Considering a rewarding career in care? Are you wondering what skills and qualities you need to become a Care Assistant? Keep reading.
For many people, working in the care sector can be intimidating. With the right skills and qualities, and Hales’ comprehensive training programme, you could become an excellent Care Assistant.
Below is a list of ideal skills and qualities you need to work as a Care Assistant.
Empathy
A good Care Assistant is kind and has empathy towards other people. Empathy is the ability to understand and share personal experience of others and can help you build service user trust.
Being compassionate and empathetic can make you ideal for the job.
Communication skills
Communication is one of the core skills you need to work in care. Care Assistants use these skills to effectively communicate with colleagues and service users, write a care plan, read and follow a risk assessment, and report an incident or accident.
Good listening skills
Good listening skills help convey respect to service users by paying attention to what they are saying. Active listening helps build service user trust by making them feel empowered and valued.
Positive Attitude
As a Care Assistant, you need to display the right attitude to create a positive atmosphere, and for your service users to put their trust in you.
Employability skills
These skills allow Care Assistants to prioritise workload, be always accountable, work with other teams, do qualifications and training, and deal with stress and pressure at work.
Numeracy skills
Care Assistants use their numeracy skills to record fluid intake, measure medication, plan staff rotas, understand wage slips and manage stock levels.
Digital skills
These skills include the ability to find and manage digital information, share personal data digitally, and use digital technology with people using services.
Care Assistants use their digital skills to:
- write digital care plans
- complete e-learning
- use assistive technology
- help people who use care and support to Skype relatives and friends or use a sat nav
- safely store staff and clients records, etc.
Respect
One of the key qualities for any care worker is being respectful. As a Care Assistant, you must recognise that each service user is as unique as their needs and requirements.
Your ability to help your service users feel comfortable will help establish a connection and build a rapport with them.