The reality is that like with any job, there will be days when things don’t go well. So how do you take care of yourself and make sure you don’t carry that with you, and why is that an important skill for person-centred care?
In this episode we also wrap up the series and reflect on the knowledge and experiences shared by our guests. We hope you have found inspiration through the information shared.
Special thanks to all our guests, and to the organisations that helped:
Looking for some inspiration? Check out these great resources and links:
SNACK has been produced by COTA Queensland as part of the Homecare Workforce Support Program, which receives grant funding from the Australian Government.
00:00
We acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands on which this podcast has been produced and we pay our respects to elder’s past and present.
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It will be fun at times, it will be sad times.
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There will be times when it’s very difficult.
00:20
Then you call on your past experiences
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to deal with the problem at hand. self care is so important because it allows us to keep doing our jobs well, and showing up every day ready to put the client first.
00:42
Welcome to snack, the aged care podcast where we break down some of the big questions around what it really means to be person centred. I’m Dr. Andrea Petrovsky. I’m a gerontologist, and I’m passionate about hearing and sharing the real life experiences of ageing.
01:00
Today, we’re talking about something we don’t often think about in relation to person centred care. And that’s how we deal with confronting situations and bad days. The reality is like with any job, there will be days when things don’t go well. So how do you take care of yourself? And make sure you don’t carry that with you? And why is that an important skill for person centred care?
01:30
We spoke to Naomi from ADA Australia, who now works as a professional advocate, but also has experience working in the care sector in a social work role and as a support worker.
01:42
Now, Naomi, when we’re talking about person centred care, why is it important to also talk about self care for staff. self care is so important, because it allows us to keep doing our jobs well, and showing up every day ready to put the client first. We’ve all heard that saying, you can’t pour from an empty cup. So it’s even more important when you work in an industry where you’re helping others to ensure good self care and to be able to recognise when you might be struggling and need help. Sometimes that might mean speaking to a member of the team that you trust, or a manager to help them support you to meet your needs, so that you can perform your job effectively. And it’s okay to reach out, you know, if you do need that help, or you do need to take time off and recharge. Yeah, absolutely. So have you picked up some good strategies yourself in your career, because you have worked as a support worker you’ve worked in aged care in, in social work roles, and also now as an advocate, have you picked up some really good strategies in your career or seen some really good strategies around self care? Yes, I have. And, you know, sometimes I think we learned the hard way. You know, we learned those those what not to do the hard way. You know, at the end of the day, we are all human. But I think speaking from experience, you know, speaking up and speaking out, if you feel it’s safe to do so can be really helpful. And it can also be really powerful. So this might look like speaking with a trusted member of the team or your manager. Sometimes that might mean taking a break from a particular client, or taking time off, or changing your roster up to suit what might be going on for you in your life at that time.
03:28
So some strategies that I’ve learned, I guess he’s been kind to yourself, you know, that we’re all human, allowing yourself time to self care. So I know some of those things might be difficult depending on what’s going on in your personal life. But, you know, if you’re doing at least one thing that day, after spending time with clients, for yourself, that one thing is really, really important.
03:54
And it’s okay when you’re not at work, to put yourself first. So it’s really important to let your manager know your limits. And this comes back to ensuring that you’re staying professional. And next, you know, you’re keeping your boundaries in place to make sure that you’re meeting the needs of your role, but also needs within yourself.
04:17
We wanted to get a provider’s perspective on this. So we spoke with Lindsay and back from Blue Care about some of the things they feel are important in supporting staff. As a provider, it’s our responsibility to take care of the wellbeing of our staff. It’s about those frontline workers having access to their leaders to debrief about any difficult situations that may have occurred on any particular shift. And you know, this could be a morning shift or an afternoon shift, or it could be a night shift as well. So that could be having a really bad night with somebody. It’s about having access to dementia resources, and intervention libraries to provide improved engagement with clients during home visits. So to really prevent those bad days from happening give a PC
05:00
Use the tools and resources to really make that engagement really meaningful. I mean, did you want to talk about the scheduling side of things? Yeah, I think it’s a bit of a catch 22 In a way, because we’re wanting our staff to build relationships with our clients to form those close bonds with our clients. But the flip side of that is that our care staff can feel quite burnt out with that at times, yeah, because the family and the care have become formed that close relationship with our care workers. So that’s where our effective scheduling comes into play. Because it is that balancing act between ensuring that we have consistency for our clients with their care team, but also ensuring that we’re monitoring that, that care workers feeling and old care stress as well. It’s also providing them opportunities for the care staff to come together, I know in my role, and in many, even when I was care working myself, because the role can sometimes be isolating. And it does make them feel a care worker feels that they’re on their own out there, the opportunities for them to come together with their peers, whether that is at the local office to have a face to face meeting or whether that is like a chat group, etc. It just alleviate some of that stress, because they’re able to come together and talk about some of those pressure points that they’re experiencing, and have that peer support, as well as possibly linking in with the leader. So it’s it’s that process of making sure that the staff are recognised and heard for the contribution that they’re making out there and making sure that we give them opportunities to debrief, but also providing ongoing professional development for them, empowering the staff through that training, to be confident in dealing with situations, and then having a clear understanding of the fact that you’re not alone out there, there is a team behind you. And if you do face a situation that you you’re unsure, or that they have a clear escalation pathway that they can access.
