Undergraduate

Managing care

On this page

• What you will study
• Entry
• If you have a disability or additional requirement
• Study materials
• Teaching and assessment
• Students also studied
• Future availability

Managing care is for people who have – or would like to learn about – frontline management roles in a wide range of health and social care settings. It provides the knowledge, skills and analytical tools needed to become an effective manager who is able to use evidence-based strategies for good outcomes for service users. The course provides an overview of the organisational, legal and policy contexts within which managers are operating, and examines in particular the impact of working with partners in order to integrate health and social care provision, exploring the implications for managers. You are encouraged throughout the course to apply your learning to your own experience.

Course facts

Register for the course

This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees and financial support may vary by country.

What you will study

There are many challenges for managers in the current contexts of changing and expanding provision, governmental requirements for integrated partnership working that cross traditional health and social care organisational boundaries, and emphasis on best value and quality. This course will help you to get to grips with this changing world, to improve your knowledge and skills and to understand what makes an effective manager. It will help managers when they are using electronic records and other information technology.

In Scotland, successful completion of this course, together with a relevant professional qualification, meets the registration requirements for registered managers in Health and Social Care. See the Scottish Social Services Council website for registration requirements. In England and Wales, registration requirements are met through successful completion of Leadership and Management for Care NVQ Level 4, or Management NVQ Level 4, together with a relevant professional qualification or NVQ Level 4 in Health and Social Care. K303 provides very relevant underpinning knowledge for the management qualifications.

Successful completion of this course will enable you to:

• understand and critically discuss key values that underpin the activity of the frontline manager in different contexts of care
• appreciate the importance of the views of service users and carers in all aspects of health and social care management
• critically appraise key concepts and theories relevant to the management of practice
• reflect on and critically discuss how managers might be more effective and show leadership for change
• have an overview of current legal, policy and organisational contexts
• explore strategies for working in partnership across agency boundaries for the benefit of service users
• develop skills in key areas of management such as effective communication, managing teams, leadership, supporting evidence-based practice, integrated service provision, information, budgets, transitions and loss, risk, need, protection and promoting others’ professional development.

The teaching is through two learning guides that introduce readings from two main textbooks and a course reader. Skills are developed through activities using audio CDs, a DVD and a CD-ROM, the latter presenting a case study and interactive exercises. As you work through the course, you will develop information technology skills in handling and analysing data using web resources and CD-ROMs. There are opportunities to discuss your learning with other students via online forums and tutorials.

The course is in two equal parts that correspond to the two textbooks and their associated materials and activities.

Learning Guide 1 examines how policy, practice and organisational contexts affect managers. It explores the diversity and complexity of the management task, and the role of the manager in providing ethical care grounded in good practice. There are three blocks of study:

Practice, policy and the law explores what managing to care and to promote social inclusion involves. It reviews what service users say about services, and the manager’s role in consulting users and incorporating views into acceptable outcomes. The effect on managers of a changing social policy environment and ‘managerialism’ is examined, and we introduce key legal concepts that affect the management task.

The contexts of care looks at the manager and the organisation, and how managers can work with different organisational structures and cultures. We explore relationships between people, the places where care takes place, quality, and professional and managerial identity.

People in social care draws on theories of understanding people, and examines ethical managerial practice and dilemmas. We debate the role of the manager in achieving good outcomes for individuals, services and the public; the block ends by considering the relevance of trends in the management of care over the last century for today’s manager, and prospects for the future.

Learning Guide 2 helps managers to define the knowledge and build the skills for managing people and resources to meet the challenges of organising effective care provision. There are three blocks of study:

Managing with knowledge and a vision looks at building on practice skills in the move to a management role, and the challenges of managing the team. What is leadership, and how do you introduce and respond to change?

Managing services for people argues that managers need to base their decisions on evidence and to encourage ‘research-mindedness’ in their teams. It explores working across agency and professional boundaries. Managers have to use and share information ethically, and to make good use of budgets in their control.

Managing learning and development in the team looks at the manager’s role in protection and managing risk, while promoting well-being. This leads on to dealing with, and learning from, mistakes and complaints. We review the effects of loss and life events on those who work with vulnerable people, together with the role of managers in providing effective supervision and helping individuals with their professional development.

Entry

This is a Level 3 course. Level 3 courses build on study skills and subject knowledge acquired from studies at Levels 1 and 2. They are intended only for students who have recent experience of higher education in a related subject, preferably with the OU. 

If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.

Preparatory work

You will receive guidance on how to get started online in your first course mailing. This will provide you with information on using your computer for OU study and working with the Computing Guide. For example, it explains how to access and use your website and online discussion forums. If you have time before the course starts, you can work through this and explore all the online services available to you.

If you have a disability or additional requirement

Written transcripts of any audio components and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) versions of printed material are available. Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader. The printed study materials are available in the DAISY Digital Talking Book format. Other alternative formats of the study materials may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.

If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our publication Meeting Your Needs.

You can also find information about accessible study materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.

Study materials

What's included

Course books, other printed materials, audio CDs, DVD and CD-ROM. You will have access to a website through which teaching and library resources are available. Electronic versions of most of the printed study materials are provided on the website.

You will need

A DVD player and a CD player. 

Some audio-visual components of this course are delivered on a DVD that will play on a standard DVD player and television. If you want to view this on a computer, it will need a DVD-ROM drive and software for viewing DVDs. The CD-ROM can only be viewed on a PC.

Computing requirements

This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave. Some of your course software will be provided on disk.

You will need internet access and a computer with Microsoft Office installed. The software on this module has some advanced features that only work in the proprietary versions of Microsoft Office. If you don't already have Microsoft Office, you can take advantage of a special educational offer.

If you have purchased a new Windows computer since 2005 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual. Please note that you cannot use an Apple Mac or Linux computer unless it is running Windows using Boot Camp or similar dual-boot system.

Teaching and assessment

Support from your tutor

You will have a tutor who will help you with the study material and mark and comment on your written work, and whom you can ask for advice and guidance. You will be able to discuss the course via an online forum. We may also be able to offer group tutorials or day schools that you are encouraged to attend. Where your tutorials are held will depend on the distribution of students taking the course. 

Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.

Assessment

The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.

You will be expected to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) online through the eTMA system unless there are some difficulties which prevent you from doing so. In these circumstances, you must negotiate with your tutor to get their agreement to submit your assignment on paper.

Students also studied

Students who studied this course also studied at some time:

• Critical social work practice (K315)
• Communication in health and social care (K309)
• Applied social work practice (K216)
• Promoting public health: skills, perspectives and practice (K311)
• Working for health (K203)

Future availability

The details given here are for the course that starts in October 2012 and February 2013 when it will be available for the last time. A new course, in the same area, is planned for October 2013.

Fees 2012

See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.

Study explained

Financial support

- find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.

Study explained

- all you need to know about distance learning with the OU.

A taste of OU study

Student Reviews

Came away with a Grade 2 Pass for this which was a pleasant surprise as I found the course hardgoing ...
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K303 Managing care is a very interesting and challenging course that provides a foundation for those embarking on a management ...
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Course satisfaction survey

See the satisfaction survey results for this course.

Your questions

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Or contact an adviser in our Student Registration & Enquiry Service Email or call +44(0) 845 300 60 90+44(0) 845 366 60 35

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