New university course launched to advance practice and leadership in care home sector
A new course which will help to improve care and advance professional practice within the care home sector has been launched by Queen Margaret University (QMU), Edinburgh.
The new initiative responds to the need for an improvement in multidisciplinary education opportunities which are specific to the care home sector and which are suitable for a range of experienced practitioners, whether they be in clinical, leadership, management or development roles. Ultimately the course will present outstanding development opportunities for a range of professionals who wish to advance their own practice and improve the experiences of care home residents, as well as their staff teams.
Professor Brendan McCormack, Head of the Division of Nursing at QMU, explained: “Education provision that is specific to the care home sector is an area of learning that has been sadly neglected. One of the most important things about this new course is that it recognises care home practice as a specialism in its own right. We have therefore drawn on our own management and nursing expertise from Queen Margaret University, and that from the diverse range of experts across the sector, to create a unique new course which will advance the development of this vital area within the UK’s health and social care sector.”
Dr Caroline Dickson, Programme Leader for the new PG Dip Person-centred Practice: Advancing Care Home Practice at QMU, said: “There are an incredible range of professionals all working across the care home sector. Multidisciplinary teams made up of nurses, care workers, allied health professionals, managers, chaplains and social workers all make an important contribution to the overall success of service provision and management. But to be truly successful, it is critical that everyone is involved in creating person-centred cultures which allow people, both living and working within the care homes, to flourish.
“We have taken a multidisciplinary approach to developing this new course by collaborating with professionals in care homes; business; nursing; and palliative and community settings. Their contribution ensures the programme is relevant, contemporary and will contribute to a changing attitude towards care homes, as well as making working within a care home a positive career choice.”
The course, which can be studied full time over one year or part time over two to five years, will be suitable for a wide variety of experienced care home professionals including doctors; nurses; allied health professionals; social workers; chaplains; and practitioners involved in clinical practice, management, education and research.
Dr Dickson confirmed: “We recognise that every individual will have their own developmental ambitions, so this flexible course will allow learners to craft their own pathways, depending on their own discipline and areas of interest. Importantly, the programme will have an underpinning philosophy of personhood and personcentredness and will be grounded in the latest research and practice development methodologies.”
Professor McCormack concluded: “We are proud that Queen Margaret University has taken the bold step to plug this gap in education provision. We hope this unique course will build morale amongst staff who are able to benefit from excellent development opportunities, and improve quality standards and leadership across the care home sector. Ultimately, it will lead to a more person centred approach to service provision and improved quality of life. It’s a win win situation for staff, care home residents and the health of our wider communities.”
The PG Dip Person-centred Practice: Advancing Care Home Practice at Queen Margaret University starts in January 2020. More course details.
Notes to Editor
For further media information please contact Lynne Russell, Communications Manager at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh on E: lrussell@qmu.ac.uk, M: 07711 011239.
