Skills for Learning in Care

Assignment Brief

SKI4001 Skills for Learning in Care

As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit a Skills for Learning in Care assignment. Please refer to your Student Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general information on preparing and submitting assignments.

Learning Outcomes:

After completing the module, you should be able to:

1. Identify the skills required within the workplace, and illustrate their use and application, particularly within a management and/or practitioner context.
2. Identify personal qualities and transferable skills necessary for employability and further study and use methods of enquiry to explore personal development opportunities and related issues.
3. Identify, retrieve and evaluate discipline-specific material for a given purpose and use such material appropriately.
4. Demonstrate the ability to communicate discipline-specific information in an appropriate form as specified.

You are required to compile a portfolio of material that highlights your learning and development. Note that you should introduce the portfolio with an overview of your approach and conclude with a summary of the parts.

Task One

Research the topic “Value based Healthcare”. Your research should draw on two recent academic journal articles, two academic text books and two appropriate websites, that must be included in your reference list. Write a summary describing each source and explain why you selected it. You should evaluate each source for currency, scope, credibility and intended audience. To be clear: this task is about identifying sources, reading, selecting and motivating your choice of sources before using the sources to write the essay in task two. You are strongly advised to show your tutor a draft of this task, before you progress to the second task.

Task Two

Using relevant sources, including the ones you have identified in question A, write a 1,500-word essay on the following topic: Discuss the impact of Value-based Healthcare on service users

Task Three

Your task is to develop a Personal Development Plan (PDP) for your program of study. The PDP should be structured as follows:

• Introduction
• Your personal vision
• Your ideal future job role
• A Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats (SWOT) analysis
• Four SMART objectives that directly link to your SWOT analysis. Each objective should therefore be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timed. i.e. SMART.
• An action plan to achieve the objectives
• A short discussion of risks that may affect your action plan, and how you might deal with them, should they arise.
• Conclusion
• Reference list

Sample Answer

Portfolio: Skills for Learning in Care

Introduction

This portfolio has been prepared for the Skills for Learning in Care module. It brings together three linked tasks which demonstrate my learning, research ability, and development planning. Task One reviews and evaluates academic and professional sources about value-based healthcare. Task Two develops an academic essay on the impact of value-based healthcare on service users. Task Three presents a Personal Development Plan (PDP) to support my own growth as a learner and future care professional. Together, these tasks reflect my ability to research, communicate, and plan effectively within a health and social care context.

Task One: Source Review on Value-Based Healthcare

For this task, I identified two recent journal articles, two textbooks, and two websites. Each source is summarised and evaluated for currency, scope, credibility, and intended audience.

Source 1 – Academic Journal

Porter, M.E. & Lee, T.H. (2013) ‘The strategy that will fix health care’, Harvard Business Review, 91(10), pp. 24–34.

This article explains the core principles of value-based healthcare (VBHC), especially the need to shift focus from volume of services to patient outcomes relative to cost. Although published in 2013, it remains a key reference widely cited in VBHC debates. Its scope is global, with strong evidence from U.S. hospitals. The source is credible, as both authors are recognised experts in healthcare strategy. The intended audience is healthcare managers and policymakers. I selected it because it provides the theoretical foundation of VBHC.

Source 2 – Academic Journal

Teisberg, E., Wallace, S. & O’Hara, S. (2020) ‘Defining and implementing value-based health care: a strategic framework’, Academic Medicine, 95(5), pp. 682–685.

This article updates the VBHC framework with practical steps for implementation, including integrated practice units and measuring outcomes. It is very current (2020) and directly relevant to healthcare delivery. The credibility is high, as it is peer-reviewed and written by experts including Teisberg, who co-developed the concept of VBHC. The scope is international, with emphasis on medical education and hospital practice. I selected it for its updated guidance and practical relevance.

Source 3 – Textbook

Gopee, N. & Galloway, J. (2017) Leadership and Management in Healthcare. 3rd edn. London: Sage.

This textbook covers leadership and management theories, linking them to patient-centred care. Its scope is broad but relevant, as value-based healthcare requires strong leadership. The text is reliable, written by established scholars in healthcare education. The intended audience is students and healthcare managers. I selected it to provide a wider management perspective on implementing VBHC in practice.

Task Two: Essay – The Impact of Value-Based Healthcare on Service Users

Introduction

Value-based healthcare (VBHC) is an approach that prioritises patient outcomes relative to the costs of delivering care (Porter & Lee, 2013). Rather than focusing on the number of treatments provided, VBHC asks whether services genuinely improve the health and experience of service users. This essay discusses the impact of VBHC on service users, drawing on academic and professional literature. It considers benefits such as improved outcomes, patient involvement, and affordability, as well as challenges such as equity, measurement, and implementation difficulties.

Improved Patient Outcomes

One of the most significant impacts of VBHC on service users is the improvement in health outcomes. By emphasising results that matter to patients, such as quality of life, recovery time, or ability to return to work, VBHC ensures that care is judged not only by medical processes but by meaningful change for individuals (Teisberg, Wallace & O’Hara, 2020). For example, in integrated care models, teams are organised around specific conditions like diabetes or hip replacements, leading to more personalised and coordinated treatment.

Patient-Centred Care and Empowerment

VBHC encourages greater involvement of service users in decisions about their care. Service users are seen not just as passive recipients but as partners in co-designing pathways (NHS England, 2023). Shared decision-making improves satisfaction and ensures treatments reflect individual preferences. In my view, this is especially important in long-term conditions, where lifestyle changes and self-management are critical. When patients feel empowered, adherence to treatment increases, which improves long-term outcomes.

Affordability and Efficiency

VBHC also benefits service users by aiming to control costs. By reducing unnecessary interventions and focusing on what works, health systems can use resources more efficiently. This is particularly relevant in publicly funded systems such as the NHS, where cost savings can be reinvested in patient care. Ristevski and Chen (2018) argue that health data analytics plays a key role here, as measuring outcomes and comparing costs allows providers to identify wasteful practices.

Health Inequalities and Equity

However, there are also risks. VBHC relies heavily on measuring outcomes, but these may vary according to socio-economic status or existing health inequalities (WHO, 2022). If outcome measures do not consider differences in patient backgrounds, there is a danger that disadvantaged groups may appear to have “poorer outcomes,” leading to unequal funding or access. For service users, this could mean widening gaps in care quality.

Measurement Challenges

Another challenge for service users is the complexity of outcome measurement. While data collection can improve transparency, it may also create burdens. Service users may be asked to complete numerous questionnaires or provide detailed personal data, raising privacy concerns. Furthermore, outcomes such as quality of life can be difficult to quantify accurately (Gopee & Galloway, 2017). If the measures are too narrow, they may not fully reflect patient priorities.

Continued...