Tag Archives: NHS

£5.5m DOH fund to improve hospice facilities across the East of England

Norfolk Hospice gets go-ahead after Government cash boost for care

ANDREW PAPWORTH Thursday, April 11, 2013
9:33 AM

A new hospice designed to meet Norfolk’s growing need for end-of-life care has today been given the green light thanks to a £510,000 government grant.

The money, part of a £5.5m Department of Health fund to improve hospice facilities across the East of England, means The Norfolk Hospice, Tapping House can now confirm it will go ahead with its long-awaited multi-million pound facility near the A148 at Hillington.

Richard Shaw, chief executive of the charity, said the new site is needed to meet the county’s ever-increasing demand for palliative care amid warnings that many people are not getting the care they need.

It is not fair to do this to patients with dementia!

Care home residents with dementia sent to A&E alone

Care homes are increasingly leaving residents with dementia on their own in hospital. Why is this happening?

 

Lynne Wallis’s 90-year-old mother, Madge, who was sent to A&E in acute pain, alone and without her hearing aid or dentures.

My mother Madge, 90, who has mild vascular dementia – she knows who the prime minister is but can’t remember what she had for lunch – has had several health problems since living in care homes. Most have gone undetected until I have noticed and alerted staff, after which a doctor has been called or, more usually, she has gone straight to A&E. Her undetected health problems have ranged from gout to acute urinary infections to a vascular dementia “episode”, the equivalent of a small stroke – it was me who noticed her speech was slurred and her motor skills impaired, not her carers.

The four care homes Madge has lived in since 2005 have all sent residents alone in ambulances to hospital, which means those with dementia or severe memory problems – 80% of all care-home residents according to research by the Alzheimer’s Society – are confused about why they are there, with no one to advocate for them, get them a cup of tea or take them to the loo. The wait in A&E can be as long as five hours, a very long time for any elderly person to be alone in a stressful environment, never mind for someone with dementia.

The NHS changes today

NHS structure changes come into force

By Nick Triggle Health correspondent

Doctor's equipment, a sphygmomanometer and stethoscope The changes have proved extremely controversial

Government reforms of the NHS in England have come into force and health leaders warn of a tough year ahead.

Monday marks the first day of the new structures.

GP-led groups have taken control of local budgets and a new board, NHS England, has started overseeing the day-to-day running of services.

The NHS Confederation said the reforms represented a big opportunity but should not be seen as a “silver bullet” for the challenges ahead.

Mike Farrar, chief executive of the confederation, which represents health managers, said the squeeze on finances and the need to rebuild public confidence after the Stafford Hospital scandal meant the NHS was facing a critical period.