In theory, the work life balance in care work should be good. Many carers work part time or flexible hours, and you can only work when you’re with your clients.
But, in reality, the work life balance for caregivers is sometimes poor. Lots of care workers find that they work longer than their scheduled hours, and they spend a lot of time worrying about their clients and their work even when they’re at home.
In this article, we’ll look at what a work life balance is, the importance of the work life balance in care, and how to get a better work life balance as a carer.
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What is a work life balance?
Your work life balance refers to the amount of time you’re spending on your work life and personal life.
A good work life balance might look different for different people. You might not want to spend an equal amount of time on your professional and personal lives, but it’s important that you feel happy with how your life is structured.
Do you have enough time for family, friends, hobbies, and your work? If so, you’ve probably got a good work life balance.
Ask yourself some questions about your work life balance:
- Do I worry about work when I’m at home?
- Am I missing out on important events or milestones at home because I’m working?
- Do I often work more than my scheduled hours?
- Has it been a while since I’ve spent time with friends or family?
- Am I angry, stressed, or resentful about work? Do I often feel overwhelmed or very tired?
- Do I have nightmares about work, or do I struggle to sleep because I’m thinking about clients or other aspects of my job?
- Do I often need to do personal errands while I’m working, such as making doctor’s appointments or calling my child’s school? Or do I end up taking time off work to do this?
If you’ve answered “yes” to any of these questions, your work life balance could probably use a little work.
The importance of work life balance in care
Whatever your career, it’s important to have a good work life balance. If you have a healthy mixture of time spent working and time spent away from work, you’re more likely to focus and perform well when you are working.
As a care worker, you have a vital job. Whether you work directly with clients and provide personal care or companionship, or you have an admin or management role, you’re supporting some of the most vulnerable people in society.
You might work in a care home or sheltered housing scheme, or provide care in someone’s home. You might support elderly people, or younger people with disabilities. But wherever you work and whoever you support, you’re a lifeline for your service users.
When you’re working, you often carry out important tasks that have serious risks if done wrong. For example, if you make a medication error or lift a client incorrectly, they could become seriously ill or injured.
So it’s important to make sure that you’re able to give your full attention to your job.
If you’re constantly exhausted, worried that you’ve missed things at home, or stressed about your workload, you’re more likely to make mistakes.
And, if you’re overworked, your mental health and physical health can suffer. You might not get enough sleep, miss meals or eat unhealthily, or struggle with anxiety or depression.
Is there a good work life balance in care work?
Being a carer can give you a great work life balance – if you work for the right organisation and have the right schedule.
Some care providers change shifts around regularly, call staff at the last minute to cover, or don’t schedule enough time for care calls. And, if they’re understaffed, carers might work more hours than originally planned. The work life balance for caregivers in these organisations is probably poor.
However, if you work for a care provider that respects your time, understands how long care visits should take, and uses home care software to match staff and visits accurately, the work-life balance in care work can be good.
Of course, care work can be a very varied job. If you’re a live-in carer, for example, you’ll obviously have a different work life balance to someone who works part time in a care home.
Whether you provide domiciliary care or work in a care home, you’ll know that no two days are the same. There will always be busy periods, or times when you worry more about your clients.
How to get a better work life balance
If you think you need to improve your work life balance, there are two places you can make changes: at work and at home.
Think about where the issues are. If you’re regularly working more than your scheduled hours, for example, you’ll need to make changes at work.
However, if all your time at home is spent dealing with housework, managing admin, or doing other stressful tasks, you might feel that you never get to completely switch off. In this situation, you might want to make changes at home to improve your personal life.
Talk to your supervisor or colleagues about how you can get a better work life balance at work. At home, discuss whether your partner or other family members can help in areas that are difficult.
How to improve work life balance in care work
Do you find that your work regularly affects your home life? Perhaps you’re regularly working more than your scheduled hours, or worrying about clients or other aspects of work even when you’re not there.
If so, there are some boundaries you can try to put in place.
