What Is Duty Of Care In Health And Social Care? Explained!

No wonder, as health and social care workers, we are all driven by some ethical and legal responsibilities for the safety and well-being of those we support. That’s what the Duty of Care deals with!

Duty of Care in health and social care involves all those obligations that ensure a standard of support for people under the care of professionals. They have the duty to take all the necessary steps to ensure their patients are kept safe. Otherwise, it can lead to legal consequences.

You should have the understanding, knowledge, and competencies to apply the Duty of Care to your role. So, to know it all, keep on reading today’s guide.

What Is Duty Of Care?

Actually, duty of care is a legal concept. It refers to all those responsibilities placed on the person to act based on certain standards to ensure the health, well-being, and safety of others.

So, duty of care is about ensuring the

Wellbeing

Welfare

Compliance

Good practice.

In general, duty of care applies to all. For instance, a doctor has the duty to provide standard care to their patients. The business owner has the legal responsibility to ensure the physical and mental health of its employees.

What Is Duty Of Care In Health And Social Care?

So, in health and social care, the duty of care is the legal and ethical responsibility of the care professionals to protect the safety and well-being in the workplace of health and social care.

We owe a duty of care to the people we support, ourselves, our colleagues, our employers, society, and even the public.

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has mentioned that the duty of care in our workplace requires us to

Always act in the best interest of the person and others
Never act or fail to act on something that can result in harm to someone. Always act within our competencies and never act that is beyond our capacity or we believe we will not be able to do it safely.

Examples Of Duty Of Care In Health And Social Care

Well now let’s check out some examples of how you as a health and social care worker show a duty of care in your workplace.

Example 1:

Your first duty will be to take on the responsibility of personal care of the person. You must ask for their consent before you touch them.

Moreover, you have to clearly explain to them what you are going to do and ensure to maintain their dignity.

Example 2:

Think, you are taking care of an older patient who has mobility issues. They have expressed their concern about falling when walking.

Now it is your duty to ensure that their environment is hazard-free. You have to provide them with walking aids to support their movement and help them when necessary.

Why Does Duty Of Care Matters In Health And Social Care?

In simple words, the duty of care is much more important in health and social care because it ensures the highest possible standard of care. It obligates the care professionals to provide care most acceptably and be responsible for the patient’s well-being.

Here is a brief read-through of why the duty of care matters that much in health and social care.

Key Importance	Description
Safeguarding Vulnerability	Ensures the patients, especially the vulnerable ones are protected from harm, abuse, and negligence.
Ethical Standards	It promotes high standards of integrity and moral practices in the delivery of care.
Building Trust	It establishes a trusted relationship between the care professionals, patients, and also with their families.
Accountability	Encourage the care professionals to take responsibility for their actions.
Continuous Development	It also encourages continuous training and learning. Ensures the care professionals have all the skills and knowledge to meet the specific needs of the patients.

Duty Of Care In Health And Social Care: Roles And Responsibilities

Under the duty of care, the health and social care worker has to perform four responsibilities for patient care.

They have to ensure the well-being of the patients
Working for the patient’s welfare means protecting them from any harm
Ensure compliance with the regulations of duty of care and
Follow good practices, for instance, effective and proven ways of care.

Now if we break down the responsibilities in health and social care under the Duty Of Care, it will be as follows.

Risk Management

Ensure that the patient is assisted, moved, or positioned safely using proper techniques like risk enablement.
Ensure all the equipment is safe and used correctly. It may include hoists, wheelchairs, and electrical appliances.
Handle the food and medicine carefully to prevent any potential harm.
Ensure that the other clients, staff, or company activities are not at risk for the patients.

Health and Safety

You have to ensure that the equipment is tested and maintained well to minimize the chances of risks.
Ensure the proper records of the accidents and follow all the safety procedures.
And last, you have to ensure hygiene standards are properly maintained.

Safeguarding

Coming to the next, you must ensure that the joint child and adult safeguarding and protection procedures and regulations are properly followed.

You have to take all the approaches to protect the people from the risk of harm. Moreover, support the others to effectively and safely engage in the protection and safeguarding work.

It may include the Mental Capacity Act as well as some other general safeguarding regulations in health and social care. For instance-

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974	The law describes the duties of the employees and the employers for the health and safety of the workplace.
The Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1999	The legislation says that workplaces are bound to keep track of serious accidents. Write down what happened and find out the ways to prevent it in the future.
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR)	The law places a duty on the responsible person of the workplace to report the Health and Safety Executive about the accidents and the occupational disease.
The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH)	According to the law, the employer has the responsibility to check for potentially harmful substances and take steps to reduce those risks.
The Provisions and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER)	The law says the people in charge of the work must have to ensure the work equipment is well fit for the job. Moreover, they are well-kept and checked often.

