IN THE PRESS

Dr Bob Rankin, who retired from Dundee University last year, has recently launched the Rankein Scale.

And together with Martin Laidlaw – a retired senior manager in further education – and publisher Gillian Nineham, he is now making contact with organisations involved in caring for vulnerable people.

The trio are confident the new tool has the potential for a multitude of applications.

Dr Rankin explained: “I think it has the potential to revolutionise the caring sector.

“The reason behind its development is to try to improve the quality of individuals being recruited to work in the care sector, where there are lots of vulnerable groups of people for whom it can be a challenge to communicate their needs.”

Dr Rankin worked for almost 30 years as a senior lecturer in nurse education.

So he had a particular interest in the relationship between emotional intelligence and the quality of clinical practice.

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN THE CARING SECTOR >>> CAN IT BE TAUGHT?

We may be entitled to expect that everyone working in the caring sector would already possess the necessary skills to be able to demonstrate compassion and empathy towards those receiving care. However, we continue to hear about too many examples of poor attitudes towards some very vulnerable people by a small but significant minority of staff. The fact that some care providers perform better than others suggests that standards can be improved. Clearly there are fundamental conditions that have to be in place including quality leadership, adequate resources, open and respectful communication but the real key to delivering quality person-centred, compassionate care is to have the right staff in place. 

The best organisations will invest time and energy into their recruitment and selection processes and, while there are no guarantees, this is likely to pay dividends. You can also be sure that the best staff will be attracted to the best organisations and will also be more likely to stay. So, what should we be looking for in care staff? Qualities that are often highlighted such as reliability, flexibility, honesty, empathy and respect, tend to be the types of qualities that enable relationships to be formed and trust to be developed. However, how can we be sure that new recruits possess such qualities and what can we do with existing staff who appear to be lacking?

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND CHIPS?

The ability to recognise other peoples emotions is a key feature of our Emotional Intelligence. This article is really interesting and suggests we will have an emotion chip in our devices! For the full story click on the graphic or the text below.

CHIPS WITH YOUR EMOTIONS?

ASSESSMENT TOOL THAT USES EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Imagine a practical online assessment tool that helps employers in the care sector to select staff who can demonstrate compassion and emotional intelligence. Or what about a quick online assessment tool that helps people to secure a valued job in the care sector? The Rankein Scale offers both. Check it out at www.rankeinscale.com

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IS IMPORTANT FOR CARE

Like any meaningful role, caring requires advanced skills, in particular those which enable complex interactions to take place. Most individuals who require care depend on the carer being able to recognise and respond to ever changing needs in a person-centred way. Often there will be barriers to communication and, frequently, there will be emotionally charged situations to manage. Meeting these challenges is only possible when the carer possesses interpersonal skills such as: empathy; genuine positive regard; active listening; emotional dexterity and intrapersonal skills such as: self-awareness; reflection; critical analysis and emotion awareness. A carer who lacks the necessary ‘inter’ and ‘intra’ personal skills‘ will find it very difficult to be receptive and responsive to the subtle needs of the individual. This is particularly pertinent when dealing with vulnerable people who may find it difficult to articulate their needs. ‘Inter’ and ‘intra’ personal skills can be described collectively as ‘Emotional Intelligence’.

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND CARE

Do you have what it takes to work in the caring sector? How would you know? If you are a manageror an employer already working in the caring sector, are you confident in your ability to identify and 
select individuals who do have what it takes? How can you be sure?  Imagine a family member or a close friend was receiving care either in their own home or in a residential setting. What type of person would you trust to take on this responsibility and how can 
you be sure that the person does indeed have the qualities that

CARERS TO SPEND LONGER ON VISITS

New guidance says that visits from carers to older people in their homes in England should last for at least half an hour. In some cases carers are currently only able to spend five minutes on each visit. They make the visits to help these older people with tasks such as washing, dressing, eating and taking their medication. Because of the lack of time the carers have for each visit they often have time to carry out only one or two of these activities.

THE RANKEIN SCALE LAUNCHES

It has taken a bit longer than anticipated but we are absolutely delighted to launch the Rankein Scale. This new and revolutionary assessment will help care based employers,employees and candidates match up. It will help improve the quality of care. The Rankein Scale is a measure of Emotional Intelligence that relates to the caring sector. Unlike most measurement tools which examine general Emotional Intelligence, the Rankein Scale focusses entirely on issues that are specific to caring scenarios.

HELLO FROM THE RANKEIN SCALE

Welcome to the RankeinScale conversation blog. The purpose of our blog is to inform, explore, connect and share best practice in the exciting field of Emotional Intelligence. In particular we will initially focus on the importance of EI in the care, health and education sector. The Rankein partnership is consists of Dr Bob Rankin, Gillian Nineham and Martin Laidlaw. We have developed the scale as a result of Dr Rankin's unique research and acclaimed publications. We intend to launch this new and innovative assessment tool in June this year. Moreover the demand for improved recruitment practices and quality assurance in the care sector is increasing all the time. We believe passionately that a good emotional intelligence score on the Rankeinscale will be of direct benefit to care employers, healthcare training and education institutions. We also know that individuals seeking employment or who want to progress in the care sector will benefit from undertaking this unique tool. Further (and longer) posts will follow and as we set on our journey of improving the quality of care.

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

What is Emotional Intelligence?

Emotional Intelligence is the name given to a collection of capabilities that enable us to recognise and manage emotions in ourselves and in other people. Some of the many capabilities included are: self-awareness self-control, empathy and collaboration.

Can Emotional Intelligence be measured?

Yes, Emotional Intelligence can be measured in a number of ways. There are validated self-reports and tests of ability that have been around since the late 1990s. There are also many tests available that have not been validated so it is worth researching the topic to find the best ones.