Relevant Legislation, Regulations and Codes of Practice

Care workers have got the responsibility to follow the relevant legislation which is in a form of policies and procedures to follow while at the work place so as to protect the employer and the clients.

Health and work safety work act 1974 has got policies and procedures to follow so as to protect others from risks that could happen at work and it has got policies and procedures such as fire evacuation procedures for example the hand massage room was checked so as to make sure that the fire doors are not obstructed and the clients I worked with had received induction and she knew the fire evacuation procedures for example where the fire exits are, where to go for assembly when fire bell goes and many others.

This act also covers risk assessments for example the adult should make sure that the dancing room has the right floors which is non-slip floors so as to prevent risks of hazards , the correct clothing for dancing and the room should not be crowded and no objects on the floor. The act also states about manual handling and the act protects people from being injured from manual handling and instead uses lifting safely instead of manual handling which could be a risk to the client and the employer.

Reporting of injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences regulations 1995 and this act states that if you have an infection which is contagious or an injury then one should be able to use non-verbal communication through a use of letter telling them why you are not coming in, what happened, when it happened , what you did or what you doing to cure it and the date and time of incident so basically this act is just when one can’t come into work because of a certain contagious illness and also recording it in an accident book.

Food hygiene/ storage also is a policy to follow so as to avoid food poisoning to the clients and careers and the staff have got to be trained so as they can know how to handle food, store food safely and also prevent and avoid access of bacteria so as to avoid the risk of food poisoning which could lead to signs such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and other signs which could affect the health of the clients.

COSHH (control of substances hazardous to health) 2002 act says labels should remain on bottles so as to know what to do if an accident happens; it also states the right of storage of materials and chemicals so as to avoid risks due to the hazardous chemicals that could cause risks to the clients and the workers.

Disability /Discrimination act 1995 is an act that protects the disabled and also give them the equal opportunities even if they have to be treated individually and also employers should also supply services that the disabled could also access so that they could also access the services for example having lifts in a building, ramps so that the disabled could be able to access it. The disabled should be not being treated less favorably or failure to have equipment to access services just like every individual in the society.

The act also protects people from being discriminated and also enforces equality hence discouraging bad acts such as race discrimination, age discrimination, sex discrimination and many others. The disability act also states that shops should have equipments / adjustments that disabled people could access for example lifts, words written clearly in big capital letters or Braille for the blind and communication styles such as sign language for the hearing impaired and many other equipments for them to access services too.

The hand massage room should also be accessed for example the room should be able to adapt the needs of the disabled students such as lifts, ramps and also the right equipment for example the right tables and chairs needed for the disabled students. Human rights act 1998 also states that people have rights and if they think that their rights are being violated then they should have a law solution so that they could be protected from others. Human rights include the right to have a safe life for example people who work with vulnerable adults should have CRB check and relevant qualifications.

I am studying at level 2 and training to work safely with this client group, right not to be discriminated again, right to liberty, freedom of expression, right to fair trial, right to enjoy, freedom of speech and many other rights and these rights should be exercised . However, one should not affect others just because he/she has rights because also others have also got the same rights so one should use their rights but also make sure that their rights don’t harm others.

Equal opportunities act 2004 also states that people should have the same rights and also treated equally regardless of their individual needs because some people are more vulnerable than others and that is why some people have to be treated individually with their needs so as to receive equal opportunities with the other individuals in the society for example if the clients were going to have a hand massage and one client has got eczema then he/she has to get a hand cream that suits her type of skin so as for her to get the hand massage as well hence the clients receiving equal opportunities but treated individually.

The equal opportunities states that everyone has the right to have a hand massage even if they have got skin complications for example people with brittle bones and different skin integrities must receive the right and equal care. This act also covers that everyone should have right to join activities for example everyone has the right to dance even thought they are disabled they could either move to the music or get out of their chairs with the help of crutches and people who can’t get out their chairs can also participate in this activity by joining and listening to music hence enjoying the social occasion.

The care standard act 2002 also states that the care workers have got the responsibility of following policies and procedures of the work placement and also the codes of practice so as for them to know how to treat the clients and their fellow colleagues. The act also states that the staff (care workers) has got to be trained and CRB checked so as to know their history life and to also make sure that they are suitable to be care workers.

This cat also states that the care workers have got to be ISA registered and also allows the staff to complain and the employers have got to check the complaints of the staff and adjust them fairly so that the staff and the care workers are protected from harm. This act also states that the clients must be respected for example if any client didn’t want hand massage then they should not have it.

This act also covers the dignity of the clients for example clients who are going to swim should be able to be given individual rooms so as to protect their dignity, swimming pools should also have the right access for example hoists, steps and the ramps so that they could enjoy their swimming without any disturbances. The codes of practice are linked to the legislation, policies and procedures and they should always be followed by the staff so as to improve on the tandards of professional conduct and practice required for the staff. The adult should always protect the rights and promote the interests of service users and care workers for example treating each person as an individual and an adult should also strive to establish and maintain the trust and confidence of service users and care workers for example being honest and trust worthy to clients.

An adult should also promote the independence of service users while protecting them from as far as possible from danger or harm for example promoting the independence of service users and assisting them understand and exercise their rights, an adult should also respect the rights of the service users whilst seeking to ensure that their behavior does not harm themselves or other people.