Health and social unit

In my report I will show my understanding and knowledge of the importance of communication skills in care settings and about values involved in care practices. I have chosen to do my report on educational settings and I will focus on how individuals with specific needs communicate In both group Interactions and one-to- one interactions. I will do this by working in a class on both Thursday and Friday mornings where the pupils have specific needs.I will observe the communication with the teacher and students and also the communication between the students and myself when I take on the role of the teacher. Also, I will take into account the barriers that effect communication such as; cultural differences, Language differences, difficulty In understanding accents and physical tattletales such as hearing problems or speech difficulties. I have chosen to focus on Individuals with specific needs as I am interested in how people with specific needs communicate.For example, a woman named Hel en Keller who was born in 1880, was oaf, dumb and blind and learned to communicate through feeling the vibrations of a person's face when they spoke. I also would like to see how practitioners react and respond to Individuals with specific needs; how they adapt their voice and body language to slut the student. For example, how they change the tone, pitch and pace of their voice to get the student's attention or how they change their facial expressions to show they're unhappy with the students.I also want to see how they follow the care value base to ensure they are treating all of the students correctly ND providing quality service. Know that communication is very important, especially in health and social care settings, as effective communication skills help the practitioner develop an appropriate relationship with the service user, the service practitioner is likely to have regular interactions with service users and the family and friends of the service user. Interactions occur for a variety of reasons in care settings, such as when people give and receive information.The communication cycle is very important as interpersonal interactions in care settings involve two-way communication. I will change the names of the students, teachers and the school throughout my report to maintain confidentiality and their privacy. By doing so, I am following the care value base. Setting the scene: I did my two interactions at Round Hill Secondary School with a class of year 7 students who all had specific needs. Most of the students have reading levels below average and have certain needs that must be met in order for them to learn effectively.The school is a local authority school in statutory services, education is compulsory and provided by law. The school has around 1000 students all aged 11-18 years old. It is the only secondary school in the town and the town has a population of approximately 14,750 people. Many people are unemployed and Working class' and many stu dents are on pupil premium which means that the school is provided with additional funds for disadvantaged students so they are given the same opportunities as other students.The classroom in which the students are taught in is bright and colorful with posters on the walls and some of the student's work on the walls. There are three tables of 6 and a table of 4 pointing towards the whiteboard and teachers desk. There are around 14 students in the lass I am helping in. The students in the year 7 class (EGG) are all aged 11-12. Williams KS sub level is b which is above average; however his attitude to learning is a 3.Ethane's KS sub level is a AAA which is below average and his attitude to learning is a 1. Grace's KS sub level is c which is also above average and her attitude to learning is a 4. The Care Value Base The care value base is a set of values which give guidelines on how the practitioner should treat the service user. It also outlines the rights service users have and what they should expect from health care services. The care value base is very important for anyone working in or using health care services.It is important for clients as it helps them promote their rights by outlining what they should expect from practitioners so they can identify when they are being treated unfairly or incorrectly. Many laws are against discrimination. For example, the equal opportunities legislation prohibits discrimination; the sex discrimination act, the race relations act and the Disability Discrimination act. All care workers must treat all service users without unfair discrimination as this could affect a person's self- incept and lead to loss of self-worth.The care value base helps practitioners to ensure they treat all their clients correctly and equally and ensures that practitioners meet the needs of all service users. For example, It is important for practitioners to avoid any stereotyping or prejudice behavior and ensure that they treat every client as an individual, taking into account the clients personal beliefs, likes and dislikes, and background to provide quality care. Any violation of the care value base made my practitioners can lead to dismissal. It is therefore very important The Care value base transmissions:Promoting anti-discriminatory practice Maintaining confidentiality of information Promoting and supporting an individual's right to dignity, independence, health and safety Acknowledging an individual's personal beliefs and identity Protecting individual's from abuse Promoting effective communication and relationships Providing individualized care AI Types of communication: There are many different types of communication that practitioners will need to use to provide good quality service which meets the needs of each individual service user such as; Non-verbal communication, Written communication, Verbal immunization, Electronic communication and Communication for individuals