Safeguarding
Information
Health & Social Care (Applied)
Course Specification |
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Subject Specific Entry Requirements |
Grade 4 in Biology or Combined Science. In addition to the general entrance requirements. |
Costs Associated with this Course |
Exercise books and classroom copies of textbooks are provided though it is useful if students have their own copy of the textbook (approx. £25) and revision guide (£15.50) |
Are you/do you…
- Interested in a career in nursing, midwifery, paramedic, youth work, family support speech and language therapy, primary teaching, social and community work, counselling or other health related employment?
How will you be assessed?
The Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate in Health and Social Care is a full time 2 year course at Level 3 which takes the place of 1 option. It is a practical work related course which includes 360 guided learning hours. You will learn by completing projects and assignments that are closely linked to your chosen work placements.
The course is made up of:
Unit 1 - Building positive relationships in health and social care, Coursework marked internally
Unit 2 - Equality, diversity and rights in health and social care, Written examination, 1.5 hours, re-sit opportunities available.
Unit 3 - Health, safety and security in health and social care, Written examination, 1.5 hours, re-sit opportunities available.
Unit 4 - Anatomy and physiology for health and social care, Written examination, 2 hours, re-sit opportunities available.
Unit 5 – Infection Control, Coursework marked internally
Unit 10 - Nutrition for health, Coursework marked internally
Unit 24 – Public Health, Coursework marked internally
What will I study?
Unit 1 - Building Positive Relationships in Health and Social Care: Professional relationships are paramount to the delivery of safe and effective care and support. An understanding of these relationships and how they are formed is essential if you are considering pursuing a career in the health and social care sector. This unit aims to introduce you to the many different relationships that you will encounter within the Health and Social Care sector, whether with colleagues, senior members of staff, other professionals within the sector and individuals who require care and support. You will apply communication and relationship building skills in a practical way, considering how different factors, including context, can impact on the building of positive relationships. You will also be introduced to the concept of the person-centred approach which will help with their relationship building skills. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 12.
Unit 2 - Equality, Diversity and Rights in Health and Social Care: Everyone is different and everyone has rights. Promoting equality and respecting diversity and rights in health, social care and child care environments is essential in today’s very diverse society. An effective practitioner must be able to provide care that meets the needs of individuals that supports their rights. Many individuals who use health, social care or child care environments can be vulnerable and dependent on others; this means that practitioners’ attitudes, values and prejudices can significantly affect the quality of the care individuals who require care or support experience. This unit will help you to understand the implications of diversity on practice and also the effects of discriminatory practice on individuals who require care or support. You will also gain an appreciation of how legislation and national initiatives can support anti-discriminatory practice. Strategies used to promote equality, respect diversity and support individuals’ rights will be examined. You will develop the ability to recognise both good practice, and discriminatory practice in care situations. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 12.
Unit 3 - Health, Safety and Security in Health and Social Care: What does it mean to be ‘safe’? Safety and being safe is a basic human need. Consciously or subconsciously we all take practical steps to stay safe. All individuals have the right to work in a safe environment and individuals who require care or support also have a right to be safe in health and social care contexts. As a result, there are responsibilities that practitioners must actively promote in order to provide and maintain a safe environment for colleagues and the individuals who require care and support. This unit introduces you to health, safety and security in health and social care. You will acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to equip you in maintaining a safe working environment for themselves, their colleagues and individuals who require care and support. You will learn how legislation, policies and procedures work to reduce risks in health and social care and the consequences of not following them. You also learn how to respond to different incidents and emergencies within health and social care settings. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 12.
Unit 4 - Anatomy and Physiology for Health and Social Care: We eat, we breathe and we control our bodies as well as responding to the external environment; but why and how? This unit will help you to understand why these essential processes are so important in maintaining life. They will learn about the structure and function of not only some of the cells and tissues involved, but how they form organs and body systems that then have to interact to ensure that the body can provide the conditions necessary for thought, co-ordination, movement and growth. This unit aims to introduce you to the basic structure and functions of the body systems involved in everyday activities and maintenance of health, including cardiovascular, respiratory and digestive systems. You will also understand the part played by organs such as the pancreas, liver and kidney. You will investigate the systems and organs involved in detecting and responding to change such as the nervous system as well as the eyes and ears. Unfortunately, things do go wrong and each system has well-known diseases and disorders. Also as individuals grow older, they are likely to be affected by malfunctions as a result of degeneration. Some of these will simply be inconvenient; others will be life changers. You will understand the effects on individuals and what has to be done on a daily basis to enable them to lead as full and independent life as possible. This unit is taught over the 2 years of the course but is externally assessed in Year 13.
Unit 5 – Infection Control: After 18 months of living through a global pandemic we have become used to everyday infection controls, preventing the spread of disease and maintaining levels of hygiene. As a future practitioner in a Health and Social care setting it is important to know how different sectors apply infection control to prevent the wider spread of harmful pathogens and disease that may lead to complications or death. You will learn about sources of infection and modes of transmission, and the effectiveness of legislation in health and social care settings. You will understand the role of health and social care workers in controlling infection, and how procedures and policies can promote good standards of infection control. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 13.
Unit 10 - Nutrition for Health: Eating is a daily activity for most of us. How does what we eat impact our health? What really is healthy eating? How do we promote healthy eating? As future practitioners, it is important to understand the impact of nutrition on wellbeing and health. Rising levels of obesity are leading to increases in heart conditions, diabetes and liver disease. To the NHS, the costs of treating ill-health caused by poor diets are soaring. Many health and social care practitioners are involved in the provision of meals, so it is important students understand and can explain good nutrition. This unit introduces nutritional health and the components of good nutrition. You will have the opportunity to scrutinise different foods, consider their health benefits and investigate how to support other people to follow dietary advice to impact their health and wellbeing. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 13.
Unit 24 – Public Health: Health and wellbeing extends further than the individual and the implication of poor health has wider impacts on a community, area and even the country. So how is public health protected? There are many external factors to good health. Clean water and limiting pollution are just two factors that have an influence on our health. An individual cannot control this so who does? Why is public health important and why do you need to know about it?
Public health is concerned with protecting and improving the health of the population,
rather than focusing on the health of the individual. Through this unit you will develop an understanding of the ways public health and wellbeing is promoted in order to benefit society as a whole and to reduce health inequalities. You will gain an understanding of current public health strategies and initiatives and consider the effectiveness and the implications of health policy for the wider population.
This unit will involve a trip to Leeds Thackray Medical Museum to support the wider depth of learning needed for the coursework task. This unit is taught and assessed in Year 13.
How will this course support my future plans?
This course can be taken alongside, for example:
- A Levels in Biology and Psychology, which could lead to a BSc in Nursing
- A Levels in English and History, which could lead to a BA in Primary Education
- A level Psychology and Sociology, which could lead to a BSc in Social Work
- a Sports qualification, which could lead to a Foundation Degree in Sports Studies and Development
- BTEC nationals in Applied Science and A Level English, which could lead to a BSc in Biomedical Science
Student thoughts:
"I have really enjoyed Health and Social Care in Sixth form, it has been extremely interesting and provided me with great opportunities. It is most definitely the best pathway if you are thinking about doing something in a health and social based setting, it has also increased my knowledge of human anatomy and physiology and helped me to further understand my applied science course as well.”"I have really enjoyed my first year of health and social care I have gained experience with working with young children and developed my knowledge. it has given me an insight into what career path I want to go down, and help to fulfil my ambition as a future nurse."
“I have learnt a lot from my Health and Social Care course and this was a great basis in anatomy and physiology which has helped me greatly in my foundation year for Biomedical Sciences at University”
