ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills (Ofqual-Regulated Qualification)

ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills (Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate) – Course Overview

The ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills, commonly known as the Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate, is a United Kingdom Ofqual-regulated qualification designed for new and existing healthcare assistants, care support workers, and care assistants working in hospitals, care homes, nursing homes, domiciliary care, and community health settings. This Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate helps learners develop essential skills in supporting individuals with personal care, promoting health and safety, safeguarding vulnerable adults, communicating effectively, and working as part of a care team. This Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate is the perfect starting point for anyone beginning their career in health and social care.

The ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills suits people who are new to care work or already working as healthcare assistants or care support workers who want formal recognition of their skills. This Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate fits roles like healthcare assistant, care support worker, care assistant, residential care worker, or domiciliary care worker. The ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills covers key areas such as understanding roles in care, supporting personal care needs, promoting health and safety, safeguarding adults, communicating effectively, and working in a care team. Unlike a full diploma, this certificate is shorter and focused on essential skills.

As a practical work-based qualification, the Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate assessment comes from your daily work evidence and written assignments, not examinations. This makes the ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills perfect for busy care workers who need to gain a recognised qualification quickly while continuing to work. 

These clear entry requirements ensure the ProQual Level 2 Certificate in Healthcare and Social Care Support Skills (Level 2 Health and Social Care Certificate) suits new and existing care workers.

• Age Requirement: The applicant must be at least sixteen years old.
• Educational Requirements: The applicant needs no formal qualifications, but basic literacy and numeracy are helpful.
• Experience: The applicant should be working in or have access to a healthcare or social care setting.
• English Language Proficiency: The applicant requires basic English to read care plans and communicate with individuals and colleagues.

To achieve the qualification candidates must achieve a minimum of 13 credits: a minimum of 8 credits must be from the Level 2 units and the remaining 5 credits can be from any combination of units from the Level 2 or Level 3 or Level 4 units

Mandatory Units 

1. Implement person centred approaches in health and social care
2. Principles of safeguarding and protection in health and social care
3. Assist in the administration of medication
4. Carry out personal hygiene for individuals unable to care for themselves
5. Support individuals with speech and language disorders to develop their communication skills
6. Perform the non-scrubbed circulating role for perioperative procedures
7. Minimise the risk of infection when transporting and storing healthcare waste
8. Assist in the issuing of prescribed items
9. Assist in the manufacture and assembly of medicinal products
10. Assist in the preparation of documentation, materials and other items for manufacture and assembly of medicinal products
11. Support individuals to carry out their own health care procedures
12. Provide support for therapy sessions
13. Contribute to the discharge of individuals to carers
14. Paediatric Emergency First Aid
15. Introduction to communication in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
16. Support individuals to meet personal care needs
17. Contribute to the safe use of medical devices in the perioperative environment
18. Causes and Spread of Infection
19. Prepare documentation, materials, components and other items for the preparation of aseptic products
20. Introduction to duty of care in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
21. Provide support for mobility
22. Assist others to plan presentations
23. Order Routine Pharmaceutical Stock
24. Dementia Awareness
25. Move and position individuals in accordance with their plan of care
26. Support individuals to manage continence
27. Handle information in health and social care settings
28. The role of the health and social care worker
29. Obtain and test specimens from individuals
30. Prepare individuals for healthcare activities
31. Assist in planning and evaluating learning activities
32. Assist the practitioner to carry out health care activities
33. Minimise the risk of infection during the removal of used linen
34. Inform an individual of discharge arrangements
35. Understand the context of supporting individuals with learning disabilities
36. Select and wear appropriate personal protective equipment for work in health care settings
37. Monitor and maintain the environment and resources during and after clinical / therapeutic activities
38. Prepare and dress for scrubbed clinical roles
39. Care for individuals with naso-gastric tubes
40. The principles of Infection Prevention and Control
41. Assist with the provision of a pharmacy service to meet individuals’ needs
42. Contribute to the effectiveness of teams
43. Introduction to personal development in health, social care or children's and young people’s settings
44. Support individuals who are distressed
45. Support individuals undergoing healthcare activities
46. Prepare equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood processing
47. Assist in receiving, handling and dispatching clinical specimens
48. Assist in the sale of medicines and products
49. Receive Pharmaceutical Stock
50. Prepare aseptic products
51. Prepare and apply dressings and drains to individuals in the perioperative environment
52. Planning and Monitoring Work
53. Cleaning, Decontamination and Waste Management
54. Ensure your own Actions Reduce risks to Health and Safety
55. Introduction to equality and inclusion in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
56. Provide agreed support for foot care
57. Contribute to health and safety in health and social care
58. Support independence in the tasks of daily living
59. Prepare equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood collection
60. Maintaining quality standards in the health sector
61. Emergency First Aid Skills
62. Assemble prescribed items
63. Support participation in learning and development activities
64. Provide support for sleep
65. Remove wound closure materials
66. Support individuals to eat and drink
67. Undertake agreed pressure area care
68. Meet food safety requirements when providing food and drink for individuals
69. Understand loss and grief in end of life care
70. Understand how to work in end of life care
71. Service improvements in the health sector

