Body map tracking is an important way to keep an eye on clients’ health conditions and injuries.
As a care provider, you’ll probably use body maps when supporting service users, allowing you to see the progression of health conditions and injuries. Whether you use paper or digital body map tracking, you’ll quickly see the benefits of body maps when caring for clients.
In this article, we’ll explain what a body map is and why it’s used, the importance of body maps, and how care management software can help with body mapping.
Table of Contents
What is a body map?
A body map is a tool that helps you keep track of injuries, rashes, pain, or other areas of concern in your client’s body.
It will usually look like an outline of a body or a body part (such as a hand or leg). A carer or other healthcare professional will mark the location of the injury, rash, area of pain, or another concerning symptom.
If a service user has an injury or localised health concern, it can sometimes be hard to remember the exact location and size of the issue. If your client sees multiple carers, or has a rapidly-progressing condition, it might be difficult to keep track of their health. That’s where you can see the benefits of body maps in care.
A body map should include, at minimum:
- A new entry for each care visit or incident
- The location and description of the injury, pain, or health concern
- The date of each entry
- The name of the person making the entry
Depending on your organisation’s policies, you might do body map tracking using paper body maps or a digital solution.
What is a body map used for?
Body maps in care are usually used to record details of injuries, rashes, painful areas, or other health concerns on a client’s body.
They’re often used to help health and social care professionals track the progression of a health condition, or to remind or alert care workers to concerns about a client’s health.
For example, carers might use body map tracking to see whether a rash is spreading, or to remind themselves and colleagues about areas of pain. In these cases, body maps should be completed at each care visit to ensure that the care provider has the most up-to-date information about the service user’s health.
However, you might also need to use a body map as part of:
- Incident reporting, if a client has sustained an injury and you need to document where exactly it is.
- Medication management and eMAR, reminding care workers where topical medication should be applied, for example.
- Safeguarding, if you have concerns that a service user is being physically abused, self-harming, or experiencing neglect.
- Reablement, when a client is recovering from an injury or health condition. You can use them to record increased mobility, recovering wounds and reduced pain, for example.
Body map tracking isn’t just for social care providers, though. Body maps are also used in hospitals or other healthcare environments, and they’re often used in medical research and studies.
What are the benefits of body maps?
The importance of body maps for care homes and domiciliary care is clear. They’re a quick visual tool that allows a care worker to see areas of concern on a client’s body.
Body maps in care can help document rapidly-changing care needs
Your client’s care plan might explain their general condition and care needs, but the care planning process often moves slowly. While service users should all have regular care plan reviews, it’s not practical to do this every time there’s a minor change in health or small injury.
Instead, body map tracking can allow care workers to note down new illnesses and injuries, so that they have a written record of conditions where clients may need extra support.
Body map tracking can help pick up on changing health conditions
As a care provider, many of your clients will have complex health conditions. Picking up on new symptoms quickly can be critical, so that you can help the service user get the medical help they need.
Body maps can help care workers spot and track new symptoms, such as rashes, areas of pain, or potential pressure sores.
Even if your client is already under the care of a consultant or specialist, body map tracking can help you alert their healthcare team if you notice anything unexpected or concerning.
Additionally, if your client is recovering from an illness or injury, body maps in care can help you track whether their recovery is progressing as expected.
Body maps can help spot signs of abuse
Unfortunately, vulnerable people who need care have a higher risk of abuse and neglect. This is the case whether they live in the community or in a care facility. They may be abused by a family member, partner, neighbour, or even a care worker.
Body map tracking can help care providers notice patterns of injuries, and take action if they believe that a service user is being abused. For example, repeated unexplained bruising could be a sign of physical abuse.
Body maps in care can help carers communicate
Some of your clients may have communication difficulties. They might not be able to tell care workers where they feel pain, or may not remember that they have a new rash or injury.
In these cases, body map tracking is a crucial way to communicate with the rest of your client’s care team, especially if you provide home care and don’t have regular handovers to other carers.
Even if the service user can communicate easily, having a written record of their condition is valuable. It means that care workers are reminded of the health concern every time they make a care visit, and can make notes for their colleagues.
Body map tracking can help evidence good care
As all care providers know, it isn’t enough to merely provide good care for your clients. You also need to have records of what you’ve done – both so that you can survive inspections, and also so that you can cover yourself in the event of any complaints, incidents and investigations.
Care home software can help you evidence a lot of the care you provide for your clients. You need to make sure that you have written evidence where possible, so that you can refer back and prove the good work you and your care team have done. Body map tracking is part of this – it proves that you’ve noticed injuries or progressing health conditions, and can allow care workers to record the actions they’ve taken to support the client.
Paper body maps vs digital body maps – which is better?
So now you understand the importance of body maps in care, how should you implement them in your work?
If you don’t already use body map tracking for your clients, you may find that you’re struggling to decide the merits of paper body maps vs digital body maps.
How can paper body maps help support clients?
Paper body maps are just what they sound like – printed sheets containing an image of a body or body part. Care workers should specify where the concern is, note any actions taken, and date the body map.
The benefits of paper body maps can include:
- Very little training is needed to use them.
- Care workers don’t need to download any new software or have company-provided devices.
- Organisations don’t need to pay for a subscription to a digital body map option.
However, there are some disadvantages to paper body maps in care, as well. For example, they’re less secure than digital solutions, and reading written handwriting might be challenging. Paper copies are also at more risk of getting lost, destroyed, or edited.
How can care management software help with body mapping?
Care management software can offer digital body maps for care homes and domiciliary care. If your organisation uses digital body map tracking, you’ll notice there are some advantages over paper body mapping.
Advantages of digital body maps include:
- Improved security compared to paper body map tracking – only team members with the appropriate permissions can access the body maps.
- Allowing staff members in multiple locations to access the body map, rather than relying on one paper copy.
- Immediate records of who updated the body map and when, providing accountability.
- No worries about understanding challenging handwriting.
- No worries about paper copies being tampered with, lost, or destroyed.
- Reducing the amount of paper that needs to be used – and safely stored.
Your care team may need some training on using the care management software, but once this is done, using digital body map tracking should be more efficient and secure – allowing your carers to spend more time providing great care for your clients.
Key body mapping tips
If you’re new to using body maps, or want to make sure that your organisation is following best practices, we’ve put together our top body mapping tips.
- Note down all marks and concerns, no matter how small
- Make sure to write down a description of the injury or condition, actions taken and further information about the health concern
- Include the date, time, and name of the staff member who completed the chart
- Start a new body map for each care visit to help keep track of the condition’s progression
- Use separate body maps for health concerns and safeguarding concerns
- Body map tracking is part of a client’s confidential health information – keep body maps private and only share them with healthcare professionals who need access
Article by:
Jessica Slattery, Digital Social Care Expert @ PASS
Jess and her team have worked with more than 1,200 social care businesses, providing expert advice on Digital Social Care Record (DSCR) systems, resulting in thousands of hours saved, improved CQC ratings, and better quality of care for the people they care about.
