How to promote Positive Behaviour
Help provide the right motivation
As carers, we should always be looking to help people to help themselves. Sometimes this is a difficult task especially when the person we’re caring for struggles with understanding the impact of their behaviour. This could be because they have challenging or complex needs that are not being met or perhaps their environment may lack stimulation with restrictive access to the kinds of activities they would like to take part in.
The principle of providing behavioural support (PBS) covers a number of aspects such as:
- Assisting a person to develop personal relationships
- Assessing the reasons why a person behaves the way they do, taking into consideration their personal, mental and physical health, communication skills as well as the patterns of their behaviour
- Methods to de-escalate a situation
- Developing strategies to assist people to better meet their own needs
Perhaps one of the most important aspects of PBS is making sure that your actions and behaviour reflect what you’re asking the person to emulate. Never has the phrase ‘practice what you preach’ been so appropriate!
If an individual has a positive state of mind they will be better able to deal with their circumstances which in turn can help the carer to provide the right assistance. Helping them to understand and modify their behaviour benefits, not just the individual but also the people around them. Also, working with friends and family members to identify potential ‘trigger moments’ helps to reduce instances of inappropriate behaviour.
Caring for people with mental or physical issues is demanding work especially if the individual presents challenging behaviour. Dealing with your patient’s emotions, stress, anxiety or even depression is as important as all the physical aspects so make sure you are up to date with your training in this area!
If you would like to know more about how Flexible Training can help you and your staff with Promoting Positive Behaviour please contact Becky on 01462 222300
