Developing an effective electronic social care record for care in the home

This paper explores implications for the development of an electronic social care record (ESCR). Six homecare settings were studied over 14 months between 2001 and 2002. Participant observation methods were used with the recipients of homecare (n=7) and in-depth interviews plus participant observation with formal care workers (n=31). Allied healthcare professionals (n=9) and homecare managers (n=5) were interviewed, as were 2 family members. The findings show that effective delivery and receipt of homecare depends upon an efficient and timely flow of factual information, and often tacit knowledge, between the homecare setting, care managers and other interested professionals. In reality, vital tacit knowledge is difficult to express and often not perceived as important by the knowledge holder. In addition, care workers often selectively withhold information from care managers and others. Obvious implications for the development of an ESCR are that key information and knowledge will be omitted from the record.