12. Short Debate: Caring for care homes: How we could do more to care for care homes in Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:55 pm on 2 October 2019.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Angela Burns Angela Burns Conservative 6:55, 2 October 2019

I'd like to thank Janet Finch-Saunders for bringing this very important debate forward, because we need to demonstrate that we value the staff in our care home sector. Too often, the care home sector is seen in a pejorative way, as not quite up there with nurses or the other medical professions, and yet they are absolutely vital to the continuation and the cohesion of our society, and in looking after so many vulnerable people. So, Minister, I just have a couple of really quick questions I hope that you might be able to address this evening. Would you consider, or are you considering, a national campaign to attract people to a career in the care home sector? Would you be looking at the development of continuous professional development, how could we engage and develop staff and actually give staff within a care home setting a career progression? And flexible working, of course, is extremely important for an awful lot of care home staff. What could we do to promote flexible working and to encourage care home owners to be much more elastic in their thinking about how they might be able to bring people on into working for them?

And, of course, finally, I wouldn’t be able to end my contribution without mentioning the nursing element of care homes. It’s incredibly important, but we need to improve the nursing provision in care homes because there’s a significant shortage of nurses available for the care home sector. One of the ways would be that there needs to be a real harmonisation of social care terms and conditions with the 'Agenda for Change', and I wondered if you might just be able to touch upon that. And I also would like to have your views on whether or not you think that having more nursing student clinical placements in the care home sector during their degree training might also be of benefit, not just, in fact, for care homes, but for the whole orthogeriatric/geriatric training needs that come along, because we need more nurses in the older people sector. Thank you.