This page is designed to answer the following questions:
- 1.1d Explain how your previous experiences, attitudes and beliefs may affect the way you work (Care Certificate, Standard 1: Understand your role)
- 7.3c Explain why personal views must not influence an individual’s own choices or decisions (Care Certificate, Standard 7: Privacy and dignity)
- 7.4c Ensure their own personal views do not influence an individual’s own choices or decisions (Care Certificate, Standard 7: Privacy and dignity)
- 7.6b Reflect on how their own personal views could restrict the individual’s ability to actively participate in their care (Care Certificate, Standard 7: Privacy and dignity)
- 1.3 Describe how to ensure that own personal values, attitudes or beliefs do not obstruct the quality of work and working practice (Level 2 Diploma in Care, Personal development in care settings)
- 5.3 Explain why a worker’s personal views should not influence an individual’s choices (Level 2 Diploma in Care, Implement person-centred approaches in care settings)
- 2.3 Describe how own values, belief systems and experiences may affect working practice (Level 3 Diploma in Adult Care, Promote personal development in care settings)
- 1.3 Describe ways to ensure that personal attitudes or beliefs do not obstruct the quality of own work (Level 4 Diploma in Adult Care, Personal development in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings)
NOTE: This page has been quality assured for 2021 as per our Quality Assurance policy.
We are all diverse individuals with different experiences, views, opinions and beliefs. We do not all agree on everything (and we shouldn’t have to) however, at work we should try to remain impartial and not let our attitudes influence the way that we provide support.
Here are some examples of how the beliefs and views of a health and social care worker could influence the support they provide:
- A vegan not wanting to support a client to provide meat-based meals.
- Assuming someone who rarely communicates cannot hear you.
- Not supporting someone to celebrate a religious festival because you have different beliefs.
- Encouraging an individual to participate in a religious festival that is important to you but not them.
- Assuming all individuals with a particular condition behave in the same way.
- Not wanting to take an individual angling because they believe the sport to be cruel
Whilst in a health & social care setting, a care worker should remain professional at all times and not let personal attitudes, belief systems, values or experiences interfere with their responsibilities. They should respect the attitudes and beliefs of others and not force their own opinions on the people that they work with.
Care workers should also try to develop their own self-awareness and contemplate how their own belief-systems were formed. Did they emerge from school, friends or family? Perhaps upbringing or significant life events helped to forge them? Or perhaps they came from media influence? This can be then be extended to consider how other people may have developed their belief systems due to having different experiences. Carrying out this exercise can help you to become more respectful, empathetic and non-judgmental when performing your role.
