Care workers get practical tips on caring with free app

The Keys to Care app which is a tool for care workers, giving tips and guidance on issues such as dementia care, continence care and end of life care, has been launched by the Relatives & Residents Association.

The Keys to Care app (#keystocare) is funded by Comic Relief and the Civil Service Insurance Society (CSIS) and is also available as 12 laminated cards which fit onto a keyring.

The innovative resource has been developed as a direct response to feedback the Relatives & Residents Association (R&RA) has received from people living and working in care homes.

The R&RA found care workers were in need of easily accessible training support, particularly in residential care but also, increasingly, in home settings.

Judy Downey, chair of R&RA said: “We are very proud to launch the Keys to Care app and believe it will provide the essential backup to the kind of care that older people across the country should expect and they and their families should demand.

“The Keys give confidence to carers in the importance of their role in the lives of the people they care for.”

Andrea Sutcliffe, chief inspector of adult social care at the CQC (Care Quality Commission) congratulated the R&RA “for their commitment to achieving improvements in care” and thanked them for “their gift to the sector”, saying: “We are often asked how services can improve and one thing I say is ‘use what works’. The Keys to Care app will help care workers do just that in such an easy, accessible way which will be an enormous benefit for people using services. I hope the Keys to Care App is a great success.”

Sharon Allen, chief executive of Skills for Care called the Keys a “brilliant idea and so well executed”.

The Keys cover 12 topics. These are The Care Plan, Care at Night, Continence Care, Daily Life, Dementia, Eating & Drinking, Emergencies, End of Life Care, Family & Friends, Listening & Talking, Mouth & Teeth Care and Privacy & Choice.

In addition, each of the 12 topics links directly to further information that details regulations, research findings and good practice examples.

Barbara Crossman, Royal Hospital Chelsea senior care assistant, has found they are “good for reminding people what they should be doing, particularly for new and agency staff. It's a good way to find out about the areas you don't usually work in, such as End of Life Care”.

To download the Keys to Care app, Android users can search “Keys to Care”, using the quote marks. For iPhone users, search Keys to Care in the App Store or in iTunes.

The Keys to Care app also enables users to link to the latest relevant news, to have the opportunity to connect with other users via Twitter, and to connect with The Relatives & Residents Association and its Helpline services.

The app and its accompanying laminated set of cards was created using the experience of people who live and work in residential care homes.

For further information about the Keys to Care app or to order physical copies of the Keys to Care laminated pack contact The Relatives & Residents Association: Email: info@relres.org or call 020 7359 8148.