Community care, ready to leave, fed up of this

[Saveittillthemorningafter1]

It's only 2 days a week luckily that I do this, I know care is a massively overstretched industry, but surely there are better companies than this.

Every weekend guaranteed the email comes out of which calls are not covered and need extra staff for, cue the phone calls asking you to come in earlier/stay later. I've wisened up and rarely answer the phone now.

There's somebody off, every weekend without fail, for whatever reason.

I actually tried to take a day off due to a strained muscle. I was told I could have a half day off but not the full day due to staff shortages. I should have been firmer and said no, but Stupidly agreed to the half day.

I have been firmer in the past even when they've tried to persuade me to come in. I rang up with COVID-like symptoms and was asked, can I still come in anyway.

There's an on call number you ring in case of sickness, but they automatically transfer you to the Management who do their best to persuade you to still come in as they're 'really struggling'.

I was supposed to finish by 8pm, but on the same day, with zero notice, my rota was changed, meaning I'll finish at 10:30pm instead, even though I'm back in at 8:30am the next morning.

I don't drive (it's possible to do the job as a non driver if they give you a run in one area). I can sometimes use a bike, but if I'm paired with a driver it just slows the driver down waiting for me to arrive on a bike. Also had 2 stolen so I'm reluctant to use one.

Zero travel rime in between some calls even though they're 30 mins walk apart in some cases.

We visit one elderly gentleman who's had his calls extended due to increased care needs. We've received a message saying we need to stay until the very end of the call as the family will be watching every call now on CCTV.
A few families are now doing this. I'm not willing to be surveilled like this even though I understand the concerns.

£9.90 an hour, which is real living wage.

I've been there almost a year (year in June)
It's a shame for the people we look after, but sick of this treatment from the company. Would you work for this?

Find another job.

I did that type of job for many years, with several different agencies, and I have to say that they're all the same. It won't change.

That's a shame to hear.. i may step away from community care.
It's just become about having to chop and change and cut corners to fit everybody in.

I would look at going private. You can charge more an hour, although obviously you have more admin costs, and you can work your own hours. If you don't like a client, you can get rid of them. There's a massive demand for care workers. I know because we're trying to find another one at the moment and they're like gold dust.

I get what you are saying but every job advert here states must drive and of course you have to stay to the end of each call slot, they are paying for that slot. My ex mil did community care for 15 years until she retired, it's hard but suits the right people (she had no qualifications so career options were limited, care allowed her to train on the job to get Nvq's and she got pay rises for passing and was team leader at retirement). The staffing shortages are partly down to covid, partly due to brexit and partly (probably mostly) down to low pay, but ask anyone here paying for care, they don't want to pay more!

My advice if you are any good it to look for clients with personal budgets who hire directly, we paid our team £13.50 per hour for the grandparents!

Its the same whichever company you work for and its not much better in a carehome or a hospital, there is a massive shortage of staff, they take on too many clients and families should expect for carers to stay for the duration of the visit especially if they are paying for it. You shouldnt be finishing at 10.30pm then starting at 8.30am, you need 11hrs break inbetween although there seem to always be exceptions to this. Care staff and nursing staff are leaving in droves because of the poor pay, poor conditions, poor care they witness and family dynamics have changed, its not always possible for families to care for their relatives and people are living longer with more complex needs, community and elderly hospitals and carehomes have been closing for decades.

Most do ask for drivers, it's possible in ours to walk , we have several walkers If they keep you on one run but ours mix runs up due to staff issues.
You're totally right about needing to stay until the end, but it's the being watched on CCTV i don't like. The company also don't allocate enough time for you to stay till the end usually ...
I will definitely have a look at private

I've never done home care, but I am leaving a care home - and social care completely - because of this type of stuff, it's different problems in community care, but the root causes are the same across the board, poor recruitment and retention of staff because they're treated badly and agencies and providers just seem blind to the fact they're causing this by driving people out in pursuit of profit.
On a larger scale society and the governing bodies and the government need to start looking at this before it reaches, well I would say crisis, but I think we're already there?
These providers have a duty of care to the people they are being paid to provide care to - it's about time they started actually meeting that duty of care instead of their profit margins.

If you like the actual job and people, how about working in a care home? You'd then be in one place and could perhaps just work daytime. I've done that, too, briefly. Others have suggested private care work, which sounds alright, but what about if/when the person goes into hospital/care home or dies? You'd then be out of a job.

As I've said, we use private carers. And we pay £13ph. But we do have cameras throughout the house. Not to spy on the carers! When they're there, is that one time I don't need to check on my mum and I want the time off! But the cameras are to keep an eye on my mum - that she's not fallen, to check if I need to turn her telly over, that she's let the dog out etc. However, any carer who was not happy with me watching what they're doing, is not a carer I'd want to employ.

Haven't you already posted this many times about this and still in the job??

YANBU - and I say that as someone who did care work for a long time over a number of different roles and settings from NHS, care home and private community company. I would never do care work again now because management forever expect you to pick up extra calls, work through protected time/travel time/beyond your finish time because they don’t have relief staff on their books and run weekends on the barest minimum of carers with no contingency for sickness or other absences.

If you wanted to still do some care work you could always look at a care home for weekend work

So. Many. Times.

So? its a big decision leaving a job and sometimes venting on here helps get through the day. I cime in here moaning about my kids sometimes but I haven't packed them in yet.

Just don't answer the phone op, they won't sack you sp take a day off if you like and pick up the shifts you want. I know it's rubbish but don't forget to take care! x