What Makes a Good Candidate in Complex Care?

Are you trying to employ complex care staff? Complex care is a highly specialised area within healthcare, demanding excellent personal health and strong support. Making a bad hire could be detrimental.

Healthcare recruitment experts at Cucumber have come together to explore what makes a good candidate in complex care. Read below to discover the required qualities.

What is Complex Care?

Complex care is the healthcare provided by specialised individuals for specific conditions, those who require further help with daily tasks and symptom management.

Often, this includes care for those with disabilities, chronic illnesses, or even disorders. These patients require advanced care and knowledge, and this is where complex care staff are needed.

Essential Skills for a Good Candidate in Complex Care

Skills go beyond qualifications with complex care.

Certain personality attributes are essential to success; emotional intelligence, alongside a great deal of experience, make an exceptional complex care worker.

Strong communication skills also foster an easier work environment. Understanding the needs of clients, as well as collaborating with colleagues, will smooth operations.

Finally, technical competence is required. Technology’s involvement in healthcare is growing rapidly, and it can’t be ignored.

Today, complex care workers must be able to demonstrate relevant experience in handling healthcare technology to navigate mishaps.

Key Personal Qualities to Look For

Compassion and empathy aid in building trust among patients, particularly with patients facing challenges, disabilities or fatal conditions.

Displaying a genuine interest and concern beyond operations is highly valued.

Also, patience and resilience allow workers to overcome stressful and emotionally challenging situations. This way, the likelihood of becoming overwhelmed is reduced.

Training and Qualifications Required

While no immediate qualifications are required for complex care training for carers, like the degree required to become a midwife, training can include gaining relevant certificates or qualifications.

For example, specialised training is available in wound care, palliative care or medication management.

Additionally, training for dementia and its complexities is available. Alongside this, complex workers can receive training on Parkinson’s, catheter care, end-of-life care or diabetes.

Those training can also take on workshops or hands-on tasks to gain practical experience over virtual assignments or books. Both workplaces and recruitment agencies can provide the necessary training to help you take a step towards complex care.

Professional Experience and Specialisms

Complex care requirements vary with each role. Many roles require specialist knowledge, like catheter care, to tend to a patient’s requirements.

Whereas other roles may focus on behavioural management and support. As we mentioned earlier, emotional skills are essential in certain complex care roles.

Regardless of the role, most complex care jobs demand clear communication, calm and responsive attitudes, and compassionate personalities to succeed.

Soft Skills That Add Value

As complex care goes beyond regular demands, certain soft skills are required. A friendly, warm manner makes patients feel safe in a stressful environment. Similarly, friendliness towards co-workers creates a positive work atmosphere and, in turn, an efficient team.

Open-mindedness is also key. Healthcare work involves individuals from many backgrounds, all with different cultural differences.

Therefore, healthcare workers must be aware to treat clients with complete respect throughout their treatment.

Benefits of Being a Complex Care Worker

While the benefits of complex care work vary depending on the specialism, here are some benefits of this highly rewarding career:

• Skill Development – an opportunity to develop knowledge in a specialist area.
• Personal Growth – more opportunities, higher salary, and clear career progression.
• Strong Connections – working one-on-one with patients builds meaningful relationships.

How to Spot a Good Candidate in Complex Care

A good candidate in complex care with exceptional skills and personality will stay calm under pressure, communicate strongly, and display complete compassion towards patients with an empathetic approach.

On top of this, hands-on experience in the required field, updated training, and previous references that suggest a great deal of adaptability can be successful complex care candidates.

During interviews, scenario-centred questions over experience questions will highlight those with greater experience. For example, “How do you respond in X emergency?” will give you a practical answer reflecting their resilience and decision-making skills.

As a bonus, employment red flags to avoid are vague experience or poor references around attitudes towards patients or the field in general.

Hire a Top Complex Care Worker Now!

Are you seeking complex care staff? Leave it to the experts. Explore Cucumber’s complex care staff solutions or post a job on our live job board.

For candidates seeking a challenging yet rewarding career as a complex care worker, get in contact with us today or take a look at our careers page.