Professional Values and Awareness.

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South Bank University

Diploma in Higher Education

May 2000

Number: 9905890

Professional Values and Awareness.

Unit 9

Word Count: 2,119

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Professional Values and Awareness.

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Unit 9

CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE 2

CONTENTS 3

CASE STUDY 4

APPENDIX 1 12

APPENDIX 2 13

REFERENCE 14

BIBLIOGRAPHY 17

Word Count (excluding references and appendix) 2,119

In this assignment I will identify issues that affect the care provided in a home for adults with learning disabilities. Using the "case study" format I will focus on the interpersonal relationships and identify the underlying factors that influence them, then provide explanations for these by applying established theories. Churton (2000:214) describes a case study as "a detailed investigation of a single research area...".

The case study will form a unique representation of the individuals involved at the time they were observed. As a single study the outcomes may not be representative of all care homes, but it is reasonable to assume many issues may be similar.

As a student I was able to observe both staff and clients in their normal routines. I was accepted as a member of the care team and took part in daily activities. This form of research is described in Giddens (1997:542) as "Participant observation". Becker describe the role of the researcher as "someone who watches the people he is studying to see what situations they ordinarily meet and how they behave in them" (cited in Marsh I. 1996:124), however the by taking on a role within the group that justifies their presence the researcher acts as more than a passive observer and becomes a participant.

As a stranger to the group my presence will have affected the behaviour of the clients and studies have shown that the presence of students affects the way that qualified staff work (Reed J & Procter S. 1993:31). My own preconceived ideas of Learning disabilities and the staff and clients previous experience of students will all have contributed to the behaviour I witnessed.

On my first day at the placement I was introduced to my mentor (the deputy manager). We discussed the homes basic philosophy and the clients' disabilities. I was introduced to the nine clients, and the staff approximately 15. During this first meeting my mentor made me feel welcome and allayed some of my fears about the placement.

Unfortunately other than two brief conversations this was the only time I worked with her over the six-week placement. The staff are mostly female with only four male staff. They were of all ages and came from a mix of races and religions, some single and others married with children. All of the staff are support workers and most have NVQ level 3 or are currently studying towards it.

I found all the staff very friendly and felt welcome, but I also felt a like a 'spare part', as the clients were encouraged to do things for themselves, very little intervention was necessary. Record keeping, giving medication and supervising the clients at the many activities they attended were the main tasks. The days soon became very predictable with set activities and "opportunities" to be achieved. The slowness of the day meant that staff talked a lot, discussing personal matters as well as how they felt about the clients and their jobs.

Conversation included issues around the low regard support workers had from the general public and other health care professionals, the quantity of paper work to be completed daily and the emphasis placed on it, little support and understanding from the management, and having to attend college in there own time.

My personal performance was influenced most by the lack of a mentor. Without a mentor to shadow I would try to "latch onto" a member of staff only to find that we were on different activities or were at the end of their shift. My shifts and my mentors were not together, when I asked the manager if I could swap my weekend to the same as my mentors, she told me that there was no need for me to work with my mentor at all. I was left feeling very isolated.

The need for student and mentor to work together "as much as possible" to build successful relationship is highlighted in Baillière's Study Skills for Nurses (Maslin-Prothero1997:32). Good mentoring is a two-way process requiring willingness from both mentor and mentee to build a collaborative relationship (Ellis et al 1995:121, Ajiboye P. 2000:11).
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Formal mentoring is relatively new to nursing (Maslin-Prothero 1997:51), and is closely related to Project 2000 (Salvage J.1999:14). The ENB define mentors as

"an appropriately qualified and experienced first-level nurse/midwife/health visitor who by example guides assists and supports the student in learning new skills, adopting new behaviour and acquiring new attitudes" (as cited in Quinn F. 1995:188).

Mentorship has existed for centuries with references dating back to Greek mythology (Ellis R. et al 1995:109), and it is widely used for career development in business, where mentors are "role models, talent developers and door openers"(Tyson S. ...

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