New learning and development Apps for Northern Irish workers
By News Northern Ireland, ,

New NISCC mobile Apps to support learning in Child Development 7-12 Years and Domiciliary Care are available now to download free for Apple and Android.

The Apps aim to support required workplace training.

Every year workers complete mandatory and workplace training and if they are not immediately putting this training into practice for e.g. vulnerable adult awareness, then they might not remember what to do if they encounter this type of situation.

Domiciliary Care
 
This App has been developed to help domiciliary care workers remember important areas of training by providing succinct/bite size information at the touch of a finger, as and when they need it.

The App consists of a mixture of explanations of key points of knowledge and includes exercises to help the user apply some of the principles from the information provided. There is also additional information in the form of videos and relevant website links which have been included to enhance the user’s understanding and knowledge of these key areas.

The App is divided into the following four key content areas – crucial areas of training that all domiciliary workers should understand and put into practice to ensure service users receive the high standard of care they deserve.

• Values and Behaviours – what are values; what is person centred practice and scenarios to test workers understanding; what is the difference between respect and dignity and scenarios that help clarify the 6 areas included in the NISCC Codes of Practice for Social Care.
• Safeguarding – information on types of abuse and signs of abuse; scenarios to explain/test how a worker might know that abuse is happening and why domiciliary care workers should know about safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• Administration of Medications – the dos and don’ts of administering medication including a link to the NISCC Guidance on Administration of Medications.
• Service user health and well-being – key information to help workers recognise and prevent pressure sores and ensure good skin care; the dos and don’ts for infection control; good hand washing practice and techniques; crucial things to remember about personal protective equipment and safe food handling and why risk assessments are important and should be adhered to.

The App has been developed and produced by the Northern Ireland Social Care Council (NISSC) in partnership with domiciliary care providers; Bryson Care and Extra Care and representatives from the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, the Safe Guarding Board, the Regulations and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA), the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) and the DHSSPSNI.

The App was also developed by NISCC in partnership with the Skills for Care and Development partners (Skills for Care, Care Council for Wales and the Scottish Social Care Council) as part of the Mobile Knowledge and Learning Solutions (MKLS) two year project – a project that aims to deliver knowledge and learning into users hands, helping them refresh their learning “on the go” as and when they need it.

Child Development for 7-12 Children

This App is designed to ensure that social workers and other professionals working in early years, education and youth work have instant access to high quality information on child developmental norms relevant to the 7-12 year’s age group.

It also makes links with the knowledge obtained from the Understanding Child Development for 0-6 Children app – the first mobile app in a series of 3 apps being developed by the NISCC.

This free resource helps you;

• Understand child development issues relevant to the 7-12 years age group
• Make links with knowledge obtained from the Understanding Child Development for 0-6 Children app.
• Access further reading and pertinent video links in relation to children and young person’s developmental milestones.
• Utilise theoretical frameworks, via succinct knowledge synopses, video links and hyperlinked references to enhance an understanding of child development within the specified age range.
• Draw on significant legislation and policy relevant to work with children, young people and looked after children in the 7-12 years age grouping
• Utilise and reflect on pertinent case studies which are based on realistic scenarios in practice.
• Critically reflect on observational skills and knowledge aligned to practice with children and young people in the identified age group.
• Inform decision making skills whilst on practice placement or within the work setting.
• Enhance professional competence in relation to decision making based on observation, assessment of child development.
Key Features include:
• Access to information and video links for child developmental milestones
• Theoretical frameworks, knowledge summaries, and references
• Legislation and policy
• Case studies based on realistic scenarios in practice
• Critical reflection on observational skills and knowledge
• Decision making based on observations and assessment

The Northern Ireland Social Care Council has been working in partnership with Skills for Care and Development, the University of Ulster and Queens University Belfast to develop this innovative mobile application for Child Development.

The content of the app is underpinned by the expertise of the two universities, through the authors, Dr Anne Campbell (QUB and Professor Mary McColgan (UUM) in Northern Ireland and has benefited from input from the social work, early years and education professionals who joined the Child Development App Steering Group convened by the NISCC.

The app presents a cost effective method of delivering educational information and guidance and for this reason has been warmly welcomed by employers across all sectors involved in service provision for children, young people and looked after children in the 7-12 years age grouping.

Download it here: