Booking visits that need two care workers

A visit that needs two care workers is looked at below in four parts: the rota, the cover behind it, the record afterwards and letting the person know who is coming. This is information, not medical or legal advice. Whether a visit needs two people, and how it is carried out, are for the service's own assessment and training, and are not covered here.

Give both workers the same agreed time

The Care Quality Commission's national review of home care in England listed a lack of coordination of visits that need two care workers among its concerns, and under that concern it raised visits where a person needed two care workers but one was late or did not turn up.

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) in England says professionals need to be aware of what their colleagues are doing with a person at any given time, so that work can be planned in a way that makes sense. NICE's home care guideline for England suggests considering a named care coordinator to help everyone involved in delivering care and support to a person be clear on what they are there to provide, and when.

For a visit that needs two care workers, that points to both of them, and whoever plans their days, working to the same agreed time.

Arrange cover in advance

In Canada, Alberta's continuing care standards describe operators keeping contingency plans for when services or staffing are disrupted, with measures for having enough staff to meet people's needs.

What happens when only one of the two care workers can attend is set by the service's own assessment and policies.

Keep the visit record accurate

Among the characteristics of good care, the Care Quality Commission's review in England counted care workers accurately completing the daily logs. Under NICE's home care guideline for England, the care diary a home care worker completes on each visit should hold enough detail for the person, practitioners, and unpaid carers such as relatives to know in full what has been provided. Care records every carer can pick up looks at what goes into those entries.

Let the person know who is coming

Where either of the two care workers will be new to the person, NICE's quality standard on home care for older people in England says providers should always let older people know ahead of time when new staff are due to visit. Keeping the same carers with the same people covers introducing new carers.

Leave how the visit is done to your own assessment

Every two-worker point here rests on sources for England, and the cover point on Alberta's standards in Canada. How such visits are booked and covered is set locally. Whether a visit needs two care workers and how the work is done belong to the service's own assessment, policies and training, with its regulator and professional advice.