Care Intelligence Revolution

Oliver McGowan’s death in 2016 led to a lifelong campaign by his parents and, ultimately, a legal requirement for health and social care staff to receive learning disability and autism training appropriate to their role. But six years on, confusion still surrounds what that actually means for providers.

In this episode of The Care Intelligence Revolution, Mark Topps is joined by Elaine Warner, Managing Director of Care Business Associate Training (CBAT), to cut through the confusion and explain what providers need to know.

In this episode, we cover:

Who Oliver McGowan was and why this training exists

The difference between Tier 1 and Tier 2, and who needs which

What the Code of Practice says, and its four standards

Whether you can use training other than the Oliver McGowan programme

What the experts with lived experience bring, and what staff have said about the training

Practical challenges: releasing staff, wellbeing support, and the hidden costs of train-the-trainer

Funding through the Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset

What CQC will look for, and why an action plan matters

Refresher requirements every three years

Whether you run a care home, a domiciliary service or a hospital team, this conversation is a reminder that the training is about culture, not just compliance. It’s about asking, listening and doing.

To find out more about Care Business Associate Training click here 

To connect with our guest, Elaine Warner click here 

To connect with our host, Mark Topps on LinkedIn click here.

To be a guest, email mark.topps@health-connect.com

Find out more about Health Connect here

What happens when we stop seeing nature as somewhere we simply go, and start seeing it as part of how we care?

This week, Mark is joined by Tris Rodriguez, Founder of Trees and Tranquility, to explore forest therapy, wellbeing and the role nature can play in social care.

From supporting people with different mobility needs to reducing stress, building connection and challenging our approach to risk, they explore why sometimes the simplest solutions can be right on our doorstep.

Could stepping outside change the way we think about care?

To find out more about Trees and Tranquility click here 

To connect with our guest, Tris Rodriguez click here 

To connect with our host, Mark Topps on LinkedIn click here.

To be a guest, email mark.topps@health-connect.com

Find out more about Health Connect here

In this episode of the Care Intelligence Revolution, our host Mark Topps sits down for a high-level discussion with representatives from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the Department of Health and Social Care’s, Digitising Social Care programme to look at how you can achieve good outcomes with a Digital Social Care Record.

In this episode they explore the strategic shift toward digital transformation in adult social care, how you can improve quality and safety, the role of integrated care systems, and prove practical guidance for selecting a system, managing organisational change, and leveraging digital skills frameworks to support staff and those you support during the transition 

Find out more about Health Connect here

To connect with our host, Mark Topps on LinkedIn click here.

To be a guest, email mark.topps@health-connect.com

Policies are meant to protect care teams, so why do so many dread them, ignore them, or just ask "that one person who knows everything" instead?

In this episode, Mark Topps is joined by Lucy Buxton to unpack why policies have become overwhelming, hard-to-navigate documents and why separating "policy" from "procedure" could change everything

We also introduce OpenDoc's new AI voice agent, giving staff instant, accurate, multilingual answers straight from their actual policies, no hallucinations, no guesswork.

This episode is a candid conversation about accessibility, safety, and building a truly person-centred future for care.

To find out more about Health Connect click here.

To find out more about OpenDoc, and to access a whole suite of free policies and procedures, click here.

To connect with Lucy, visit her website here, or find her LinkedIn account here.

To connect with our host, Mark Topps on LinkedIn click here. 

To be a guest, email mark.topps@health-connect.com

In this episode of The Care Intelligence Revolution podcast, Mark Topps sits down with Sonia Rai, Founder and Director of Nectar HR, to unpack the sweeping wave of UK employment law reforms reshaping the health and social care sector.

Sonia explains why these nearly 100 interlocking changes, from SSP paid from day one and day-one paternity leave to the new Fair Work Agency, extended tribunal claim windows, and easier trade union recognition represent a "perfect storm" for care providers.

The conversation dives into gaps providers often overlook and provides listeners with practical tips that they can implement to build robust HR systems.

To find out more about Health Connect click here.

To find out more about OpenDoc, and to access a whole suite of free policies and procedures, click here.

To find out more about Nectar HR, visit their website here.

To connect with our guest this week, Sonia Rai on LinkedIn click here.

Email Nectar HR: hello@nectarhr.co.uk

To connect with our host, Mark Topps on LinkedIn click here. 

To be a guest, email mark.topps@health-connect.com