Level 3 Units

1. Work with babies and young children to promote their development and learning
2. Engage in personal development in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
3. Support individuals with multiple conditions and/or disabilities
4. Support individuals who are bereaved
5. Prepare for and carry out extended feeding techniques
6. Provide support to continue recommended therapies
7. Insert and secure nasogastric tubes
8. Develop positive relationships with children and young people
9. Provide advice and information to enable parents to promote the health and well-being of their newborn babies
10. Facilitate and monitor housing and accommodation services to support individuals with mental health needs
11. Collaborate in the assessment of environmental and social support in the community
12. Influencing Others at Work
13. Care for the physical and nutritional needs of babies and young children
14. Support families who have a child with a disability
15. Support individuals to manage their finances
16. Obtain venous blood samples
17. Implement therapeutic group activities
18. Collate and communicate health information to individuals
19. Provide information and advice to individuals on eating to maintain optimum nutritional status
20. Assist in the implementation of programmes to increase mobility, movement and functional independence
21. Receive and handle clinical specimens within the sterile field
22. Prepare anaesthetic environment and provide support for pre and post-operative anaesthesia and recovery
23. Make recommendations for the use of physical resources in a health setting
24. Maintaining quality standards in the health sector
25. Understand Models of Disability
26. Support individuals to access and use services and facilities
27. Promote and implement health and safety in health and social care
28. Support young people with a disability to make the transition into adulthood
29. Understand mental well-being and mental health promotion
30. Carry out vision screening
31. Assist professionals to support individuals from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds to access speech and language therapy services
32. Implement hydrotherapy programmes for individuals and groups
33. Deliver exercise sessions to improve individuals’ health and wellbeing
34. Provide support to the surgical team when preparing individuals for operative and invasive procedures
35. Facilitate person centred assessment, planning, implementation and review
36. Work in partnership with families to support individuals
37. Support individuals to develop and run support groups
38. Monitor own work practice in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
39. Perform first line calibration on clinical equipment to ensure it is fit for use
40. Monitor and review individuals progress in relation to maintaining optimum nutritional status
41. Give presentations to groups
42. Support individuals in undertaking their chosen activities
43. Control the use of physical resources in a health setting
44. Support children and young people experiencing transitions
45. Promote communication in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
46. Contribute to the prevention of aggressive and abusive behaviour of people
47. Service improvement in the health sector
48. Understand the process and experience of dementia
49. Understand Physical Disability
50. Support individuals with a learning disability to access healthcare
51. Undertake urethral catheterisation processes
52. Promote good practice in handling information in health and social care settings
53. Understand mental health problems
54. Perform routine Electrocardiograph ECG Procedures
55. Undertake treatments and dressings of lesions and wounds
56. Adapt and fit healthcare equipment, medical devices, assistive technology, or products, to meet individuals’ needs
57. Administer oral nutritional products to individuals
58. Promote effective communication with individuals with sensory loss
59. Work with other professionals and agencies to support individuals with physical disability
60. Support individuals to access housing and accommodation services
61. Identify information requirements in a health context
62. Prepare and reproduce permanent radiographic images
63. Develop and prepare speech and language therapy resources for alternative and augmentative communication AAC use
64. Carry out wound drainage care
