Specialty
Nursing

Educational technique
Bi-annual training conference for healthcare assistants and trainee nursing assistants.

Details
Health care assistants (HCAs) are a unique group of staff who make an invaluable contribution to the patient-centred delivery of care within Imperial College Healthcare.

Ongoing training was previously provided to HCAs on an ad-hoc basis, however the learning needs and associated training programmes were formalised in 2010 to deliver the first training conference for healthcare assistants, giving this group of staff the opportunity to regroup, learn, explore, reflect, and relax together.

The conference enables HCAs to reflect on their abilities and attitudes towards working with patients with various illnesses, develop and demonstrate an understanding of what good practice looks like in a variety of settings and also formalises HCAs’ understanding of the fundamentals of patient care, dignified care delivery, and the positive patient experience.

A range of topics are covered by clinical experts, including:
• Roles and responsibilities of the HCA
• Career development and NVQ training
• Aspects of care including diabetes, oral hygiene, record-keeping and documentation, nutrition in older adults, continence promotion, clinical observation, and basic podiatry
• Teamwork
• Time management
• Care of patients
• 360º communication (including patients, colleagues, carers, visitors)
• Respect, dignity and consideration of patients
• The impact of attitudes

In 2010, the conference took place at the London Lighthouse in west London with kind sponsorship from the Friends of St Mary’s Hospital.

The general consensus from the 2010 conference was that the day was highly informative and enjoyable. Importantly, HCAs reported that they believed that they were ready to modify some aspects of their practice to reflect what had been discussed throughout the day. Additional improvements for future iterations of the conference were also noted, such as widening the audience to include others outside of nursing.

For more information on the training conference for healthcare assistants and trainee nursing assistants, contact Karen Richards.

For information regarding the Imperial College Healthcare charity, contact the charity directly.