My role within my placement is as a Carer, I am currently working in a residential home for adults with learning disabilities, and my job consists of assisting the service users with day to day tasks, from personal care to aiding them in the public. My work hours are as follows:
2x 12 hour shifts, 24 hours a week – One Friday and one Sunday.
The home that I work in is a small, privately owned home in Bournemouth, home to 7 service users with learning disabilities.
Tasks that I work by on a day to day basis include: assisting the service users with their personal hygiene, i.e. washing and dressing, assisting them also with tidying, tidying with the service users helps to promote independence and teaches them vital skills. All workers within my placement must undergo mandatory training to ensure each individual is working to an efficient and safe manner, in the best interests of the service users and their families, certain training that is put into place there includes – the care certificate, redcrier, basic first aid & fire emergency training.

Strengths and weaknesses within my placement:
Strengths –
In this particular job in care, I have been taught many interpersonal skills surrounding myself and how I treat others, with the service users placed under my care I feel a responsibility to them. Since working at my placement, I have gained a notable rise in my confidence.
Strengths that I believe an individual needs, particularly in care work surrounding service users with learning disabilities include: patience – patience is likely to be tested on a daily basis, it is how you deal with it that defines you and your suitability for this particular role. Flexibility: care work is well known to be 24 hours, this includes working bank holidays, New Year’s, Christmas, etc. Communication skills: As a care worker, specifically in learning disabilities, communication can be hard and a test, it is important you work in a calm manner to understand exactly what and how a service user is both talking to you about and how they are listening to what you are saying about them, from non-verbal to extremely vocal service users. Passion for your job, passion for your job is arguably the most important personal skill in care work, as it can be personally challenging and a struggle at times, it is how you deal with a situation, which can be taken personally, and that builds you up for the job role.

Weaknesses:
With the strengths in care work come the weaknesses, such as:
Taking situations personally, in care work it can often be unpredictable, what will happen on a day to day basis at work can take you by surprise and if you allow it to, can have an effect on your personal life. It is important in any job, though particularly care, that you keep your personal and work life as two separate parts of your life. Caring for individuals with learning disabilities and mental health problems means that you build a bond and trustful yet professional relationship with the service users in your care, individuals you care for may pick up on negative signals when around you, for example saying you are ‘okay’ yet showing negative expressions and body language can have an effect on the individual, raising their anxiety levels. Although it is important to maintain that the individuals in your care are as happy as you can make their life for them, it is also important to look after yourself, so that you are to the best standard and as efficient as you can be.
How my job affects me:
In my particular job and role, difficult situations can arise, for example a service user can become aggressive once their anxiety levels rise. It is very important that you are a calm person and that it is within your nature, the most important aspect to me is how you deal with things and especially being genuine in how you deal with them.