65. Prepare and provide surgical instrumentation and supplementary items for the surgical team
66. Care for a newly born baby when the mother is unable to do so
67. Understand Child and Young Person Development
68. Provide support to maintain and develop skills for everyday life
69. Facilitate learning and development activities to meet individual needs and preferences
70. Enable individuals with behavioural difficulties to develop strategies to change their behaviour
71. Reprocess endoscopy equipment
72. Support individuals with cognition and learning difficulties
73. Assist in testing individuals’ abilities prior to planning physical activities
74. Support individuals to manage dysphagia
75. Provide advice on foot care for individuals with diabetes
76. Transport, transfer and position individuals and equipment within the perioperative environment
77. Understand Sensory Loss
78. Support families who are affected by Acquired Brain Injury
79. Support individuals during a period of change
80. Perform intravenous cannulation
81. Care for individuals with urethral catheters
82. Conduct routine maintenance on clinical equipment
83. Assist and support individuals to use alternative and augmentative communication systems AAC
84. Measure and record individuals’ body fluid balance in a perioperative environment
85. Support parents/carers to interact with and care for their newborn baby
86. Deliver training through demonstration and instruction
87. Principles for implementing duty of care in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
88. Promote Child and Young Person Development
89. Develop and sustain effective working relationships with staff in other agencies
90. Undertake physiological measurements
91. Undertake stoma care
92. Assure the effective functioning of radiographic image processing equipment
93. Operate equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood collection
94. Advise and inform individuals on managing their condition
95. Assist others to monitor individuals’ progress in managing dysphagia
96. Support carers to meet the care needs of individuals
97. Maintain pharmaceutical stock
98. Anatomy and Physiology for Maternity Support Workers
99. Receive prescriptions from individuals
100. Understand how to support individuals with autistic spectrum conditions
101. Support Individuals with Specific Communication Needs
102. Obtain and test capillary blood samples
103. Support individuals at the end of life
104. Contribute to effective multidisciplinary team working
105. Analyse and present health related data and information
106. Remove wound drains
107. Develop activities and materials to enable individuals to reach specific communication goals
108. Operate equipment for intraoperative cell salvage blood processing and complete intraoperative cell salvage blood process
109. Support parents/carers and those in a parental role to care for babies during their first year
110. Obtain a client history
111. Manage the availability of physical resources to meet service delivery needs in a health setting
112. Administer medication to individuals, and monitor the effects
113. Assist in the Issuing of Pharmaceutical Stock
114. Undertake an in-process accuracy check of assembled prescribed items prior to the final accuracy check
115. Promote equality and inclusion in health, social care or children’s and young people’s settings
116. Understand the impact of Acquired Brain Injury on individuals
117. Support individuals to live at home
118. Promote person centred approaches in health and social care
119. Undertake tissue viability risk assessments
120. Interact with and support individuals using telecommunications
121. Manufacture equipment or medical devices for individuals within healthcare
122. Provide support for individuals with communication and interaction difficulties
123. Monitor individuals’ progress in relation to managing their body weight and nutrition
124. Assist in implementing treatment programmes for individuals with severely reduced movement/mobility
125. Assist in the delivery of perioperative care and support to individuals
126. Examine the feet of individuals with diabetes

Level 4 Units

1. Support disabled children and young people and those with specific requirements
2. Enable children and young people to understand their health and well-being
3. Develop and agree individualised care plans for babies and families