Policy Statement

The Out of Hours On-call service is available to all of staff and service users. It consists of a telephone advice and follow-up service from experienced staff. This provides 24/7 cover for all out-of-hours emergencies, to give support and practical assistance.

 

Staff are allocated to these positions via a rota which is drawn up by the Registered Manager.

 

Scope

 

In order to maintain a 24-hour system of organisation, this procedure sets out the process for accessing a senior staff member On-call out of normal working hours (evenings, weekends, nights and bank holidays), or in the event of a major incident, and/or when the support worker is not available.

 

In order to contact the on-call service the main office telephone number should be used. This phone is redirected to the on-call phone out of office hours, number 074 9526 6189

The Out of Hours On-Call person’s role is primarily one of making decisions and facilitating in difficult circumstances.

 

It is the responsibility of the Out of Hours On-call Person to:

 

• Provide On-call managerial cover

• Ensure staff sickness/absence is covered and recorded

• Be accessible to staff and service users when on call

• Provide advice, management, guidance and support to service users and staff when contacted for assistance

• Follow all BS care policies and procedures by reporting any relevant incident to the on call manages/coordinators

• Be the first contact if a major incident occurs.

• Ensure that all decisions and actions are recorded on the On-call log.

Policy

 

All BS care staff participating in the Out of Hours On-call rota should fully meet the essential criteria for the On-call role.

 

The Person On-call should be contacted by the carer(s) or support worker when they do not feel competent to, or need to consult the manager/coordinator on call.

 

The Out of Hours on Call will be on call from home and able to respond immediately to issues referred to them.

 

It should be noted that under the working time directive time spent on-call or answering calls when on-call at home does not constitute working time.

At the start of an Out of Hours On-call session a handover should be received from office staff in order to ensure the on call person has up to date information on each service user and at the end of an On-call duty there will be a handover period to report issues and concerns to the managers and care coordinators. The managers and/or care coordinators will then follow up any outstanding issues and ensure completion of relevant documentation. Any significant issues that arose should be reported to the Registered Manager.

 

Where the person on call is not a coordinator/manager, there will be a coordinator/manager available to the on call person if further advice needs to be sought.

 

The rota will be drawn up on designated dates each year, and it is mandatory for those rostered to carry out their Out of Hours On-call duties, unless arrangements have been made to the contrary, using the following procedure.

 

Any member of staff who is unable to undertake their rota duty may exchange duties with another designated Out of Hours on Call person. Any such exchange must be approved in advance by a manager. No other member of staff can undertake a duty without prior approval from the Resource Manager.

 

BS care wants to enable staff to be confident about dealing with most situations without recourse to the Out of Hours On-call system. However, there are occasions when it will be necessary to notify the manager about certain situations, or when a carer or member of support staff cannot deal with a situation without obtaining advice or support. In these circumstances Out of Hours On-call must be contacted.

 

All contacts with the Out of Hours On-call service will be noted in the handover.

 

Attendance

 

On Mondays to Fridays the On-call service will operate between 16.30pm each evening until and 06.00am the following morning. Over weekends it will operate from 16.30pm Friday until 06.00am Monday.

 

The person on duty is expected to check the handover at the start of his or her period of duty to ascertain the extent of any issues that may have arisen.

Emergencies

In the case of a genuine emergency, such as where a service user, or member of staff is in danger and those involved are unable to take steps to protect the person, or where someone requires emergency medical assistance, the necessary emergency services should be contacted before the Out of Hours On-call service.

Times and Arrangements

 

The Out of Hours On-call facility operates between 16.30pm and 06.00am on Monday to Friday, and from 16.30pm on Friday. It is available all day on Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays.

 

The Out of Hours On-call Person must ensure that he or she is available to answer and deal with calls at all times throughout their time on duty. However, staff and service users should be mindful that during holiday periods where Out of Hours On-call staff may be handing over to somebody else, there may be a short delay in calls being answered. On-call coordinators/managers must be able to attend an incident should the incident be serious enough to necessitate this, and accordingly they must not be under the influence of alcohol whilst on duty.

 

Serious Events

 

The Out of Hours On-call service must be contacted if any of the following events occurs:

 

• Death of or serious injury to a service user or member of staff

• A serious accident involving service users or staff

• An allegation of abuse

• A service user requires emergency professional medical intervention

• Suspicion that a service user or member of staff has a serious infectious disease

• Fire, flood, gas leak or similar

• A service user or member of staff being taken seriously ill

• A member of staff acting in breach of their contractual obligations, or where there is alleged misconduct.

Allegations against Staff

 

The Out of Hours On-call staff must be contacted if a service user makes an allegation of abuse against a member of staff. In such situations the primary responsibility is to ensure the safety of the service user, and arrangements for doing this will need to be discussed with the Out of Hours On-call service on every such occasion. Where necessary, the On-call senior should contact the on call coordinator/manager or Director to discuss what action should be taken in the event of an allegation.

 

Signed: _______ BA ________
Date: ______1st June 2022____________
Policy review date: _____30

th Jan 2023__________