1.6 Identify how an understanding of poor practices can be applied to own professional practice

This guide will help you answer 1.6 Identify how an understanding of poor practices can be applied to own professional practice.

Applying knowledge of poor practices is key in health and social care. It supports safer, fairer and more effective working. Learning from mistakes—whether personal or seen in others—improves service quality and safeguards both individuals and staff. In this guide, we will cover how to use awareness of poor practices to shape daily working life.

What Are Poor Practices?

Poor practices are actions or omissions that fall below expected professional standards. These can put individuals at risk, damage trust or fail to meet care needs.

Some examples include:

• Breaching confidentiality
• Not treating people with dignity
• Ignoring safety procedures
• Giving inaccurate information
• Failing to record or report concerns
• Using unsafe moving and handling techniques
• Speaking or acting in a discriminatory way
• Neglecting individual needs

When you spot poor practice, whether in yourself or others, it offers a chance to learn and improve.

Recognising the Impact of Poor Practices

Poor practice can harm both individuals and workers. Possible impacts include:

• Emotional distress for individuals
• Loss of dignity or respect
• Physical injury or illness
• Missed opportunities for timely support
• Loss of trust in the service
• Legal outcomes for the organisation
• Staff disciplinary action

By recognising these risks, you can work to prevent similar issues in future.

Learning from Mistakes

Mistakes and poor practices happen for many reasons. Some are caused by lack of skills or knowledge. Others may stem from low staffing, unclear instructions or work pressures. Identifying the cause helps you decide how to prevent similar errors.

To learn from past mistakes:

• Reflect honestly on what went wrong
• Seek advice or supervision if needed
• Make a plan to avoid repeating the error
• Share learning with colleagues if appropriate

Reflection is the process of looking at your own work, thinking about outcomes, and considering how to improve.

Applying Lessons to Daily Practice

Understanding poor practices helps shape safer and more skilled day-to-day work.

Improving Communication

Discussing mistakes with your team builds openness and trust. For example, if poor communication led to a medication error, discussing this helps everyone to be clearer next time.

Good practice includes:

• Checking understanding with individuals
• Using plain language
• Confirming important information
• Seeking support if unsure

Following Policies and Procedures

Workplace rules exist to keep people safe. These include safeguarding, lost property, health and safety and consent. If poor practice involved skipping a step in a policy, commit to following all steps in future.

You must know:

• Where to find up-to-date policies
• Who can support if you do not understand
• Why each step in a procedure matters

Prioritising Person-Centred Care

If poor practice meant needs were ignored, update your own approach to focus on individual wishes, beliefs and preferences. This protects dignity and rights.

Ways to strengthen person-centred care:

• Always ask for individual choices
• Record preferences clearly
• Encourage independence where possible
• Include the individual in their own care planning

Challenging Discrimination

If poor practice in your setting has included discrimination (treating people unfairly due to things like age or disability), raise awareness and adopt inclusive language and behaviours.

You can promote equality by:

• Speaking up if you witness unfair treatment
• Treating everyone with respect
• Checking your own words and actions
• Reporting discriminatory behaviour using correct channels

Safe Moving and Handling

Poor moving and handling practice can cause injuries. Attending moving and handling training, using correct equipment, and not taking shortcuts supports both staff and individual safety.

Steps include:

• Risk assessing every move
• Using agreed aids (hoists, slings, slide sheets)
• Working as a team where needed
• Reviewing techniques as guidance updates

Using Supervision and Feedback

Supervision is a space to discuss practice issues with a manager or mentor. Raise anything you have seen or done that may fall below expected standards. Good managers use this time to guide, support and coach staff.

Take feedback seriously—positive or negative. If feedback points out poor practice, reflect without blame. Instead, make an action plan to improve.

In your professional development records, show how you have responded to feedback. For example:

• “Following feedback on missed documentation, I now double-check all records at the end of each shift.”

Reporting and Whistleblowing

Spotting poor practice in others can feel difficult. If something puts a person at risk, you must report it. Failure to report may make you partly responsible for harm.

Who to report to:

• Line manager
• Safeguarding leads
• Designated safeguarding partner in the organisation

If issues are not resolved, use the organisation’s whistleblowing procedure and speak to regulators if required. Whistleblowing protects individuals when risks are not dealt with.

