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Carers provide a lifeline to elderly & vulnerable
| Published: 3rd August 2020 14:39 |
A DEVON home care provider says its carers offer a vital lifeline to those who can’t get out as much as normal due to on-going worries about the COVID-19 aftermath (August 2020).
Homelife Carers says despite loosening lockdown restrictions many of the county’s elderly and vulnerable are more likely to stay inside, and carers are sometimes their only source of social interaction.
Katie Jewell, Regional Manager for Homelife, which has offices in Barnstaple, Okehampton, Plymouth and Tiverton, says: “Genuine health concerns and worries associated with the pandemic have led to limits on the amount of time our service users wish to be out and about, if they can get out at all. They often don’t want to or can’t venture out due to risks associated with ill-health, so our carers provide a vital lifeline for them to the outside world.
“Either needing to stay at home medically, or because they feel safer staying away from people, means they don’t socialise with friends or neighbours as much as they would like, and they can’t carry out any errands that they may normally do. Regularly organised clubs or social events have still to resume and some of those we look after should still remain at home for health reasons anyway, so many are feeling very lonely.
“As well as providing support, our carers are often the only friendly face our service users will see each day.”
As part of its aim to combat social isolation, Homelife matches personalities when pairing up its carers with service users.
If both parties have similar interests they will be paired up, giving an elderly person the chance to see someone they can trust and get along with every day.
Katie added: “We are continuously battling against social isolation and COVID-19 has seriously impacted on the lives of so many who are now understandably worried about being with other people. We believe providing emotional support is just as important as physical care and we are doing our upmost to make sure our service users don’t feel lonely or isolated, especially when they are still very concerned about the pandemic too.
“We provide an invaluable service to the people of Devon and new staff are needed on a daily basis to help us continue with our work. We offer free, full training and the opportunity for career advancement. We’re also very flexible with working hours, so if anyone is interested in joining our team, they should get in touch for more information.”
HomeLife is looking to hire 100 new carers to provide care to its service users this year and is offering flexible and supported learning for those wishing to advance their careers.
Katie added: “Being a carer is a highly skilled, professional vocational occupation that is essential to the fabric of our society. With a job for life like this, people can start at the very bottom and work their way up and we will offer them full training and access to industry-leading qualifications.
“No experience is necessary to become a carer, as free, full training is provided. We offer new recruits a five-day training induction and a 12-week on-boarding programme working towards a care certificate. We also offer flexible working hours, both full and part-time, as well as competitive wages and generous holiday allocation.”
Homelife offers training and the opportunity for internal advancement. Anyone who joins the team can create a career path using the different qualifications they achieve.
“It is a great opportunity for people to achieve a recognised qualification and they’ll also be able to have access to exclusive discounts online and in-store from retailers including Tesco, Primark and Argos. It also covers holidays and electrical goods.”
New recruits are given free uniforms, access to national staff discount scheme for many major brands, as well as 28 days paid holiday, paid travel between calls and paid mileage.
For more information about HomeLife, please visit https://www.homelifecarers.co.uk.
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