though in giving for the sake of politeness, obligation or duty and giving because your intention is to feel good and make the other person feel good. When you are in the frame of mind in which you feel good in the very act of giving, this is going to enhance your wellbeing and can also contribute to the wellbeing of the person whose life you touch.
Some people say that they find giving easy, but don’t feel as comfortable to receive. This is especially true when it comes to receiving compliments. Giving is a two way process – your acceptance of what someone else gives is good for them as well as you. By becoming more comfortable with the give and take of everyday life we build ourselves up as well as give opportunities to others.
Take Notice
Taking notice, being aware and mindful is associated with good mental health and wellbeing. Most of us are fairly busy. Our mind can be extremally active thought the day. Sometimes we focus on the next step and the next task in hand. More often than not, we focus on the various things that need to be sorted, deadlines, unpaid bills, the various messages we need to reply to. After being so busy with our lives we spend our evenings watching Netflix or scrolling through our phones. Often disconnected with the things and people around us.
To take notice is to pause, even for a brief period, to spend some time in silence and reflect on our experiences, to look up and give time and attention to being aware of where we are and what is before us.
Remember, the value of taking action, doing something. Notice when we are connecting, notice when we are being active, notice when we are learning something new. Notice when we are giving. Choose to feel good
about the action we are taking.
Being Active
People who are active have improved health and wellbeing. Different people engage with different forms and levels of activities. Being active is important for both our physical and mental health. Small
changes in levels of activity can make a big difference. Just 10 minutes of physical activity has been shown to be beneficial for mental wellbeing. Going for a walk or a jog is a great way to positively refresh ourselves.
Searching For a Provider of CQC Compliance Software?
Here at Care Control, we provide first-class care management software solutions that you can trust. We offer CQC Compliance Software that enables you to record and track CQC compliance with the click of a button. Our easy-to-use software package allows you to centralise all of your important information, and it has been designed and built with user simplicity in mind. It can work seamlessly on a broad array of device types, so it is an ideal asset for all care home staff, domiciliary carers, and support workers too.
From being able to manage risk assessments and care plans to integrity checks and quality assurance documents, you’ll be able to view and ensure complete compliance across your care business with our high-quality compliance software. If you are interested in acquiring our care management software, and you’d like to learn more about how it can benefit your organisation, then please feel free to complete the online form on our website.
You can also call us on 01822 738100 to chat with a member of the Care Control team. We can answer any questions you have, provide you with more details about our different services, and help you obtain the ideal solution for your needs and requirements.