- Conference
- 2004 Health Care Service Group Conference
- Date
- 2 January 2004
- Decision
- Carried
Conference congratulates and acknowledges the ground breaking work undertaken by the Nursing Sector and Service Group Executive to facilitate the first national conference of Healthcare Assistants. It is vital that UNISON as the largest trade union and the natural home for Healthcare Assistants continues to recognise and highlight the vital contribution that Healthcare Assistants make to the delivery of high standards of care to patients.
Barriers continue to be placed in the path of Healthcare Assistants who wish to access S/NVQ’s or other training including professional. A number of candidates currently undertaking S/NVQ’s are prevented from completing their course due to a lack of assessors. Others are employed in areas where such programmes are not offered. The demand for secondment onto professional training is increasing and although student drop out rates continue – those who leave their training are not amongst staff who are seconded.
A large number of Healthcare Assistants have no wish to undertake their professional training, however if they make this decision there is little else available to meet their personal development needs. The Nursing sector welcomed the commitments outlined in the NHS plan towards appraisals and personal development plans, however many Healthcare Assistants have yet to have either.
We call for the following: –
·Seek a commitment from the Departments of Health to conduct a joint survey of this staff group with UNISON to ascertain a true picture of the number of staff wishing to access their professional training under the secondment scheme;
·
·With this information and in partnership with the Open College, Open University and NHS University, seek to put in place on a Strategic Health Authority or Country basis a series of education programmes, designed to develop their confidence and competence to succeed in higher education;
·
·Seek assurances from each of the Departments that with this information money will be increased year on year to meet the demand and achieve Government recruitment statistics for professional training. Furthermore that the partnership working be continued to develop newly appointed Healthcare Assistants who have equal access to this pathway, should they wish;
·
·The Service Group Executive should prioritise a further conference in 2004 for Healthcare Assistants and explore ways in conjunction with the NEC so that this may become an annual event;
·
·The Nursing sector should in partnership with the Open College produce further education material, which meets the needs of this staff group and offers developmental opportunities for them, especially for those staff who choose not to access professional training;
·
·Regions should seek to develop Healthcare Assistants Forum, which give opportunities for discussion and developments with Workforce Development Confederations.
·