Dear Sheila
In Domiciliary Care, is it mandatory to be trained in manual handling, and if it is, does it need updating annually?
Anne
Dear Anne,
I consulted a colleague Neil Crawford from Access Skills Training about your question and this is his response:
Health and Safety legislation places a duty of care on the employer to ensure the duties undertaken by their employees and the workplace within which they take place have been risk assessed and appropriate steps taken to ensure the workers safety. In the context of a care assistant role as a minimum the employer should ensure they are appropriately trained and competent to undertake their duties which will usually include manual handling as necessary.
The Care Certificate identifies the appropriate outcome competency expected of a care assistant with regard to their induction and identifies the need for appropriate competency in manual handling to be demonstrated.
With regard to an annual refresh of the training, risk assessment should be reviewed regularly to ensure any changes to the workplace (such as new equipment or legislation) have been recognised and staff trained in its use etc. this ideally should occur on an annual basis where necessary.
Best wishes.
Sheila