3.1 Identify sources of support and how they can be used for own learning and development

Learning and development is an essential aspect of working in the health and social care sector, so it is important that you are able to identify and access sources of support in this area.

As well as formal training (both in-house and from external providers) there are several other ways that you may can obtain support for your personal development including:

• Your manager
• Your co-workers (especially experienced and senior colleagues)
• Your tutor
• Own research (e.g. books, journals, Internet)
• Standards
• Agreed ways of working (e.g. policies/procedures/protocols)
• Other professionals (e.g. doctors, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, social workers etc.)
• Service users and their family (they will often know more about their conditions than anyone else)