While there is a sense of some justice that carers from the notorious Winterbourne View hospital are now in jail, there is still one terrible tragedy that remains unaddressed.

How could there be so many people working in the hospital who did not raise the alarm? Moreover, how does a culture like that start in a hospital or care setting in the first place and who is looking at the leadership model that allow it to happen?

Today, Bournemouth University is hosting a conference on safeguarding adults. We were told that those working in social care no longer have time for conferences but had hoped 200 people might attend. Instead, we closed the list at 300 people and have another 70 on a waiting list.

What are these professionals so concerned about that they have been signing up from across the country? They want help on how laws and practice are changing and being interpreted and Lord Justice Munby and other notable leaders in this field will be sharing their views on this.

Increasingly, practitioners, and the organisations they work in, are required to both empower and protect those most vulnerable in society. But at the same time we also want to promote liberty and autonomy. To achieve both can be a difficult balancing act.

However, perhaps the most critical area where professionals want debate, advice and the latest thinking is on how to foster an environment where vulnerable people in care will not be abused?

As those working in healthcare await the publication of the report into the Mid Staffordshire NHS foundation trust – where up to 1,200 patients are feared to have died needlessly due to poor care and medical errors, and again where no one raised concerns – hospital chiefs are rightly starting to ask, could this have been my hospital? Do I really know what is going on in my organisation?

There has to be a radical change in the way local authorities and health bodies train those working with vulnerable people, so they know how to raise the alarm.

Too much focus has been spent on commercial management training for leaders and “essay writing” for practitioners. As academics, we’d be the first to say that it is important to understand the theory behind social work – but surely it is even more important that they can put that training into practice. There must be more appropriate assessment strategies, ones that demonstrate professional practice development and not just the ability to write a good dissertation.

The only way to stop abuse persisting is by giving everyone – from cleaners to chief executives – the skills and confidence to raise their concerns if they suspect abuse and, importantly, to overcome resistance to their suspicions. That means they must work through what we call ‘crunch moments’. You have to take people through very real scenarios and work out what you do, how you feel, what is likely to stop you going ahead and how you work through your fears. We call this ‘self leadership’.

All the theory in the world will not necessarily give a social worker the skills to report suspected abuse when faced with it in real life.

It’s time to measure impact

It is estimated that nearly £200m was spent on social care training in local authorities last year. And according to our latest research, only a tiny fraction of this was ever assessed to see if it made a difference and that employees are doing their jobs better as a result. We call for greater impact evaluation to measure the effectiveness of training in the social/health care sector.

It is too easy to put the spotlight on a Baby P, a Winterbourne View – or Jimmy Savile. But abuses go on every day that are not reported. I want the student nurse, the social worker, the shift manager, and the cleaner all to know what to do, how to raise concerns and to ensure they are listened to.

Just as critically, directors of care organisations must be given the leadership skills to create transparent cultures. This training needs to be tailored to the specific issues of hospitals, care homes and community care – generic leadership courses are not good enough.

There has been an increasing focus on MBAs and commercial qualifications for leaders. While they have their place, management training has not been focused enough on the sector. These qualifications are too focused on commercial, private sector principles such as making a profit. Of course budgets have to be managed, but those skills alone are not enough, which is why so much abuse is both happening and not being reported in the care sector.

Leaders need to start focusing on care itself and creating new cultures. It is no good being appalled at the headlines if we don’t make significant changes.

We need different leadership focus and skills and safeguarding training materials to be used across the care sector; ‘self leadership’ skills for everyone working in a care setting; and impact assessment and evaluation to ensure this is all working and making a difference in every organisation.

It is time to stop the sensational coverage of one tragedy after another and realise we have the power to stop abuse. It requires a radical rethink so that the professions, the public and all citizens can have confidence that vulnerable people in care will be protected appropriately – and better.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/social-care-