07:15
We spoke with Jill who brings the perspective of both a family carer and an experienced care professional. So Joe, one of the realities of working with other humans is that sometimes things don’t go well. Things can go wrong, someone might not be in a good mood, you might find yourself in a situation that’s particularly challenging.
07:36
You’ve no doubt dealt with many of those kinds of days in your working life as a caring professional, what do you do to make sure you don’t carry that with you take it home or take it to your next client’s home, I have this really simple little thing like do that I learned in a self care workshop I attended once. It’s called being your own paramedic, when we’re stressed, we’re operating from our sympathetic nervous system. That’s when our nervous systems become sympathetic to our environment. Like when we’ve absorbed the stress in the environment, or in the workplace, and we’re overwhelmed by it. So to step out of that stress, and that overwhelm and into that calm place, what I do in my own mind is, I imagine that I’m my own paramedic,
08:26
I imagine I’m administering for share an oxygen to myself, I just focus on that image. And then while I’m focusing on that image, I breathe in for three kills a, hold it for two counts, and then breathe out a big, big side, pushing that breath out as hard as I can in a wash for five counts. And after about 15 to 20 times of doing this. It’s amazing how calm I feel. And it works every single time for me.
08:59
And I usually do this when I’m feeling overwhelmed or when I’ve had a big day and things haven’t gone well. And I do it when I’m sitting in the car between shifts, or heading home after a difficult time. But it’s just that mindful focus, and mindful awareness and it just takes you to another space.
09:22
It’s really very effective. And it’s so simple.
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We are our own paramedic. And it’s easy to remember
09:35
there’s a whole range of things people do to decompress, calm themselves and reset. Naomi spoke about things like taking a walk catching up with a friend the importance of nutrition and sleep. Jill told us about a breathing technique she uses to calm her nervous system in between clients and on the way home. In a previous episode, Renee talked about singing it out in the car. Everyone had
10:00
as their own ways to relax and reset and fill their cup.
10:04
And in both our conversations, we heard that you’re also able to draw on supports in your organisation, your manager, your colleagues. But also you need to be mindful of your own needs and limits and reach out when you do need resources or support or a break. But the message there from Naomi was that caring for yourself, finding ways to process and decompress is actually important not only for your own well being, but also for the people you’re supporting, for your ability to provide good care, and do all the things we’ve been talking about in this series.
10:45
We’ve covered a lot of ground in this series, and yet we’ve only just scratched the surface. There is so much we could talk about when it comes to being person centred. But we’ve had some pretty strong messages from our guests. They’ve told us that what makes good person centred care different is that it’s a relationship, a partnership. We’ve heard that a good personal care is one who shows they really do care about the person they’re supporting in their home, about what they value, and what they want to achieve. They show respect, and work to build a connection and a relationship of mutual trust. There’s a genuineness that people can feel even if they can’t express it.
11:29
Our guests have talked about a range of qualities that good professional carers show but also a range of skills that can be built particularly around communication. There’s a lot to know and to learn, but there is a huge amount of resources and training available, and people out there willing to share their knowledge and to support you.
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Something our guests have made clear is that the work you do is hugely valuable, and much appreciated.
11:59
Thank you so much for joining us for today’s snack episode, and for this series, and a huge thank you to all our guests for taking the time to share their insights with us. As always, if you want to find out more, you’ll find some great resources and other good stuff on our website by following the link in the show notes.
12:19
Thanks again and goodbye from the coda Queensland team.
12:35
This podcast is part of the homecare workforce support programme which receives grant funding from the Australian Government
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