Health and Social Care

Health and Social Care

This Course At A Glance

• Perfect for aspiring health and social care professionals
• Develop the knowledge and skills to support individuals and communities
• Learn how to contribute to a better healthcare and social care system
• Build a strong foundation for further study
• Learn online from the comfort of your home
• Provides a certificate of achievement

About Your Course

Health and social care encompass a wide range of services and cuts across all sectors, including public, private and voluntary. It includes services within hospitals, clinics, care homes, medical and dental practices, emergency services, complementary medicine, and more.

Our Health and Social Care course has been specifically designed for those who have an interest in starting a career in health and social care, or those who already work in the sector.

By studying this knowledge-based course, you become equipped with essential skills and knowledge for a range of careers in health and social care. It covers fundamental areas like communication, personal development, safeguarding, person-centred care, and information handling. You'll also learn to build positive relationships, promote inclusion, assess needs, and support individuals in various settings.

This course lays a strong foundation for further study in specialised fields like nursing, social work, or care work, while also enhancing your employability in related jobs by developing valuable transferrable skills.

What Can I Do After Taking This Health and Social Care Course?

After successfully completing our Health and Social Care training course, you could apply for an entry-level position within the health and social care sector. If you are already working in a relevant position, you could be eligible for a promotion or pay increase.

*Please note that this course does not qualify you for professional roles like a nurse or social worker. These will require you to complete degree-level study.

If you wish to continue your studies in this space and get qualified for professional roles in the sector, you could study our Access to Higher Education Diploma (Nursing), complete our Management for Health and Social Care Online Degree Pathway, or any of our other related courses.

Modules

Lesson 1: Promote communication in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings

The unit explores the central importance of communication in such settings, and ways to meet individual needs and preferences in communication. It also considers issues of confidentiality.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:
   
Understand why effective communication is important in the work setting
Be able to meet  the communication and language needs, wishes and preferences of individuals
Be able to overcome barriers to communication
Be able to apply principles and practices relating to confidentiality

Lesson 2: Engage in personal development in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings

The unit introduces the concepts of personal development and reflective practice which are fundamental to such roles, and ways to implement these.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand what is required for competence in own work role
Be able to reflect on practice
Be able to evaluate own performance
Be able to agree a personaldevelopment plan

Lesson 3: Promote equality and inclusion in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings

The unit introduces the concepts of equality, diversity and inclusion which are fundamental to such roles.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the importance of diversity, equality and inclusion
Be able to work in an inclusive way
Be able to promote diversity, equality and inclusion

Lesson 4: Principles for implementing duty of care in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings

The unit introduces ways to address the dilemmas, conflicts or complaints that may arise where there is a duty of care

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand how duty of care contributes to safe practice
Know how to address conflicts or dilemmas that may arise between an individual’s rights and the duty of care
Know how to respond to complaints

Lesson 5: Principles of safeguarding and protection in health and social care

This unit introduces the important area of safeguarding individuals from abuse.  It identifies different types of abuse and the signs and symptoms that might indicate abuse is occurring.  It considers when individuals might be particularly vulnerable to abuse and what a learner must do if abuse is suspected or alleged.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Know how to recognise signs of abuse
Know how to respond to suspected or alleged abuse
Understand the national and local context of safeguarding and protection from abuse
Understand ways to reduce the likelihood of abuse
Know how to recognise and report unsafe practices 

Lesson 6: The role of the health and social care worker

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to understand the nature of working relationships, work in ways that are agreed with the employer and work in partnership with others.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand working relationships in health and social care
Be able to work in ways that are agreed with the employer
Be able to work in partnership with others

Lesson 7: Promote person centred approaches in health and social care

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to implement and promote person centred approaches. 

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the application of person centred approaches in health and social care 
Be able to work in a person-centred way
Be able to establish consent when providing care or support
Be able to implement and promote active participation
Be able to support the individual’s right to make choices
Be able to promote individuals well-being
Understand the role of risk assessment in enabling a person centred approach

Lesson 8: Promote and implement health and safety in health and social care

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to promote and implement health and safety in their work setting. 

