Significance of Health and Social Care Sector: A Perspective on NHS

This report discusses the significance of the health and social care sector through the perspective of various authors. It also examines the structure, culture, and function of the NHS. Career prospects in the sector are explored as well.

INDIVIDUAL
REPORT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAINBODY...................................................................................................................................3
Literature review..........................................................................................................................3
Career prospect in social and healthcare.....................................................................................5
Examine the structure, culture and function of an organisation..................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Health care is the medical treatment that is given to cure ill health and other serious
condition in health care centres, hospitals and community. While social care is the type of care
and support that provides to vulnerable people or specially in the community. The main goal of
the social care sector is to offer support along with daily living activities, maintain independence
and social interaction as well as protects them from social evils like vulnerable situations. While
health care sector’s goal is to offer best quality heath care service to the people and improves
their living age. Health care and social care sector generally works in collaboration to gives high
quality health care and social care services to the people (Wanyonyi, 2019). To understand social
and health care sector has an example of NHS. It is a headquartered in UK and influences dual
integration of health and social care services. In this report will discuss about significance of
health and social care sector through wide number of authors perspective. then this report will
discuss about organization’ structure, culture, functions and stakeholder analysis by the support
of NHS.
MAINBODY
Literature review
According to Allsop, (2018) health and social care sector is most emerging business
among others because it provides social care and health care services to the people effectively.
Heath and social care sector comprise any company that offers support to public such as dentists,
hospitals and specialist provides different supports like physiotherapy while social care supports
such as nurseries, NGO’s, nursing homes and advanced caring. Health and social care sector is
the need of the world because this system provides nurturing and supports to bring smiles on
millions of families faces. So, it might impossible to imaging world in the absence of social and
health care sector. Health and social care are also known as system because both works in a
collaboration for example health and social care is a health care organization structure that
combines both public and private sector. Whereas healthcare access on offering medical care to
group of people or individuals and deals with physical and mental disability by treating them
effectively. This sector provides huge contribution to maintain welfare of human being.
Generally, health care system is classified into three subsectors such as hospital care, primary

care and public health. Hospital care is further subclassified into two type cares such as acute
care and chronic care. Acute care includes medical specialities on the other hand chronic care
gives during serious case or life-threatening events such as psychiatric care and nursing care.
Primary care is the basic medical treatment or non-hospital care wherein includes family
practitioners, home nursing, dentists, therapist, pharmacy and others. the main focus of such care
is to offer best medical care in such practice. Public care is one of the main discussion issues for
the welfare of worldwide population. This sector is mainly dealing with preventive medicines
and such specified areas which are not related with traditional health acer services like water
supplies, sewage as well as food hygiene.
As illustrated by Cavalieri and et.al., (2018) social care is not only deal with regular activities of
human being such as personal hygiene maintenance, feeding but also comprises other activities
like maintain personal independence, promotes social interaction, protect people from vulnerable
condition and others. social care is generally based on four pillars such as social work, personal
care, protection and social supports. Such care is funded by social care organization and
philanthropists. Social worker plays efficient role in the social care sector such it resolves all
issues related to social and personal care. the main goal of the social workers is to offers high
quality care services to the people. Social care and healthcare systems are one of the best systems
because their cooperative works keeps society in a better place. Social and health care system is
known as complex system because each system posses’ wide range of services for example
health care system provides clinical and non-clinical services to the people according their
disease state. As same concept is implemented for the social care system that also offer wide
range of services like reduction of poverty, support to vulnerable child, financial supports and
others.
However, some Conner, (2017) have highlighted about social care sector in their research paper
that this sector have wide range of employment opportunities such as counselling, childcare,
child protection, community work and day care, occupational therapy, psychology, residential
care, youth community work and others. The main goal of the sector is to eradicate all social
evils from the society and maintains wellbeing of individuals by offering effective services to the
customer. The major issue of social care system is that it is not funded by government so it’s
staff members unable to offer such quality services which they want to offer. So, social care

