How has a career in care changed over the last 20 years?

The care industry is ever-evolving as the face of health continues to changes. People are living longer, diseases are becoming more complex and the number of people suffering from more than one condition is increasing. All of which places more pressure than ever on staff.

Surely the rise in technology is alleviating some of the pressure though? It may not seem like a very long, but just how much has a career in care changed over the last 20 years?

Time constraints

As life expectancy continues to rise and surpass 80 for both men and women, those working in care are under more pressure thanks to the need to visit a higher number of people. In many cases, particularly with domiciliary care, this has resulted in shorter visit times. It’s not unusual for care workers to only have 15-minute slots to visit individuals in their homes, which has raised concerns about the standard of care being provided.

Technology is making vast improvements

As is the same for most industries, technology is altering the way that the care sector operates and is, in many ways, improving it. With an increasing number of people and less time, it’s more important than ever for the care sector to take advantage of the time-saving possibilities that technology can offer.

Thanks to the creation of a number of Android apps, care workers are now able to record visit details or medication given accurately. No more time spent filling out tiresome forms. This could be said to be having a positive impact on job satisfaction, too.

Technology is also helping people to find the career in care that they want. Our cloud-based recruitment tool makes it easier than ever for candidates to create profiles and track the status of their applications in real time.

There’s more scope for development

A job in social care provides exceptional job security thanks to the fact that there are now more people than ever that need support. However, there is speculation that there isn’t much room for progression.

This may have been true 20 years ago when there was less of a focus on people working their way up through the ranks, but it certainly isn’t the case today.

Care workers can choose to progress into corporate functions where they will build relationships with local authority commissioning teams. Others may decide to specialise in a particular area which could include inspection or strategic development.