Tag Archives: hospital

How can health and social care be encouraged to integrate?

March 27, 2012   Carers, health, hospital

In light of the government’s health and social care reforms, will services of the future offer older people a better deal?

 

Older people account for 75% of NHS activity, so it is vital that healthcare reforms are tailored to their needs.

Older people are the biggest users of the NHS, accounting for 75% of activity. They occupy 60% of hospital beds, according to figures from the charity Age UK, and it is estimated that their health and social care needs alone account for most of the £70bn spent each year on patients with long-term conditions.

With the number of people aged over 85 expected to double in the next 25 years, it is crucial that the NHS of the future has the capacity to cope with the increased demands that this group of patients will bring. But do the planned changes for England outlined in the government’s health and social care reforms offer older people the prospect of improved services in the new-look NHS? And will the reforms produce a more integrated health and social care landscape, which encourages more holistic and seamless care for these elderly and vulnerable patients?

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Carers delighted by company help

March 24, 2012   Carers, family, hospital, Older care

The Home from Hospital scheme, run by the Carers’ Resource charity, has won sponsorship

9:50am Saturday 24th March 2012 in News By Alistair Shand

A project that helps elderly people living alone to return home after a spell in Airedale Hospital has been safeguarded.

The Home from Hospital scheme, run by the Carers’ Resource charity, has won sponsorship from Skipton-based Comply Direct after a lack of funding had put the initiative at risk.

But the charity warns that without similar support from others, the long-term existence of the project may be unsure. The venture aims to make people’s transition back home following discharge from hospital as smooth as possible.

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NICE starts new wave of quality standards

March 22, 2012   Cancer, Carers, health, hospital, Multiple Sclerosis

NICE has been given 123 new quality standards to work on, and includes for the first time new standards for public health.

Published on 22/03/12 at 02:18pm

The latest set of quality standards cover a wide range of topics, including heart failure, irritable bowel syndrome, skin cancer, and obesity in adults.

NICE will also develop public health quality standards in areas that relate to the NHS, the first time it has ever been asked to do this.

The public health topics cover standards for smoking cessation, encouraging physical activity in all people in contact with the NHS, and for preventing and managing alcohol misuse.

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