Care at home is an extremely rewarding career, but can also be challenging as well. While you may not need any formal qualifications to enter the care industry, there are certain qualities and attributes that we look for in our carers. Lets take a look at some of the best qualities a carer can have.
Compassion
Being a home carer requires you to have compassion for the service user by engaging with them and supporting their care needs on your visits. Many service users may feel quite isolated and compassionate support and someone for them to talk to can massively benefit them.
Respect
A great carer should be able to connect with their service user as a person, and not just view them as a client at work who is needing care. It is important to recognise that you will encounter many different service users with different backgrounds, cultures and preferences. As a carer, you should be able to recognise and respect every service user’s needs.
Reliable
It is vital that every carer is reliable. Many service users rely and depend on carers support to complete everyday tasks. Carers can be responsible for many tasks including personal care, medication prompts, toiletry care and making meals among many other things. As such, it is extremely important that carers are able to deliver the required care consistently.
Observant
The mental and physical health of service users can quickly change or deteriorate. It is important to be observant as a carer in order to pick up on signs of this early. Recognising signs early such as decreased appetite, weight loss, or decreased cognitive ability are important to catch any underlying problems early and for any necessary changes to be made to the service user’s care plan.
Friendly
Being open and approachable to service users is a great way of making them feel more comfortable and enhance your relationship with them. Having a friendly attitude can help the service user feel more relaxed within their own home, and can encourage them to engage with you more.