with specific needs. These are all ways in which the practitioner uses to meet and respond to the service user's physical, intellectual, emotional and social needs.They will need to use these ways of communicating to: Give information, Understand information, express thoughts and feelings and exchange information so that the person they're communicating with can fully understand what they're saying. Verbal communication involves using the mouth and sound to communicate ideas and thoughts for example through words, sounds, speaking, and language. Strong and clear verbal communication gives us the ability to explain our ideas through spoken words and also allows us to listen to other people's ideas and understand them. When communicating verbally, the person must be able to actively listen to the other person's message that they're sending, paraphrase, clarify and respond.An example of verbal communication I observed in EGG was when a student asked the teacher what they had to do through speaking, and the teacher answered by r epeating her instructions and explaining each part of the task. Non-verbal communication is communication that doesn't involve sound or language. For example, this can be body language, facial expressions and gestures such as sign language. An example of non- verbal communication that I observed was when the teacher asked the students if they understood the task before she moved on to the next one, she asked them to show her a thumbs up if they were confident and understood the subject, and to show a thumbs down if they needed a bit more help.This gesture is a simple way for the teacher to find out how her students feel about the topic so that she can make sure she is meeting all of the student's individual needs. Written communication s when ideas are written down for somebody else to see and understand. For example, written communication can be reports, worksheets and letters. An example of written communication that I saw was when the teacher asked the students to draw an arrow i n their book at the end of their work and put a smiley face on the arrow where they think they are, the face being far to the right meaning fully communication that I witnessed, this allows the teacher to see how each individual student feels about their work to Judge their understanding when marking it.The teacher explores ways in which the students can express themselves and get their linings about the topic across to her in simple ways such as these which help her provide the students with the quality care, teaching and learning that they have a right to. Another example of written communication is when the teacher wrote out the whole task on the whiteboard so that the students knew what they had to do. Formal and Informal Communication The language register (the degree of formality or informality) changes depending on the situation a person is in. Formal communication is most likely to be used when a person communicates in an ‘official' way, such as when a care worker is p resenting their care organization. For example, answering the telephone and saying â€Å"Good morning, Round Hill Secondary School, How may I help you? † Can make the person feel respected and valued.Whereas If the care worker answered the phone in an informal way such as â€Å"hello, what's up? † it could be perceived by the person the care worker is communicating with as being disrespectful or even rude. However, informal language might put a service user at ease and make them feel more comfortable. (Promoting effective communication and relationships) Another issue with informal communication is ‘speech communities'. People from different localities or ethnic groups, for example, may use different phrases or words which might not be understood by others and could lead service users to feel excluded and uncomfortable. However, using formal language could lead to the same problem.For example, a person who doesn't work in a hospital isn't likely to understand the technical terminology that the nurses use, such as ‘Myocardial Infarction', but would understand the term ‘heart attack. Using technical terminology might create barriers for people who are not part of that ‘speech community and it is wherefore important to communicate with appropriate language to suit the individual service user. In EGG, the teacher asked a student to ‘multiply 100 by 4' the student didn't understand the question as he didn't understand the terminology used. By using the term ‘multiply instead of times' the teacher confused the student. This shows that terminology can act as a barrier to good communication. The conversation Sandwich Conversations have a beginning, a middle and an end.At the beginning of a conversation a person has to create the right atmosphere and at the end of a conversation a person should leave the right feelings behind. For example, I created the right atmosphere when starting a conversation with a student by sho wing them that I was relaxed. I did this by keeping my muscles relaxed and avoiding tension. My tone of voice also showed I was relaxed as I used a calm voice with varying tone which also showed that I was being friendly. I left the right emotions behind after the conversation took place by smiling. Open and closed questions: While working in EGG, I took into account the questions I was asking the students.I used mainly open questions to encourage the students to speak to me and lead to silences which can make people feel awkward. By using open questions, I encouraged the students to discuss their thoughts and feelings with me. Open questions are likely to encourage the person you are communicating with to give a longer answer. In some situations it is important to use open questions as the person who you're communicating with is more likely to give a better response which can give opportunities to carry on the conversation smoothly and comfortably. I used open questions to develop