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Support Workers Can Develop the Skills to Work with Complexity in Community Aged Care: An Australian Study of Training Provided across Aged Care Community Services.

February 23, 2016 Sharon Lawn, Publications, Research, Journal, Training Comments Off on Support Workers Can Develop the Skills to Work with Complexity in Community Aged Care: An Australian Study of Training Provided across Aged Care Community Services.

Support Workers can develop the skills to work with Complexity in Community Aged Care: An Australian Case Study of training provided across Aged Care Community services – Professor Sharon Lawn, Tania Westwood, Sarah Jordans, Sara Zabeen, Julianne O’Connor

Gerontology and Geriatrics Education – Published 23 February 2016

Abstract

Enhancing support workers’ role is timely given increasing demands on human and financial healthcare resources, This paper presents outcomes of a program, delivered to 140 participants from five community aged care providers in Australia, designed to enhance knowledge, skills and confidence of community aged care support workers, building their practical skills in understanding, recognising and responding to complexity. Evaluation training modules on communication, complexity, behaviour change and chronic condition self-management support involved pre/post surveys with support workers and their supervisors. Support workers reported greater awareness, skills and confidence in working with complexity, reinforcing the value of their existing practices and skills. Coordinators reported greater appreciation of support workers’ skills, and greater awareness of gaps in support workers’ support and supervision needs. Educators, policy makers and services should account for these contributions, given growing fiscal restraint and focus on re-ablement and consumer-directed care.

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