This Foundation Course is intended to support you in your role caring for vulnerable people in a Care Home. It will help you understand the regulations and best practices on how to safely handle, administer, record, store, and dispose of medicines.

Please note: This course does not give you automatic authority to administer medicines. You must first be assessed as competent by your organisation, and follow their policies and guidelines.

The course has the following aims/outcomes & mapping details:
 
Course Aims – The course covers essential areas such as:

• Laws, legislation & medicines,

• Roles & responsibilities of staff,

• Medicine types, routes and how they work,

• Safe administration & management of medicines,

• Record keeping,

• Recognising & dealing with problems.
 
Learning Outcomes – Following successful course completion, learners will be able to:

• Define different medicine categories,

• Describe prescription & labelling requirements,

• Understand the importance of dosage directions,

• List common medicine types & their uses

• Know support levels, role, rights, and responsibilities with medication

• Explain different administration routes

• Safely select, administer, store & dispose of medicines,

• Maintain accurate records,

• Recognise some side-effects & what action to take

• Describe protocols for homely remedies & “when required” medicines.
 
Mapping – The topics covered in this course relate to information in the following official guidance and regulations:

• Health & Social Care Act (Regulated activities) 2014

• The Care Certificate – standard 13.5 includes “Understand Medication & Healthcare Tasks”

• CQC – Key Line of Enquiry S4 (proper and safe use of medicines)

• NICE – Management of Medicines in Care Homes, SC1 (March 2014)

• Qualifications & Credit Framework Unit HSC 3047 – “Support the use of medication in care settings”