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 protects workers who speak up in good faith.

Case Examples and Application

Practical examples help show how to use learning about poor practices.

Example 1: Missed Medication

A support worker fails to give medication at the correct time as no one checked the handover notes. The individual becomes unwell.

How to apply learning:

• Always read handover notes
• Double-check medication times
• Record all administered medication accurately
• Communicate clearly with next shift

Example 2: Breach of Confidentiality

A care worker discusses an individual’s health condition with a friend outside work. The information spreads.

Learning steps:

• Never share confidential information, except when required by law or for safeguarding
• Store written information securely
• Avoid discussing individuals in public places or with people not directly involved in their care

Example 3: Poor Moving and Handling

A worker lifts a person without using a slide sheet, causing injury.

Actions for improvement:

• Complete moving and handling training
• Always use required aids
• Request support from colleagues where needed
• Report unsafe systems or lack of equipment

Example 4: Disrespectful Communication

A carer speaks harshly to an individual when under stress. The individual feels humiliated.

Next steps:

• Seek support with stress management
• Practise respectful and patient communication
• Apologise where appropriate
• Use supervision to access further training if frequent problems arise

Tools for Ongoing Improvement

Professional practice develops over time. Use structured tools to support this:

• Reflective diaries—brief notes at the end of the shift listing what went well and what to improve
• Feedback forms—ask colleagues, managers or individuals using services for honest views
• Training logs—regularly update skills with courses and apply learning straight away
• Observation—request to be observed and receive advice on how to work smarter and safer

These tools make learning active and not just a one-off. Each poor practice spotted becomes a prompt for growth.

Role of Legislation and Standards

Professional standards in health and social care are set by laws and codes. Poor practice often breaks these rules.

Laws that protect people in care include:

• Care Act 2014—focuses on wellbeing, safety and rights
• Children Act 2004—protects children and young people
• Data Protection Act 2018—protects personal information
• Equality Act 2010—makes discrimination illegal
• Health and Safety at Work Act 1974—sets out health and safety duties

You must always act within the law, report poor practice and never ignore illegal or dangerous actions.

Confidence and Assertiveness

Using learning from poor practices means speaking up when things are wrong. This can be hard, especially if you feel unsure or fear backlash.

Building confidence helps:

• Attend assertiveness training
• Get support from supervisors or mentors
• Remember that protecting individuals is the priority
• Use evidence and specific examples when raising concerns

Being assertive means standing up for what is right, calmly and clearly, without being aggressive.

Personal and Professional Values

Poor practices often highlight conflicts with values such as:

• Dignity
• Respect
• Compassion
• Rights
• Empowerment

Use these values as a guide. If something feels wrong, ask yourself if it respects the person’s dignity or rights. Let this shape your actions.

Keeping Updated

Poor practice can happen when staff lack up-to-date knowledge. The health and social care field changes quickly, with new guidelines and risks.

Ways to stay current:

• Attend regular training
• Give time to reading care updates
• Discuss new guidance with your team
• Check for changes in legislation affecting your work

Making learning part of your work stops bad habits from developing.

Team Learning and Sharing

Discussing mistakes and learning points as a team builds better practice for all. Team meetings, training sessions or learning networks are all useful.

When sharing:

• Be honest and non-judgemental
• Focus on solutions, not just problems
• Share clear, practical steps for improvement

Collaborative learning helps everyone grow and supports a culture of safety.

Professional Boundaries

Poor practice sometimes arises from unclear boundaries, such as being too familiar or accepting gifts. Understand and apply your organisation’s rules about boundaries.

Applying clear boundaries:

• Respect private space
• Maintain a professional distance
• Avoid relationships that could harm care
• Discuss concerns about boundaries in supervision

Boundaries protect both you and the people you support.

Final Thoughts

Applying what you know about poor practices protects individuals and lifts care quality. Learning from mistakes, reflecting openly, using policies, and sharing feedback are all actions within your control.

Workplace improvement is continual, not a one-off task. By reflecting on poor practices—your own or witnessed—you take responsibility for making health and social care safe, respectful and person-focused. Your actions set an example, raise standards and help others feel safe.