sector works with health care system so that it gets funds on time to offer better social services.
When health and social care works in collaboration then they follow all ethical rules related to
social and health care system. In such sector health and social care providers plays efficient role
such they offer services to the people or patient as per their needs so that they become eligible to
live their life independently. For example, social care workers provide support to the people such
as physical and emotional. The major goal of the social workers is to support people to live their
life happily instead of their disabilities. Health and social care workers are important for the
society because there are various situation whereas needs of such workers for example there are
various people faces challenges of old age that state requires high support of social workers in
the from of emotional and physical. Some people with physical disabilities have major
independence issues and feels themselves socially isolated. This situation is too terrible for the
society because such people takes wrong step for their life. So, in this situation requires more
supports of family or such person who understand their feelings and influence them to work hard
instead to demotivate them that they cannot do anything. In other case whereas people suffer
from life-threatening events at earlier age or old age but such people requires more moral
supports and better health care treatment. Thus, social and health care sector posses’ important
position in the world.
Career prospect in social and healthcare
Health and social care sector is broad sector so it have wide number of job opportunities
such as adult nurse, care workers, counsellor, occupational therapist, social workers, youth
workers, community development workers and others. This sector keeps both level job such as
graduate and non-graduate level. For example, if a person has qualification in the health and
social care field then they are eligible to take job opportunities in various field such as nursing,
health therapies, education teaching, trainer in healthcare department, charity officer, health
administration and others (Cook and Santos, 2016). If a person does not have any qualification
but wants to offer it’s services in the health and social care sector then they also have job
opportunities such as social work assistant, therapy assistant, medical technician and health care
assistant. Thus, if the people have plan to make career in this sector then have wide opportunities
for employment. Currently multiple countries governments have invested huge capital to expand
this sector in wider contexts so that health professionals offers their services precisely.

Examine the structure, culture and function of an organisation
National Health Service (NHS) is publicly funded healthcare and social care system which is
located in UK. This organization are subdivided itself into three division such as NHS England,
NHS Scotland, HSC Northern Ireland and NHS Wales etc. are operated by UK’s government.
NHS used to follow tripartite system based on the services such as hospital services, primary
care and community services. NHS divides hospital services accordingly regional hospitals board
to take charge of administration effectively. While primary care comprises GPs, dentists and
opticians who offers their services as independent contractor instead of salaried staff of
government. Community service contains maternity, child welfare, vaccination as well as
ambulance services. this structure used to follow by NHS in 1962 but later on it has changed it’s
organization structure because poorer infants morality rate was increasing while life expectancies
were decreasing. NHS implements Health and Social care Act in 2012 that led wide structure of
NHS (Cummins, 2018). Now NHS has classified into series of companies which works at local
and national level. Current structure of NHS is subdivided into four divisions such as department
of health that government department which is responsible for funding. NHS England is another
segment of the NHS that is considered umbrella body because it oversees healthcare. However, it
is independent body whereas Department for Health cannot control on it’s functions. While
clinical Commission Group is operated by GPs, nurse, consultant who focuses on health needs
and fulfil them by offering high quality services. This division is responsible for generating
funds in the NHS. NHS Foundation Trusts offers different type services like hospital, ambulance,
mental health, primary care services and social care.
NHS has implemented Handy’s organizational culture within organization. Handy model is a
organization culture model that is proposed by Charley Handy in 1932. This model is further
classified into four type of organization cultures such as power culture, task culture, personal
culture and role culture. NHS has implemented power culture on it’s organization so that limited
number of people have power to take decision in critical situations. Such people who empowers
due to designated position delegates roles and responsibilities between healthcare staff so that all
operations of NHS are performed effectively within workplace. Task culture also follows by
NHS within workplace because it supports company to align it’s staff precisely. In this culture all
staff members are works in team but perform different tasks and encourages each other to give

the best performance. This culture follows by the national Trust Foundation. NHS always
focuses on it’s staff members and gives them values by meeting their needs regrading salary and
workplace. Such culture is known as personal culture that practices by NHS England whereas
employees work independently within workplace and offers high quality services to the people.
While manager of the NHS England provides good working environment and place and involves
them in decision-making process. Thus, it makes them feel valuable for the company. Role
culture is quite effective culture of Handy’s model because management delegates roles and
responsibilities among staff members as per their specialization, educational qualification as well
as interest (Heath-Kelly and Strausz, 2019). This culture is follows by NHS Scotland and
empowers individuals accordingly their responsibilities. Thus, NHS follows different type of
culture to manage it’s staff and operations effectively within company.
NHS perform various functions through it’s divisions such as All division offers it’s different
services but work in collaboration for example NHS England offers majority of healthcare
services like patient care, long-term healthcare, ophthalmology and dentistry. In this company
healthcare professionals takes only prescription charge from patients to run it’s company
effectively. It provides primary care and long-term care services to the people accordingly their
disease state or health state. While NHS Scotland is one of main system among four which also
offers NHS services in UK (Glasby, 2017). It offers it’s services among 14 territorial place and
seven non-geographical health board. This organization gives comprehensive healthcare services
without taking any fee from patients and generally funded through taxation. There are several
values of NHS Scotland such as care and compassion, dignity and respect, honesty and
responsibility as well as quality and teamwork that are strictly maintain by health and social care
professionals while offering their services to the people. HSC Northern Ireland is also one of the
main health care system that is funded by publicly. It offers integrated services such healthcare
and social care to the people. This organization provides social care services like residential
stays, personal home and others to those people who live their life on roads and also supports
such people who are independent but does not have source of money (Oderanti and Li, 2018). In
such situation it’s workers offers financial support to such people so that they can earn money
and redeem their lifestyle in the society. The main goal of the HSC Northern Ireland is to
eradicate poverty, illiteracy, gender inequality and unemployment rate etc from the society which
helps all people to live their life happily and feels socially connected. NHS Wales is one of the

