Shulammite Emeghara 2536049 Module: LCHS4003 Dr Besty Jose Component 2 INTRODUCTION Mr O’Connor is 91 years old and lives on his own in a bungalow for the elderly. He was recently discharged from hospital with a diagnosis of chronic heart failure. He is visited daily by domiciliary care to remind him of his medication and assist with preparing meals. His daughter also visits him frequently to provide additional care. Mr O’Connor suffers with hearing loss and some cognitive decline due to his age. Therefore communication with him and remembering what he is told can become difficult. When his medication was recently altered there was a mistake made with the information that was recorded for his diuretic. Which caused him to go 2 days without taking his medication leading to him becoming short of breath and swelling in his ankles. I will be discussing three topics within this report, effective communication, administrative skills and record keeping and collaborative working. I will link legislation and theory to how Mr O’Connor is cared for and look at how these errors can be prevented. 1. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IN MR O’CONNORS CARE Communicating effectively with patients is key to providing good quality care. Mr O’Connor has suffered with hearing loss and cognitive decline which can lead to poor communication. If information is not communicated correctly between professionals or to Mr O’Connor and his daughter there could be confusion. Which in this situation led to Mr O’Connor missing his medication. There are many pieces of legislation that apply to communication with Mr O’Connor. One being the Equality Act 2010. The equality act states that individuals should not be discriminated against due to their age or any other protected characteristic. Mr O’Connor is discriminated against due to his age and disability (hearing loss). We must ensure that reasonable adjustments are put in place for Mr O’Connor so that he is able to be included in decisions about his care. This could include ensuring we face Mr O’Connor when speaking to him, allowing him to read our lips. We could sit in front of a window so there is no shadows and he can hear us better. Speaking in short sentences and explaining information to him slowly. His daughter should also be informed of any changes to his care plan as he may struggle to remember information that is shared with him. However Mr O’Connor should still be included in decisions about his care if he has capacity to do so (Equality Act 2010; Gov.uk, 2025). There are many models of communication that can be used when speaking to patients. One is the SOLER model which can stand for: Sit square to the individual Open posture Lean towards the individual Eye contact Relax Using this model would allow Mr O’Connor to feel more comfortable when information is being explained to him and allow him to understand what is being said. If using this technique we may be able to identify that Mr O’Connor does not understand what is being said to him and explain further (Egan, 2019). His daughter should also be informed of any changes to his medication as this can have an effect on his health. Communication with all professionals and family members involved in Mr O’Connors care is essential to avoid any further incidents happening. 2. ADMINISTRATIVE SKILLS AND RECORD KEEPING Administrative skills and record keeping play a huge role in providing safe care to patients. If records are not kept correctly information can become lost or cause confusion to those reading them. Mr O’Connors medication was incorrectly recorded which meant every carer that read his medication chart were reading incorrect information. Records should be accurate and up to date. When recording information about Mr O’Connors care we must follow the Data Protection Act 2018. This piece of legislation states that individuals have the right to keep their data private and it must be kept securely and only be viewed by those who have a right to see that information. All of Mr O’Connors records should be dated and signed and kept securely. If any changes are made to his medication chart it should be recorded that the change has been made and why. Crossed out information should still be legible so that previous entries can be seen (Information Commissioner’s Office, 2024). As mentioned earlier there are other pieces of legislation that relate to record keeping. The Care Act 2014 states that individuals have the right to receive the best possible care from providers. And the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 ensure that all providers of care keep records that are up to date and secure. Record keeping is also mentioned within the codes of conduct for care workers and nurses. By ensuring that records are kept correctly we are keeping Mr O’Connor safe from harm and keeping his information secure. Staff should have good admin skills and follow guidelines that are provided by their employer to ensure that records are kept correctly. This could include checking that information is correct before passing it on to another member of staff. Ensuring that Mr O’Connors information is kept accurate and up to date. 3. COLLABORATIVE WORKING AND MULTI AGENCY PRACTICE Collaborative working allows multiple agencies to work together to provide the best care for individuals. Mr O’Connor is cared for by various professionals and his family. If these do not collaborate and communicate with each other then important information can be lost. As shown in this scenario. To ensure that Mr O’Connor is receiving the best care possible all professionals should work together and share information with one another. Having meetings with all professionals that are involved in his care can allow them to discuss any concerns or updates about Mr O’Connor. By working together and collaborating we can prevent any more medication errors from happening to Mr O’Connor. There are many ways we can ensure that all professionals are collaborating with one another. Having good communication between each other and sharing any information that may benefit Mr O’Connor. All of these factors can cause barriers to collaborative working. Ensuring that all professionals know who they need to communicate with and building good relationships can overcome these barriers. Mr O’Connor and his daughter should be involved in collaborative working as they can provide information that no one else may know about his care. CONCLUSION There are many things that can be done to prevent medication errors from happening. As shown in this scenario there were multiple factors that contributed to Mr O’Connor missing his medication. If all professionals had communicated with each other and ensured that his medication was recorded correctly he would have taken his medication. There are many pieces of legislation and theories that can be applied to this scenario. From communicating with Mr O’Connor using the equality act to ensuring that his records are kept correctly using the Data Protection Act 2018. Collaborative working between all professionals can also help to prevent medication errors from happening. REFERENCES (UWTSD Harvard style) • Care Act 2014. London: The Stationery Office. • Egan, G. (2019) The Skilled Helper: A Problem‑Management and Opportunity‑Development Approach to Helping. 11th edn. Boston: Cengage. • Equality Act 2010. London: The Stationery Office. • Gov.uk (2025) Equality Act 2010: Guidance. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equality‑act‑2010 [Accessed: 18 September 2026]. • Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. London: The Stationery Office. • Information Commissioner’s Office (2024) Guide to the Data Protection Act 2018. Available at: https://ico.org.uk/for‑organisations/guide‑to‑data‑protection/ [Accessed: 18 September 2026]. • NHS Confederation (2024) Multi‑professional and Multi‑agency Working in Health and Care. London: NHS Confederation. • NHS England (2023) Medicines Management in Care Homes and Domiciliary Care. London: NHS England. • Royal College of Nursing (2024) Good Practice in Record Keeping. London: RCN. • Social Care Institute for Excellence (2025) Effective Multi‑agency Working. London: SCIE.