conversations with the students that can be quiet or shy and encourage them to talk to me. For example, I asked one of the students, â€Å"What were you doing last lesson?Which required an answer other than yes' or ‘no? However, In some situations, such as a Job interview, Closed questions are more likely to be used as they are quick and easy to answer and usually give the questioner the facts they require, for example â€Å"Are you happy? † is a closed question, it only requires a yes' or ‘no' answer. The questioner also usually keeps control of the conversation. Closed questions are more likely to be used in formal situations. I also used probes and prompts to encourage the students to carry on speaking. For example, when a student told me they did not enjoy History, I said, Why not? O encourage them to tell me why they didn't enjoy it.Closed Questions I could have used: Open questions I used to encourage the students to communicate with me: Do you not like mat h's? Why don't you like math's? Did you have breakfast today? What did you have for breakfast today? Do you like school? What do you like about school? Proximity and Personal Space: The space between people during a face-to-face conversation can sometimes determine how friendly the conversation is. In different cultures, people have different views of how close people should be when they're talking. If a care worker eats too close and enters a service user's personal or intimate space without permission they could be seen as being aggressive. Edward T Hall described four levels of proximity: Intimate distance which suggests a closer relationship between individuals if their intimate space is entered, For example, Hugging. Personal distance which usually occurs between people who are family members or close friends. Social distance which is usually between people who know each other well, such as a co- worker. Public distance, Physical distance at this level is often used in public s peaking situations. Talking in front of a class full of students or giving a presentation at work are good examples of such situations. In EGG I witnessed a student who was in trouble being reprimanded by a teacher, who obviously felt that their personal space was being invaded.I know this as Firstly, they turned their face away, then they took a step back and put their hands in their pockets (a defensive action) and lastly the student walked away. In order for strong communication to take place, the communication cycle has to be used effectively. The communication cycle is the process of us thinking of an idea e want to communicate, for example thinking about a task we want to do. Deciding how we're going to communicate the idea, e. G. Speaking about the task. Sending the message. (speaking) The other person then receives the message for example through hearing it, decodes the message, and if the message is understood by the person, they will give you feedback and send a message ba ck.This process is repeated again and again throughout conversations. An example of the communication cycle being used badly was when I observed during a group interaction using verbal communication with three students, myself ND the teacher, The teacher sent a message verbally to the three students explaining the task she expected the students to complete- To work in a group, roll two dice and then multiply the number on the first dice by the number on the second dice and write it down. Some of the students in the group I was working with didn't understand what they had to do as the noise in the classroom from other students served as a barrier which meant that they could not hear the entire message.However, one student in the group, Ethan, listened to the message, decoded the message and understood what he had to do and was able to repeat the message to he other two students, as well as showing them what they had to do successfully as they both listened and understood what he was saying. I then asked the two students what they had to do and they both explained the task correctly, showing that the communication cycle was used correctly between the students and understood. Another example of the communication cycle being misunderstood was one I came across whilst helping in the specific needs class in a one-to-one situation with a student named Adam and myself.There was music playing in a different room and it distracted Adam which served as a barrier to effective communication as the music as a distraction which made hearing the complete message I was sending difficult. Adam couldn't concentrate to listen fully what I was asking him to do and I could see by his blank facial expression and how he started fidgeting by not sitting still that he didn't understand what I had said, I had to repeat what I said and I could see he still didn't understand me as he frowned and looked down at his work and nodded. This is an example of the communication cycle not being en coded correctly as the message I was sending wasn't received and understood and Adam couldn't return the message and he tried to hide the fact he didn't understand. If I hadn't â€Å"read† his facial expression and body language I wouldn't have known this.Examples of the care value base principles being used in the classroom: A principle of the care value base is that all service users have the right to be respected. Another is promoting anti discriminatory practice. I noticed that the students raised their hand when they wanted to ask a question or answer something and waited patiently until the teacher asked them to speak. By doing this, all of the students would be able to speak without being interrupted and all get a turn to answer, getting their point across. If a student interrupted another student when they were speaking, I noticed that the teacher did this, she raised her voice slightly and quickened the pace of her voice to show that the student had done something wr ong.She also