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand own responsibilities, and the responsibilities of others, relating to health and safety
Be able to carry out own responsibilities for health and safety
Understand procedures for responding to accidents and sudden illness
Be able to reduce the spread of infection
Be able to move and handle equipment and other objects safely
Be able to handle hazardous substances and materials
Be able to promote fire safety in the work setting
Be able to implement security measures in the work setting
Know how to manage stress

Lesson 9: Promote good practice in handling information in health and social care settings

This unit covers the knowledge and skills needed to implement and promote good practice in recording, sharing, storing and accessing information.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand requirements for handling information in health and social care settings
Be able to implement good practice in handling information
Be able to support others to handle information

Lesson 10: Provide support to maintain and develop skills for everyday life

The unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to work with individuals to retain, regain and develop skills for everyday life.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the context of supporting skills for everyday life
Be able to support individuals to plan for maintaining and developing skills for everyday life
Be able to support individuals to retain, regain or develop skills for everyday life
Be able to evaluate support for developing or maintaining skills for everyday life

Lesson 11: Facilitate learning and development activities to meet individual needs and preferences

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to support individuals to plan, take part in and evaluate learning or development activities.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the role of learning and development activities in meeting individual needs
Be able to identify learning and development activities to meet individual needs and preferences
Be able to plan learning and development activities with individuals
Be able to prepare for learning and development activities
Be able to facilitate learning and development activities with individuals
Be able to evaluate and review learning and development activities

Lesson 12: Support individuals to access and use services and facilities

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to support individuals to select, use and review services and facilities.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand factors that influence individuals’ access to services and facilities
Be able to support individuals to select services and facilities
Be able to support individuals to access and use services and facilities 
Be able to support individuals’ to review their access to and use of services and facilities

Lesson 13: Facilitate person centred assessment, planning, implementation and review

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills required to facilitate person-centred assessment, planning, implementation and review. 

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the principles of person centred assessment and care planning
Be able to facilitate person centred assessment
Be able to contribute to the planning of care or support
Be able to support the implementation of care plans
Be able to monitor a care plans
Be able to facilitate a review of care plans and their implementation

Lesson 14: Support Individuals With Specific Communication Needs

This unit provides the learner with the knowledge and skills that address personal interaction and the use of special methods and aids to promote communication.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand specific communication needs and factors affecting them
Be able to contribute to establishing the nature of specific communication needs of individuals and ways to address them
Be able to interact with individuals using their preferred communication 
Be able to promote communication between individuals and others
Know how to support the use of communication technology and aids
Be able to review an individual’s communication needs and the support provided to address them

Lesson 15: Support use of medication in social care settings

This unit assesses support for use of medication in social care settings.  It covers broad types, classifications and forms of medication, as well as safe handling and storage. It addresses practical support for use of medication that reflects social care principles and values, and includes the need for accurate recording and reporting.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

Understand the legislative framework for the use of medication in social care settings
Know about common types of medication and their use
Understand roles and responsibilities in the use of medication in social care settings
Understand techniques for administering medication
Be able to receive, store and dispose of medication supplies safely
Know how to promote the rights of the individual when managing medication
Be able to support use of medication
Be able to record and report on use of medication

Entry Requirements

There is no experience or previous qualifications required for enrolment on this course. It is available to all students, of all academic backgrounds.

All course fees, inclusive of all payment plans including our Premium Credit Limited option, must be settled before certification can be ordered.

*You will have access to the course for 24 months.

On successful completion of your course you will receive the learndirect Certificate of Completion of Training in Health and Social Care.

Your course certificate will also state the number of CPD points/hours the course is eligible for.

View a sample of the certificate (opens in new window)

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Career

*Please note, this is a knowledge-based course, so it will not qualify you for professional roles in the health and social care sector.

After successfully completing the Health and Social Care course, you will have the skills, knowledge, and confidence to progress to higher-level studies in this subject or a related one.  

Should you wish to progress straight into employment on completion of this knowledge-based health and social care course, your proven enthusiasm and understanding of the sector will help you secure a number of entry-level roles in this space.

These can include:

• Care Worker/Support Worker
• Shared Lives Carer
• Personal Assistant
• Support Worker in specialist settings
• Healthcare Assistant
• Kitchen Assistant/Housekeeping Assistant
• Receptionist/Administrator in healthcare settings
• Volunteer roles in health and social care settings