A few months ago, I reflected on our growth over the last 40 years and how we are constantly changing and adapting. Change is necessary to not only meet the needs of those we care for, but to respond adequately to dynamic contractual and governing obligations.
This has made me think a little more about how important it is to balance our workloads with spending time with the children, young people, participants, and families we care for. This is a constant struggle that I witness, and personally feel, every working day.
We get into this industry to help people overcome their challenges, to support and guide those who are struggling to give them hope and a positive outlook for their future. We have the best intentions and believe we can foster and enact change where it is needed most. However, it seems that this is getting harder and harder as we feel chained to our desks and the administrative load of our roles.
I believe the best services prioritise interaction with those they care for. They encourage and promote face-to-face engagement, building of connections, and take a relational approach to intervention. Staff are not stuck in offices ‘ticking boxes’ and shuffling papers. They spend time with kids, with families, and with adults who rely on us for day-to-day support. But how can we achieve this balance when there is always so much to do?
Recently some senior staff from our Fostering and Permanency department provided the Executive Team with some data on their administrative workload. We were informed that with a standard caseload of 12 clients, there are 2160 tasks Caseworkers must meet every year. That equates to 42 tasks that staff are expected to complete every week to stay on track. Where this gets even more taxing is when you add in the unplanned tasks, which any given day could be crisis response and management, carer support and training, and unplanned phone calls and emails, to name a few. Then chuck in some annual leave or a day off sick, and you are forced to try to catch up. What results is an almost impossible and never-ending administrative load for staff.
I have no doubt that every one of our operational management staff would rather be spending time with those we care for rather than have their work hours taken up with compliance and contractual tasks. This administrative work, however, is evidencing our practice and provides the proof that we are not only complying with our obligations, but are also providing high-quality care. This is significant and extremely important - the paperwork is a necessary evil.
Although necessary, I am finding more and more that some forms and level of evidencing can almost be counterproductive. Yes, we must evidence our work, but where is the limit? Is there really quality work if you don’t have time to spend directly supporting and relating to those in our programs and those who use our services?
This is where advocacy is both important and necessary. We need to identify when enough is enough and use our voice to advocate for change in the system. Over the last few years, the Executive team and myself have been advocating strongly for change, pushing back alongside our peak body and other services to communicate what is not working well in our contracts and reporting obligations. This has been at times an onerous and frustrating process however we are seeing traction and our voices are being heard.
Internally we are also working on several projects to alleviate administrative pressure on management staff. The ITC system review and a future AIMS overhaul are just two examples of our work in this space. There are many other projects to come that will not only assist operational staff, but also our internal support services.
I often reflect on things that are taking me away from being able to connect with those we serve, but also the amazing staff that are caring for these people. It has taken me some time to understand that we must trust each other to do these significant roles, especially caring for our most vulnerable. When we work together as a team, within effective and efficient systems, we can focus on the most important things, and still meet our obligations. The most important work we do comes from being with those we care for. When we get the balance right, we can be with people through their struggles and still evidence our fantastic work.