changed her body language to show that the student had done something wrong by widening her eyes slightly and also crossing her arms. This way of taking turns to speak promotes equality and respect and encourages the students to treat everybody fairly in later life, regardless of who they are. Another principle of the care value base is maintaining confidentiality of information. An example of this being used effectively that I noticed whilst in the lesson was that if the teacher was away from her laptop during the lesson or had to leave her laptop for any reason, she would always lock it and close it so that none of the students or anybody except herself could access the student's records or any other file on it.She would also keep any information about the students on paper in a locked drawer so nobody except herself could access them. Another example of respecting the student's confidentiality and privacy, when the teacher is speaking to an individual student one-on- one she talks quietly so that what he is saying cannot be heard by others. For example, The teacher was telling one of the students what she had done wrong in her work and explaining that she had to set it out differently to make it easier. When she did this, she lowered her voice so only the student she was speaking to could hear and she also bent down so she was at eye level with the student.This made the student more relaxed and comfortable and didn't give any messages to make the student thinks he had done something wrong. An example where the teacher showed respect while seeking to ensure that a student named Sam didn't cause harm to himself or others around him was in situation where Sam lost his temper and showed aggressive behavior due to another student being disrespectful toward him. Sam was about to approach the student to physically harm him, I know this as he had fixed eye contact with the boy and his muscles were tense. When the teacher noticed what was happening, she quickly raised her voice and told Sam to stop what he was doing and calm down.When she did this, she stretched her arm out in front of Sam with her palm out to show that he must stop what he was doing and she also looked over his shoulder when she was doing it so she didn't look directly at him as that could be seen as aggression. She asked the two boys to leave the classroom and followed them out so that they didn't disrupt the rest of the students in the class any more than they already had. This is an example of both verbal and non-verbal communication as the teacher used spoken language to tell Sam to stop and also body language to effectively send the message to him. Comparing the teacher's quick pace and raised voice in this situation to the calm, slow voice with varying tone when she uses giving instructions, this shows how changing your voice can convey different meanings and effectively get your message across to others.AAA My interactions with the clients/Students: While w orking in a one to one situation with a student named Grace, I had to be aware of the body language and voice I was using as these can send different messages to the student. I made sure I had open body language by moving my chair outwards so that I could sit on an angle facing her instead of sitting straight forward as this could make me seem more approachable. I also kept my arms open and feeling intimidated. I kept my facial expression friendly by smiling slightly. I also had to be aware of proximity and kept out of her personal space as entering this could aka the student feel uncomfortable, awkward or even intimidated.To help the students practice their spelling in a fun way after they had a spelling test, they were allowed to use plasticize to shape letters and then place them on a board to spell words. I noticed that Grace asked me to shape a lot of the letters even though she could do them herself. I asked her why she wasn't doing them herself but made sure to smile slightly and raise the pitch of my voice a little bit so that she didn't think I was angry with her. She said she couldn't do them although I knew that she could as I had seen her do it before. I encouraged her to shape the letters by asking her to try and telling her that if she couldn't I would help her and then praising her when she did.I noticed that when she was praised this encouraged her to do more letters quickly and correctly. I noticed that praising the students made them want to complete tasks correctly. I also followed the care value base by promoting independence as I encouraged Grace to try before I would help her shape the letters. I also followed the care value base as I tried to interact with each student for an equal amount of time each lesson and I encouraged them to interact with me by ending them positive body language. I also promoted effective communication and relationships, for example, I assigned two students a task such as to hand out plastic wallets to each stude nt in the class.AAA: In order for me to be able to deepen and widen my understanding of how communication is used within health and social care settings and not Just what I observed in educational settings (EGG), I used a range of sources such as text books, websites and videos to understand the factors that affect good communication and also the values involved in care. The sources helped me understand why the teacher communicates in the way that she does, such as using appropriate language and body language to suit the students to get her message across to them and they also helped me understand why the Care Value Base is used. Barriers to communication: The term ‘barriers' refers to when communication becomes blocked so that good communication cannot take place. This can be through a person not being able to see, hear or receive the message such as when a person has visual disabilities or hearing disabilities.For example, a student named William who had visual capabilities