Time, pay and lack of training are main challenges for homecare staff

This article first appeared on the Guardian website.

A major survey, conducted by the Guardian Social Care Network and the Department of Health, reveals attitudes to homecare. Time constraints, low pay and lack of training for frontline staff are the key challenges facing care workers in England, according to a survey on homecare.

Some 73% of respondents to the survey, conducted by the Guardian Social Care Network and the Department of Health, cited a lack of time as the major challenge for care workers who make home visits, while 67% cited pay and conditions, and 56% said insufficient training.

More than 1,440 people took part in the survey on attitudes to homecare, including homecare providers, care workers, people who receive homecare and their friends and relatives.

The survey was carried out following the launch of the "homecare innovation challenge" this summer. The project aims to tackle the problems of the homecare sector and transform the service.

The top three most important factors in offering good homecare were identified as sufficient time for care (59%), friendly, respectful, capable care workers (58%) and choice about services (43%). And the main challenges facing organisations that provide care were cited as too few fully trained care workers, council commissioning and a shortage of care workers.

You can read the full article on the Guardian website.