Tag Archives: social care

Discrimination ‘denying care home residents hospital access’, study suggests

March 29, 2012   Carers, Older care

Elderly people in care homes are being denied access to basic NHS services available to everyone because of discrimination, a major study suggests.

By John Bingham, Social Affairs Editor

6:40AM BST 29 Mar 2012

Analysis of the health records of more than 120,000 older people shows that those in residential care are significantly less likely to use their local hospital than those still living in their own homes.

When it comes to routine appointments, people in care homes are half as likely to visit their local hospital as the rest of the elderly population, research by the Nuffield Trust, a health think tank, shows.

The researchers said it could mean that their needs are being met in their care homes, avoiding the need to use hospitals, or that it shows “discrimination” against the elderly.

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Social care service users feel excluded from reform debate

March 28, 2012   Carers

New research for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation asked about the state of the social care system and government reform plans

Social care service users have not got the ear of government, says Peter Beresford.

As the government finalises the social care white paper it plans to publish this spring, service users in a national consultation commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation have expressed major concerns both about the present state of social care and government proposals for the future.

There are growing fears among older and disabled people and other service users that their voices are not being heard at a time when major reforms in social policy that affect them in particular are taking place. While it is important not to overstate the case from the relatively small number of people consulted, they do represent a diverse range of adult social care service users from different areas in England.

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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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