We should all familiar with the phrase ‘work-life balance’. It is important for people working in all sectors to look after their mental health and life away from work, while still being able to meet deadlines and complete essential tasks at work. This is particularly true of the healthcare sector, where there can be a lot of physical tasks involved, as well as emotional investment.
Incorporating physical and mindful activities to help reduce stress and allow time to relax is vital. As is making sure that those working in the care sector can manage their workload and enjoy as much flexibility as possible when planning their time. Care staff who have enough time away from work to engage with hobbies, have fun with loved ones and generally enjoy a fulfilling personal life will generally be in a better position to provide effective, compassionate and cheerful care to residents and patients when they are at work.
Care home managers are in a great position to encourage their staff to establish a healthy work-life balance. The benefits of doing do are many, including happier staff, higher retention rates, increased productivity and lower burn-out rates within the team. This, in turn, leads to residents being reassured by the presence of familiar faces and fewer rota emergencies caused by stressed staff failing to arrive at work. Care Vision’s digital care management system can help busy managers monitor staff attendance, spot trends in sickness and annual leave requests that could indicate poor work-life balance. It also provides an effective staff rota planning tool that makes sure all shifts are adequately covered.
Here are some more ways in which care home managers can support their teams to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Create fair staff rotas and annual leave policies
The more organised a care team is, the less stress will fall upon those employed to look after the residents. Use Care Vision to set up workable staff rotas and keep an eye on annual leave requests so that absent team members can be planned for and covered in time. Leave enough time between shifts on the rota if people have to travel to different sites, or prepare anything in advance. Ask colleagues to give you as much notice as possible for annual leave, training courses etc. Monitor who is taking annual leave when, and make sure that the same people don’t always get the more popular holidays off. Share the privilege around so everyone gets a turn. Popular holiday requests can include bank holidays, August school holiday season, Easter, Christmas and other religious and cultural occasions.
Encourage healthy living and self-care activities
Healthcare workers can often face high levels of stress and fatigue, so making the most of any time off is very important. Managers can help with this by providing resources and access to mindful activities and ideas for relaxation. Some colleagues may enjoy getting together for planned activities during downtime, such as group walks or cycle rides, meals out or going to concerts or sporting events. Ask your teams if they would like you to help them access and arrange team activities like these. Alternatively, signposting online resources about mindfulness, exercise and relaxation techniques could encourage people to try something new next time they are on annual leave or have a few hours spare.
Communication among colleagues and managers
In a stressful, often emotionally difficult sector such as healthcare, having the support of colleagues is vital. Whether staff want to offload problems, ask advice, celebrate successes or seek advice, encouraging people to open up and get to know each other better can be a good thing for everyone concerned. Use communication channels such as Care Vision’s messaging service to encourage these types of connections. Plan staff get-togethers, even if it is a weekly gathering for tea and cake one afternoon per week. Make sure your teams know that they can come to you too for a chat, to ask questions or to raise any issues they may be experiencing.
Set expectations and working smarter
Communications between teams and managers should also cover areas like expectations, goal setting and objectives. When people know what they are expected to do, and the time and resources they have to achieve their goals, they will feel more confident at work and less under pressure. They will consequently spend less of their downtime worrying about what to do, or trying to catch up with unrealistic expectations. Help your staff delegate tasks where appropriate and share the burden with each other. Call for reinforcements where necessary from agency workers or trained volunteers if available. Helping people work to more realistic expectations will help everyone enjoy a healthier work-life balance.