Karen Poulter was on the morning medication round — a cupboard on wheels full of pills and medicine for the residents of the Red Oaks care home. It is a complicated business: four pills in the morning for this man, then three at lunch and tea; two twice a day for that woman; eight pills and a medicine for that resident — for arthritis, gout, heart problems and, of course, dementia.

These are tough times and if you’ve lost your job you may be feeling disheartened by the current levels of unemployment. However, there are still more than half a million jobs available, and employers are recruiting.

Career opportunities are expanding as social services heads into the new century, finds Debbie Andalo.

This editorial explains why having relevant practical experience and knowledge of social work is beneficial to someone who is applying to the Honours Degree in Social Work (the Degree), the professional qualification to practice as a social worker in Northern Ireland (NI).  It also provides examples of some of the ways of gaining relevant experience within NI.

Health Care Assistants may also be known as Clinical Support Workers, Therapy Assistants, and Nursing Auxiliaries.

There are now strict laws designed to ensure that employers take action to prevent injury as a result of manual handling. The main law is the Manual Handling Operations Regulations. Employers are also required to have a written policy as part of their overall safety policy. Current figures from the Health and Safety Executive indicate that 60% of all manual handling accidents reported (over 14,000 a year) involve patient handling.