Best Practices

For the patients

You have to make sure to meet the needs of the individuals and manage all the aspects of their care plan for the patient’s well-being. For example, while eating, if your patient is choking, you need to take immediate and correct support to prevent it from happening again.

Ensure their rights are respected and upheld.
You have to treat them with compassion, dignity, and care.
Value their opinion sincerely even if you believe that their opinion is unwise.
Make sure they receive the services that match their specific needs and situations.

In the workplace:

Ensure that

Your behavior does not put your colleagues at risk
Flag out all the dangers related to the work or in the place where you work.
Flag out all the dangers relating to the procedures and equipment
Never disclose the patient’s details to colleagues or any other
You have to ensure your co-worker is not left behind alone or unprotected which can clearly put them at too much risk of danger.

What Happens When You Break The Duty Of Care?

Indeed, duty of care is a legal requirement. So, of course, breaking it can lead to legal and moral consequences. In health and social care, it can result in

Medical malpractice claims: It can lead to criminal charges.
Disciplinary actions: Like suspension or revoking their license.
Legal liability: Affected one may seek legal action to cover the harm.
Moral consequences: Result in loss of trust in the care provider and his organization.

What To Do If There Are Incidents, Errors, And Near Misses?

Sadly, mistakes can happen in the workplace of your health and social care work even after having the best ways of working.

So, what do you do if any mistakes or incidents happen? Here is a general idea.

First, When something goes wrong, you have to figure out what you can do to meet the immediate needs of the patient and maintain their well-being.

Second, Your workplace will provide you with a form to record the incidents, errors, and near misses. You should accurately record the date, time, and clear facts.

Third, Inform your manager about the incident immediately. You need to make them aware of what exactly happened.

Fourth. Never blame others. Moreover, you should not suggest why the incident happened even if you have no idea why that incident happened. That’s because if your assumptions turn out to be wrong, you will lose the trust of the patient and their families.

Creating Duty Of Care Policies

An effective duty of care policy is required to ensure the well-being and protection of the person receiving care and the staff providing it.

You can create one by following some steps. Below is a quick overview.

Step 1: Risk Identification and Assessment

Under the duty of care framework, first, you need to identify the potential risks in the organization’s practices and services. It is a crucial step to figure out what actions you will need to take to reduce those risks.

Generally common hazards of the workplace are as follows:

Electricity

Manual handling

Hazardous substance

Stress

Trips, slips, and falls

Violence

Vehicles and workplace transport

You need to implement effective policies to minimize these threats after having the risk assessments. The policy should outline the duty and responsibility of each individual or organization.

Step 2: Training and Support

Next, you will need to provide comprehensive training and support for the effectiveness of the duty of care policy.

Each member of your team needs to understand their responsibilities to meet the obligation and ensure the practical use of the policy. Training and support will allow us to achieve both!

You can provide comprehensive training on the below topics.

Health and safety awareness

Communication skills

Data protection regulations

Role-specific requirements

Step 3: Monitoring and Enforcement

Now that your duty of care policy is fully developed and communicated well with other related care workers, it is time for continuous monitoring.

You can guarantee compliance and tackle emergencies with effective monitoring. At this stage focus on

Whether the policy is effective and achieving the goal

Maintain detailed records and have investigations
And finally, take corrective steps or actions.

Final Words

Your duty of care is your legal responsibility and something you must abide by. You must enhance the health and well-being of the patients and protect them.

It must be done in accordance with the regulations and following good practices. You should have continuous education and training and stay updated with the recent regulations.

Just remember that you have to stay informed and diligent in your practice to ensure compliance and keep your patient safe.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does care mean in health and social care?

Care in health and social care refers to actively attending to the needs of someone and prioritising their well-being. It involves taking actions to maintain or improve a person’s health with compassion and respect, ensuring their comfort and dignity.

What are the 6 C’s of care?

The 6 C’s of care are values that set the standard expected from healthcare professionals. These include:

Care
Compassion
Competence
Communication
Courage
Commitment

Why is it important to show care in health and social care?

Showing care in health and social care is crucial because it directly impacts the quality of life of the individuals receiving care. It can speed up recovery for patients and ensures that they feel respected, valued, and comfortable during their treatment or support.

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January 9, 2025

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