Continuing education of elderly care staff is important for quality

The supply of digital training is constantly increasing. There are many training courses aimed at the care of our elderly. Digital training on delegation, hygiene, dementia, lifting techniques and more are perhaps the most used. Often there is also a knowledge test linked to the training that generates a certificate sent by email. Many operations collect the certificates to be able to show who has undergone various training sessions. In mid-January 2020, the National Board of Health and Welfare launched a new training portal aimed at everyone working in health and medical care and social services. Parts of the setup are specifically aimed at the Youtube generation with movies and playlists. Those who use the web training can pick up what is relevant to them.

The range of training is constantly increasing

Hygiene training, medication management and dementia training are examples of courses that are suitable for elderly care. If you look around a bit, you can find courses and lectures on most areas. These are also usually free to use. There are also good courses on the value base of elderly care. As well as team-based working methods to prevent falls. Before the operation recommends a course, it may be a good idea to go through the training. It is not certain that all courses available online are good.

Examples of web training

A page that has a lot of useful information for those who work in care is the Care Handbook. There are descriptions of how many care processes should work. When it comes to training, they are often available both as a film and as a pdf. Many also have questionnaires and send a course certificate after completing the course.

Regarding the National Board of Health and Welfare's portal, users can upload their own material. The National Board of Health and Welfare checks and quality checks all material that is uploaded before it is published. One example is "Care and care for the elderly" which provides knowledge about the elderly's health, treatment, care planning and more.

There are also pages and films that provide support for relatives. One example is www.demenscentrum.se.

Other actors who offer web training are for example the Adult Education Association. They offer several web courses in elderly care, such as "Basic dementia care" and "The Code of Conduct in Elderly Care". The Competence Development Institute (KUI) offers web training for employees in care and care, including elderly care. Examples of courses are "Pain in the Elderly" and "Good and Safe Medication Management". Bräcke Diakoni has several web training courses for, among others, staff in elderly care. Examples of courses are "Dementia and Treatment" and "Nutrition for the Elderly".

SKR also has a rich range of web training. In addition to this, there are a number of podcasts with valuable content. There are also instructional films that are on Youtube as well as private actors like Piku who provide digital courses.

These are just a few examples and there are more training providers and courses available. It may be worth exploring local training providers, municipal training centers or national professional organizations in elderly care to get more information about available web training. The range is constantly increasing.

There are also private actors like ÄTUP who offer knowledge boosts to the entire organization when it comes to food and meals.

What risks are there with web training in care?

- A weakness with many web training courses is that they consist of one-way communication. The person undergoing the training has no one to ask follow-up questions or to discuss ambiguities. If the student has misunderstood something, it will not be corrected directly.

- Some care-related skills require practical training and practice. With web training, it can be difficult to provide sufficient practical training, which can affect the acquisition of knowledge and the practical application of skills.

- Care uses a lot of technical terms. For those who do not understand these, it may be difficult to put the content of the training in the right context. The training also requires some technical knowledge. Those who are poorly versed in the technology or language can get help from others and can then also take the opportunity to get help with filling in knowledge tests and other things. Then the knowledge test lacks value.

It is also important to be vigilant about who is behind the training and that they have the right competence. Otherwise, there is a risk that the training material contains incorrect information.

Knowledge tests

Many training courses have knowledge tests included and they can also send out certificates. Collecting such certificates is a first step in checking that the employees have undergone the training.

These knowledge tests can also be used to ask deeper control questions orally to ensure that they have really understood the content. If it is practical knowledge, the person responsible for the follow-up can go out and see how the work is performed and whether routines are followed correctly. Many units also raise the questions in staff meetings to discuss how the knowledge can be best utilized in the unit.

Some knowledge may need to be checked through practical exercises. This happens, for example, in connection with fire drills, but can also be used in other contexts. If the purpose of the training has been to change a way of working, it is good to go out and follow up that the new way of working is followed by all employees. It is good to think about what you want to achieve with the training before you start. Also describe what the current situation looks like and why the training is important. Then you have also formulated goals for the training that you can follow up against.

Reflection - web training
Care staff:
- Have you undergone any web training?
- Did it work well?
- Was the training of good quality?
- Does your operation work with recurring web training for your employees?
- Do you usually have to submit course certificates to the employer?
- Is there any other follow-up that you have furthered your education or in some way acquired new knowledge?

Manager, nurse, occupational therapist and physiotherapist:
- Do you have a structure where you use web training as a support to increase competence?
- How do you do knowledge control after completing the training?
- How do you collect and handle course certificates?
- Do you keep track of employees doing the courses at the workplace?
- What courses should all employees have undergone to work in the operation?
- Do you follow up that the employee has understood the course content?
- How often should the training be followed up?
- Who is responsible for following up the respective training?
- Are you missing any course theme?

Resident and relative:
- Have you taken part in any film, web portal or other training aimed at you as a resident or relative?

Erland Olsson
Specialist nurse
Sofrosyne - Better care every day