Unit 7 - Principles of Safe Practice in Health and Social Care
Institution
PEARSON (PEARSON)
This is the full piece of coursework for unit 7. It is linked to the case studies of Chichester drop in centre (Zara) and Zebra Ward (Lucy and Kevin). I received D* in health and social care and my work has been checked by teachers.
Unit 7 - Principles of Safe Practice in Health and Social Care
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Unit 7: Principles of Safe Practice in Health and Social Care
Learning Aim, A: Examine how a duty of care contributes to safe
practice in health and social care settings
A1 Duty of Care
P1 Explain the implications of a duty of care in a selected health or social
care setting.
Legal obligation to protect wellbeing and prevent harm.
One of the duties of care that must be followed is the legal obligation to protect
wellbeing and prevent harm. Legal obligation means that an individual legally must
perform or not perform a certain action. For example, if someone is being abused in a
care home then it is your legal obligation to report them to authorities. In relation to
protecting wellbeing and preventing harm, the duty of care to protect wellbeing and
prevent harm is a legal and obligated requirement which is applicable to everyone in
the health and social care setting so that they are protected from any harm that can
be caused, service user’s must also be safeguarded, and they must also be protected
safely in ways to avoid any harm from occurring. It is necessary that professionals
avoid causing any harm, this means they should not act in such ways which could
potentially cause service users to harm. Another legal obligation is acting in the
service user’s best interests, some vulnerable people are unable to make decisions for
themselves which is why it is a legal obligation to know the service user’s limits.
Choosing something that completely falls out of line with the service user means not
protecting them which puts them at risk to harm. It is necessary that all staff are
aware and maintain following the legal obligations that are enforced no matter what,
not doing so means they are failing their duty of care which puts everybody at risk.
Case Study 1: Zara
In Zara’s case, the legal obligation to protect her wellbeing and harm has not been
maintained which is putting Zara at immense risk. Zara has made it clear that she
dislikes her mother’s boyfriend as she stated that he is far too “friendly,” however
Zara refuses to provide a reason for this. This is something that the staff should notice
however it is disregarded, and her social worker sees her dislike as jealousy towards
her mother’s new boyfriend. Since Zara is not providing a reason as to why she thinks
her mother’s boyfriend is too friendly can suggest that she could be being sexually
abused and being taken advantage of and, is possibly being threatened by her
mother’s boyfriend to not tell anyone about what is going on. Zara also goes through
panic attacks whenever she is approached by any men, which also gives a sign to that
she is being harmed in some sort of way. This therefore puts Zara at risk to harm and
, this harm can continue if the staff do not act over this which is why they have the
legal obligation to protect Zara's wellbeing and prevent her from any harm.
Additionally, the staff have noticed physical changes in Zara such as her appearance
deteriorating however, the staff have not considered on how they need to protect her
as what Zara is going through almost conveys her need for help, it also shows how her
wellbeing is not being protected and she is in major harm. The staff not following the
legal obligation to protect wellbeing and prevent harm is causing major harm and no
protection towards Zara.
Case Study 2: Lucy & Kevin
In both Lucy and Kevin’s case, the legal obligation to protect them both from harm
and to protect their wellbeing is not being met. The staff at the Zebra Ward have
noticed that Lucy and Kevin have recent marks, bruises and burns on them which
were not caused by the car accident, the doctors and nurses have noticed this and
have questioned the children's father. The children’s father has said that the marks
were from his wife who passed away 3 months ago yet the marks are all recent. The
doctor questions this however completely forgets to record down her opinions, it is
legally the doctor's legal obligation to report and note anything down which is
concerning and puts the children in the hands of risk. Therefore, this shows that the
doctor has simply disregarded it and has gone against the legal obligation to protect
the children from harm.
The nurse at the medical ward also disregards the marks on the children as they were
in a hurry, this ends up with the nurse's observations being failed and the nurse’s
ability to record down that the children were given sedatives was also not recorded.
This once again completely goes against the legal obligation to protect the children’s
wellbeing and to prevent them from harm. Both Lucy and Kevin are in further risk of
harm, not only that they have marks on them but they were given sedatives with no
actual proof that they were given them, this puts them at risk as the sedatives they
were given were not recorded down meaning that anyone else who takes care of the
children can potentially give them more sedatives without knowing the children have
already have some. This puts the children at even more harm than ever.
Upholding the rights and promoting the interests of individuals
experiencing abuse or neglect
In the health and social care sector, it is a duty that professionals must uphold the
rights and promote the interests of individuals experiencing abuse or neglect. Every
service user has rights which must be accepted and followed by the professionals who
provide care to the service users, all service users must be treated fairly and with
respect. Some of the rights that service users have in the health and social sector is
the right to make informed choices about where they live, and how they live their
lives, another right they have is the right to be protected from any abuse or conduct
which is detrimental to their wellbeing and health, and to be treated in a manner
which promotes dignity, wellbeing and understanding. All service users must be aware
that they have rights, and they should be able to use their rights without being told
they cannot. However, some service users will not ask for what they need meaning
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