Choose content
Foster
To take care of a child, usually for a limited time, without being the child's legal parent.
Healthcare
The activity or business of providing medical services that support physical and mental wellbeing.
Alternative termsHealth carePalliative care
A holistic approach to the prevention and relief of suffering for people with advanced progressive illnesses that emphasizes identification, assessment, and treatment of pain and responsiveness to psychosocial issues.
Religious services
Events or meetings where a person can participate in communal worship.
Residential service
Accommodation that provides in‐house support for personal and social care needs for any groups of service users.
Respite
A short-term placement of a child or adult away from where they usually live in order to give parents or carers a break, for example, as part of a support programme to families, for children with disabilities, or for older people.
Agency staff
An individual employed by an employment agency under a contract of employment by virtue of which the individual may be assigned to work for, and under the direction and supervision of, a person other than the employment agency.
Assistant director of nursing (ADON)
A senior nurse manager that reports to the director of nursing.
Care manager
A senior manager responsible for the care and welfare of service users.
Director of nursing (DON)
A senior nurse manager with overall responsibility for nursing care in a service.
Whole-time equivalent
A numeric value which represents the proportion of full-time staff in a service.
Alternative termsFull-time equivalentHealthcare assistant (HCA)
A specific role in health and social care services which involves assisting with general duties and basic care.
Alternative termsCare assistant