Why care providers need to learn from the Oxfam scandal when it comes to recruiting staff

An IT company that specializes in cloud-based recruitment solutions for the care industry deems the revelations regarding child sex scandals within the charitable organization Oxfam as a warning sign for both care providers and the NHS.

Reports of harassment, sexual exploitation, witness intimidation and staff bullying have recently come to light within the organsation, sparking concerns for other services that deal predominantly with vulnerable people and the way that they recruit staff members.

The care industry has a checkered past with regards to reports of neglect, with the most recent scandal involving a care home in Somerset where residents were subjected to horrific abuse at the hands of the male ‘gang’ in charge of running the institution.

Mendip House was a care facility for autistic people and those responsible for providing care threw cake at residents, repeatedly threw them into a swimming pool and forced them to crawl around on all fours.

Novacare | recruit offers care providers and hospitals and intuitive online tool that can help streamline recruitment processes and believes that robust candidate screening is one of the most effective ways to lessen the risk of negligence within the care sector.

Stephen Wilson, Director of novacare | recruit said: “It’s alarming to learn that organisations who have the sole purpose of providing care and support to vulnerable members of society are apathetic when it comes to neglect and mistreatment.

“In order to avoid these discrepancies, the care sector needs to consider how they can improve their recruitment process and separate the high-quality candidates from the less-experienced and unqualified ones.

“Ensuring that meaningful references are obtained is perhaps the most significant thing that companies can do to achieve good candidates, partly because this is a key stage of recruitment that requires input from a third party.

“Our recruitment management system means that reference checking is quicker, allowing care professionals to make informed decisions more efficiently, leading to higher-quality recruiting.”

With a recent study carried out by Xref revealing that 36% of jobseekers in the UK have admitted exaggerating their work experience, the care sector must look for ways to track applicants in a more secure way that adheres to all legal requirements.

For more information about novacare | recruit visit their website at: https://www.nova-care.uk/