Vulnerable Persons: Care Interventions and Safeguarding Legislation

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Assignment
Title: Vulnerable Persons
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Anglia Ruskin University

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Introduction
A vulnerable person or adult may be defined as someone who is unable to protect himself from
the harm, and is unable to care for himself due to illness, age or other reasons (Department of
Social Services, 2014). The report reviews the two care interventions: Making Safeguarding
Personal and Advocacy, which may be applied to the case study of George. The work also
illustrates the knowledge of relevant safeguarding legislations.
Safeguarding
Safeguarding the Adults refers to the process of protecting the rights of a person to live in a safe
environment free from neglect and abuse. As per the recommendations of the Care Act 2014, the
local Authorities should enquire in case they feel that an adult is being abused or neglected. The
enquiry may confirm whether the person needs immediate action to be taken or not. It also
directs who will be the care provider. It may require setting up of a safeguarding board and
arrangements of independent advocates in assisting the adult at risk. It requires cooperating with
all the care providers to protect the adult. Safeguarding ensures protection of adults to reduce
their risk of abuse and prevent harm. The adults are provided with adequate control of their life
letting them choose the extent of interference by the care providers.
The Change
In 2012, ‘A guide for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in General Practice’ was
published for the first time. Since then, the legislation has encountered several changes in the
safeguarding practice. The intervention was first used to ‘safeguard the children’ where only few
parts of the legislation involved adult protection. However, now it has transformed to safeguard
the people of all the age groups. The Social Service and Well Being Act (2014), came in effect in
2016 with many changes adding the adults into the legislation (Farr, Davies and Blackstock,
2016). Local Safeguarding Boards also got transformed into Regional and National Safeguarding
Boards. Now Adult Safeguarding has become an essential priority. It has become a duty for these
Boards to report about the adults who are at risk of being vulnerable.

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An adult ‘at risk’ may be a person who is more than 18 years of age; and who may not be
capable of protecting himself from the abuse and exploitation. He may be the one who is in need
of the care services due to illness, disability, mental retardation, or age related issues
(Department of Social Services, 2014).
First Intervention- Making Safeguarding Personal
The approach of making safeguarding personal refers to a personalized way of safeguarding
‘with’ the people, helping the people in achieving the improvements in their lives, utilizing their
social work skills and acknowledging the difference made in their lives. The people suffering
from dementia may be highly vulnerable (Social Care Institute for Excellence [SCIE], 2019).
Their early symptoms may adversely affect the reasoning ability and communication.
Safeguarding for a dementia person may involve treating him with dignity, protecting him from
the abuse of outside community and maintaining his human rights (Badenoch, 2016). The
approach should be more people centered. Instead of focusing on psychotic activities in process,
we should focus on his needs to keep him safe from harm and to manage risk in his life.
Relation to the Legislation
According to safeguarding legislation, the care providers, the organizations and adult
safeguarding boards are given certain priorities and responsibilities under the Care and Support
Statutory Guidance 2017. Relevant laws in this regard are Mental Capacity Act (2005), Human
Rights Act (1998) and Care Act (2014) (Dementia Advocacy and Support Network [DASN],
2015). This care intervention involves the initiatives necessary to develop Sustainability and
Transformation Plans (STPs) and Accountable Care Systems (ACSs). The theme includes
commissioners and providers collaborating to facilitate best practices, a holistic emphasis on
safety, health and well being, and multiple sectors working together to deliver safe health
services (Department of Health and Human Services [DHHS], 2018). The effectiveness of the
intervention is evaluated by Care Quality Commission (CQC) and asserted by assessment of
safety, responsiveness, being well-led, effectiveness and care (Association of Directors of Adult
Social Services [ADASS], 2018).
Second Intervention- Advocacy