major healthcare system among others because it offers clinical services to the people such as
open hurt surgery, accident, emergency treatment and end-life of threatening events, smoking
cessation and others.
Relationship between stakeholders and NHS
NHS is publicly funded organization that offers wide range of services through it’s
divisions. NHS has two type stakeholder’s internal stakeholder and external stakeholders.
Internal stakeholders of NHS are director of public health, trustees, board committee members,
public health strategies, director of nursing, CCG, health professionals, social care workers,
donors and others. While external stakeholders are community partners, service users and others
that impacts on organization performance (Lee and Titchener, 2017). To analyse relation of
stakeholders with NHS applies stakeholder mapping. It is classified into four segments such as:
 Keep satisfied: It is one of the main segments in the stakeholder mapping that denotes
NHS keeps satisfied service users by offering best quality health and social care services.
in addition company always focuses on it’s staff members and maintains their wellbeing
by providing workplace safety and refreshment.
 Manage closely: Whatever issues like serious accidents, life-threatening events and
others then whole NHS divisions are work in a team to manage all operations precisely.
 Monitor: In the NHS, leader and management works together to take effective decision
related employees working and organization performance so that it achieves all goals
within timeframe. Leaders personally monitor individual’s performance while dealing
with tasks within workplace and informs managers time to time (Mainey, 2020).
 Keep informed: HSC Ireland is most important division among others because it gives
huge contribution to keep informed people about emergency services and other emerging
changes so that other divisions of NHS take effective action on them. Such stakeholders
are act as defender for the NHS (Thigpen and Handy, 2018).
From above discussion can be analysed that NHS keeps close relation with it’s both
internal and external stakeholders.

CONCLUSION
It has been summarized about health and social care sector and it’s significance for the
society through the viewpoints of many authors. this report provided brief information about
NHS, it’s culture, function and structure. NHS used Handy’s cultural model to maintain it’s staff,
function and image of the company. Organization has followed hierarchical organization
structure on it’s company and empowered people accordingly their designated post. NHS is
divided into four division and each division offers different services across the UK. Stakeholders
Mapping model has used to analyse relationship between NHS and stakeholders whereas
evaluated that it kept close relationship with it’s stakeholders at the workplace.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Allsop, J., 2018. Health policy and the NHS: towards 2000. Routledge.
Cavalieri, M and et.al., 2018. Does the extent of per case payment system affect hospital
efficiency? Evidence from the Italian NHS. Public Finance Review, 46(1), pp.117-149.
Conner, A., 2017. A nursing-focused study of the permeation of top-down patient safety
initiatives into the organisational culture in an NHS Trust (Doctoral dissertation,
Northumbria University).
Cook, J. and Santos, P., 2016. Three phases of mobile learning state of the art and case of mobile
help seeking tool for the health care sector. In Mobile learning design (pp. 315-333).
Springer, Singapore.
Cummins, I., 2018. The impact of austerity on mental health service provision: A UK
perspective. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(6),
p.1145.
Glasby, J., 2017. Understanding health and social care. Policy Press.
Heath-Kelly, C. and Strausz, E., 2019. The banality of counterterrorism “after, after 9/11”?
Perspectives on the Prevent duty from the UK health care sector. Critical studies on
terrorism, 12(1), pp.89-109.
Lee, G.A. and Titchener, K., 2017. The Guy’s and St Thomas’s NHS Foundation Trust@ home
service: an overview of a new service. London journal of primary care, 9(2), pp.18-22.
Mainey, C.P., 2020. Statistical methods for NHS incident reporting data (Doctoral dissertation,
UCL (University College London)).
Oderanti, F.O. and Li, F., 2018. Commercialization of eHealth innovations in the market of the
UK healthcare sector: A framework for a sustainable business model. Psychology &
Marketing, 35(2), pp.120-137.
Thigpen, C. and Handy, S., 2018. Driver's licensing delay: A retrospective case study of the
impact of attitudes, parental and social influences, and intergenerational
differences. Transportation research part A: policy and practice, 111, pp.24-40.
Wanyonyi, A.W., 2019. A Systematic Review of Structure, Culture, and Demography of New
Public Management (NPM) in the Developing Countries.