could not see the white board to check his spellings which lead to him getting out of his seat and moving closer to the board each time he wanted to check a spelling. This situation have disrupted other students and also prevented William from completing his work in time. This situation could have been easily prevented by the teacher taking the time to read Williams SEEN plan which would make her aware of his visual disabilities and allow her to plan a way for William to be less affected by them, such as planning to seat him in closer proximity to the board or giving him the peelings on a sheet of paper. Communication can also become blocked when a person can't understand the message or misunderstands the message.There are many different barriers that can prevent effective communication from occurring ‘norms' which may be confusing or hard to understand for somebody outside of that religion. For example, it might be normal for a Muslim woman to cover her body with loose fittin g clothes as the Islamic religion requires her to cover her body except from her hands and face. A person from outside of that religion may be confused or even offended by this dress code. Environmental barriers. Such as space and noise. Language barriers. For example, a student from another town may have a different accent which might be hard to understand for other students. Emotional barriers. For example, Fear can stop a person from doing something they want or need to do. Disabilities.Such as physical disabilities for example being in a wheel chair. However, people can overcome barriers by learning more about them, finding different ways to communicate and being calm and patient. I noticed that there were simple rules that the teacher had set for the students in her lassoer which made the lesson run more smoothly with less interruptions. For example, when the students were to get their math's folders, they had to get them one by one in the order of the register. This way there would be no crowding around the folders and chance for the students to get distracted by other students or any barriers which could get in the way of the lesson.Whereas if all the students had to get their folders from a cupboard all at the same time, it would take more time and could unsettle the class. Comparing this to the way students get their folders in the ordinary year seven class, where one person from each table gets the folders for everyone on their table, the ‘ground rules' or ‘norms' that the teacher had set for the students in EGG help to overcome barriers and ensure that the lesson is used effectively and no time is wasted. (Promoting and supporting an individual's right to dignity, independence, health and safety) AAA: Conclusions. From my time in EGG I have come to the conclusion that a number of things can effect communication; Body language, Proximity, Appropriate language use, barriers, the type of voice used.I know that Communication is not Just spea king and listening and a person must take into account all of the possible things that can affect A person must think about what message their body language is sending to the person they're communicating with and whether it's appropriate to convey their feelings, such as whether they could be seen as aggressive or assertive. For example, open and closed body language can determine whether or not a person feels comfortable speaking to you. They must think about how the tone, pitch and pace of their voice can portray their feelings such as when I was angry or annoyed at student I would raise the pitch of my voice and quicken the pace of my voice. Think that one of my strengths when communicating is body language.I think I use the correct body language to suit my feelings and the situation I am in and I am aware of the messages that I am sending through my body language. However, I think I could improve my facial expressions when communicating with the students as they sometimes send t he wrong impression. For example, in one situation when I was angry with a student I smiled slightly which confused the student as she didn't think I was being serious. I should have kept my lips pressed together and widened my eyes that I was angry with the student. I understand that throughout all communication in health care service the care value base must be used correctly and appropriately in order for quality service and strong communication to be provided.The values involved in care help both the practitioners and service users develop a strong relationship through communicating effectively as the care value base outlines what to expect for both practitioners and clients. The main conclusion that I have drawn from my research for this report is that good use of communication is n essential tool for anybody working in care services and in everyday life. Strong communication skills are essential for a teacher, as I observed in EGG, to enable learning and provide quality teachi ng to the students. It is also essential that practitioners, such as teachers, follow the care value base rules to improve the client's quality of life by meeting their physical, intellectual, emotional and social needs.The teacher empowered her students by promoting the seven values; Promoting anti-discriminatory practice, Maintaining confidentiality of information, feet, Acknowledging an individual's personal beliefs and identity, Protecting individual's from abuse, Promoting effective communication and relationships and Providing individualized care. Observing policies are essential in order to protect the students from harm or abuse (protecting individuals from abuse) and to build appropriate professional relationships with clients and co-workers (Promoting effective communication and relationships). Teachers should always be trying to improve the quality of their teaching and find ways to provide quality education for each individual student. (Providing individualized care).