Jeremy Hunt urges health and wellbeing boards to help improve dementia care and support

August 2, 2014   Alzheimer’s, Carers, dementia, health

The letter highlights good practice in supporting people with dementia and their carers

The Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt has written to health and wellbeing boards and local authorities to encourage them to increase awareness of dementia and help improve dementia diagnosis rates in their local areas, through networking with local NHS colleagues.

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Qualifications You Should Seek in a Care worker or Home Carer

July 29, 2014   Carers

 Guest blog by Lawrence Henderson

Psychology major

What being a carer entails.

Whether you are currently taking care of a loved one or planning for the future, it’s a good idea to be aware of what being a carer entails. Some people simply just do not have time to provide this valuable service and therefore need to procure the services of an experienced home worker or care worker. But how can you know for sure that the person in question is qualified to be a care worker? There are no real formal qualifications that must be had in order to serve as a care worker, so it really comes down to experience, character and a variety of other elements that you’ll have to verify on a case-by-case basis. We’ll outline some of the requirements of being a care worker you should be on the look-out for – both good and bad – to help you make the best decision.

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Are 15-minute homecare visits always bad?

July 29, 2014   Carers, Featured Article, Social care

Shorter visits can have a place within a wider care package

• Why 15-minute homecare visits should be bannedShr

  • Mike Webster, assistant director, North Yorkshire county council
  • Guardian Professional,
‘Service users often wish to know what time people are going to turn up and for how long they will stay.’

Local authority commissioners often face criticism for the regimented way they purchase care and particularly for the hourly rates they offer. Interested observers will talk about the need to purchase care around outcomes, rather than the seemingly outdated method of paying by the hour, half hour or 15 minutes. In reality this is a bit of a holy grail as very few local authorities have mastered the art of outcome-based commissioning. This is made more difficult by the fact that service users often wish to know what time people are going to turn up and for how long they will stay. There is also the small matter of deciding how to pay for such arrangements.

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