- Try to work only your scheduled hours, and take your breaks, even if it’s tempting to work through them.
- Take annual leave
- If you’re a live-in carer, spend time outside of the home to get a good break.
- If you believe a client needs extra support, talk to your employer about reviewing their care plan or updating it in your care planning software.
- Put your phone into Do Not Disturb mode to avoid calls from your employer when you’re not working.
- If you need to check the care roster to find out when your shifts are, set aside a particular time to do it.
- Don’t give your contact details to clients or their family members. If you’ve already added them on social media, consider removing or blocking them.
- Talk to your manager or trusted colleagues about how you’re feeling.
If your organisation doesn’t understand the importance of work life balance in care work, consider finding a new employer. Depending on your location, you may be able to find a new job as a carer quickly, and this could be the quickest way to improve your work life balance.
How to improve work life balance at home
When you get home, you want to switch off and relax for a bit – but it’s not always that easy. You might find that you’re spending all your time doing housework, arranging appointments, and driving your kids around.
Alternatively, your circumstances might have changed, and your personal life could be encroaching on your work time. Perhaps you often need to leave work early to care for a family member, for example, or you need to manage medical appointments.
These issues aren’t always easy to fix, but you may be able to make some changes.
- Outsource tasks if you can. Whether that means getting your shopping delivered, hiring a cleaner or paying someone to mow your lawn, this can give you more time to relax when you’re not working.
- Set aside time for hobbies and spending time with friends. If it’s scheduled in advance, you’re more likely to follow through.
- Don’t overschedule yourself. Make sure that you have time to rest and recharge.
- Make sure that other members of your household are doing their bit. If you live with a partner or family members, do they take an active part in housework, shopping, and general home admin?
- Ask your employer about reducing your hours.
Most importantly, you need to relax and take time for yourself so that you stay healthy.
How to improve work life balance for employees
If you’re an employer, you’ll want to make sure that your staff team have a good work life balance.
Making sure that your care workers have a good work life balance is good for your organisation. It’s one way that you can improve staff retention in health and social care, because carers who are burned out and stressed are more likely to leave.
When you’re looking at how to improve work life balance for employees in your care home or domiciliary care agency, you’ll need to look at how you can respect their boundaries, encourage them to take time off, and make sure they feel valued and happy when they’re working.
How to improve work life balance for employees in care work:
- Make sure that your employees take all of their annual leave. This may help carers who feel that they don’t have enough time to relax and recharge. Make sure that your team understand how to request annual leave, and try to approve it where possible.
- Pay your carers well. Employees who are poorly-paid are more likely to try to pick up extra shifts or find a second job, making their work life balance harder to manage.
- Offer flexible shift patterns where possible. Some employees may need to attend regular medical appointments, drop children at school, or look after family members before coming to work. If possible, offer flexible working patterns to allow a better work life balance for carers.
- Offer support to care workers who are providing end of life care or looking after clients in circumstances that might be particularly challenging. This support could include checking with them regularly, offering extra time off, or signposting them towards an employee assistance programme or counselling.
- Make sure your carers have enough time for care visits. Many carers will work longer hours to ensure their clients have everything they need – but this can make them late for future care calls, or cut into their own free time. Review care plans regularly to make sure that there’s enough time to adequately support each client, and use care management software with smart rostering tools to prepare logical and efficient schedules.
- Avoid calling your care team when they’re not scheduled to work, or making last minute changes to the roster. Allow your employees to have time where they don’t need to think about work, or worry that they might suddenly be needed. If you need extra support at short notice, consider using bank staff.
- Foster a culture of empowerment. If your clients feel happy and heard, then your care staff are more likely to enjoy their time at work.
Conclusion: Work life balance in care work
The work life balance for caregivers is often good – but, of course, many care providers are stretched and understaffed.
So lots of conscientious and caring support workers are overworked and stressed about their clients.
If you feel that your work life balance is poor, you might be able to make changes at home and at work to improve it. If you feel guilty about this, remember that you can only be a good caregiver if you’re well-rested and healthy.
