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A big year for care and support
Welcome to my new blog.
2009 is a big year in social care. We are reforming the care and support system, and there are several pieces of major work in the pipeline.
One of the main aims of this blog is to give a flavour of what is happening as things progress, and to give you the opportunity to tell me what you think.
England’s care and support services help people with care needs to lead independent, active and healthy lives. The term covers a wide range of services, from housing support, support for disabled people, meals on wheels and occupational therapy to day care, care homes and support for carers.
They enable people to do many of the things that lots of us take for granted, like live in their own homes, work, cook, shop and care for their families.
With people living longer, and living longer with disability and long-term conditions, the provision and funding of care is increasingly difficult. The current system is unsustainable. We need to design a new system, which ensures everybody gets the kind of support they want, when they need it.
We want a fair system that will be robust enough to survive economic and political change and provide care into the future.
The whole reform process is underpinned by two major pieces of work.
First came Putting People First, which we published last year, which addresses the changes necessary to mend the failing system in the present and in the short term.
The care and support Green Paper, which we will publish this year, will set the scene for long term reform, showing different options for funding and delivery of care and support. After publication we will consult with public and stakeholders, testing our ideas, and use this input as we design a new system.
You can read more about the Green Paper at on this site or visit our Facebook page here.
Already this year we have published Living well with Dementia: a National Dementia Strategy. The strategy will improve the quality of care for those with the condition, increase awareness and remove the stigma associated with it. Read more about it here.
In the early spring the Carers Direct service will launch on NHS Choices – a new online resource offering advice and guidance for carers. You can already see some content on NHS Choices here.
Other upcoming work includes a Workforce Strategy, an Ageing Strategy and the Housing Strategy for an Ageing Society.
In addition to this programme of work I will regularly be going on visits, seeing examples of best practice and innovation around the country. I will share these with you, and encourage anybody who has come across any impressive work to mention it here.
So now it’s over to you. What would you like to see from a new care and support system? I look forward to reading your comments.
Best wishes,
David
What I would most like to see over the coming months is a system that informs all stakeholders in social care about the changes that are to happen during this exciting time.
In my time in social care I have often found that those on the front line are poorly informed of the decisions of higher up and even recently encountered professional care trainers who were completely misinformed about what is happening in the upper echlons of care (they did not even know the name of the new regulator).
Although a journal of best practice has been promised I would like to see a more grass roots approach to disseminating the changes in the care and support system perhaps with the DH funding (I know unlikely in these difficult times) a national publication or events for frontline workers and stakeholders to 'spread the word' about what is happening in the sector and spreading frontline best practice.
The changes ahead will prove challenging but those challenges can be mitigated by well informed workers who understand the changes and why there is a need for change.
What I want to see is individual independent Carer groups being involved at any and every stage of consultations rather than the reliance on Carer charities to put our case.
Carers can put their own views coherently and aren't 'charity cases'. It's time WE were listened to not well-paid charity employees who don't have to fear each winter.
Talk to US not to hand picked Carers that charities put forward, the views will be different, in fact the views would be more accurate of Carers in general
Many thanks for taking the time to respond on this.
Throughout the six month engagement period we spoke, and listened, to many carers at public and stakeholder events. Many more contacted us through our website, email address and via mail.
This will also be the case in the consultation period after the publication of the Green Paper – there will be plenty of opportunity for everybody to have their say, directly to us.
The Green Paper team values responses from everybody, and encourages everybody to get involved. The more people that do, the better our chances of getting care and support reform right.
The Green Paper team
(David Behan is currently on leave)
This page should be shown to the coal face workers in Health and Social Care.
Also we need a revolution in attitude by the general public to mental health sufferers and their families - that is - respect. This will also affect the way the 'professionals' plan care and treatment as well and the way some of them treat and talk to patients. People do not want to be patronised, but when they need help they need it quickly and appropriately according to their needs, culture, gender, age, choice and particular circumstances.
Therefore - less exclusion and more inclusion.
Down with discrimination
Criminalise inappropriate and glib side remarks in general speech e.g. "manic moment/phase" "schizophrenic". How would the general public react to people saying "that cancerotic woman/man" or "Sclerotic" person?
Talk is cheap and it can hurt. People should be more sensitive - after all mental illness could quite easily strike them too. WHO says that prevalence is growing.
What is required is more humanity.
Thank you
More and more people need to become involved in all manner of care and issues associated with such.
From our time as a company, and as carers, we strongly believe that there the current system is too complicated. Many of our clients do not know what they are entitled to so we offer free information and support but there is only so much we can do. There needs to be a more pro-active approach in respect to this, especially when £billions of benefits and allowances are going unclaimed each year. We need to make the sytem easy to use and understandable to those using it. We agree the system needs to change and develop but these changes need to be voiced.
We are a new company but we aim to help change the care system and the provision of care for the better. We have lots of ideas and new methods but we do not know where to voice them. Is there a national forum for care? if not why not? When will the current CRB checking system be changed and developed, as we all know a CRB is only as good as the day its disclosed... that should be a priority as it holds client and carer progress.
Very valuable health information, great blog post. Thanks.
I hope this debate will recognise the ways in which responsibilities for 'care' for older people are being abrogated at every opportunity by the statutory agencies. Firstly, long term care was gradually privatised through the closure of health and local authority provision, and the growth of care homes. Now the same thing is happening with home care and community based nursing services.
The recent Panorama programme showed the tragic end result of these policy decisions where 'care' was being delivered by agency staff with little training and even less time. Some of the people were obviously dying and in need of nursing care. Why had they not been referred to the distict nursing service, why were the agencies allowed to take on this degree of responsibility, and who was monitoring the contracts?
The distasteful trend of 'reverse auction ' commissioning shows a further contempt for older people, particularly those with dementia. If this approach were to be adopted towards any other organic illness, or any other age group there would rightly be a national outcry.
If we are looking to get value for money and better quality care for older people, we need a small team of staff who are properly trained in the biological AND social aspects of illnesses, who can deliver a comprehensive range of care, preferably to people in their own homes. What we have is far from that at the moment.
why are you only listening to carers what about the disabled it affects if the goverment gets its way my life as i know it will end the social services cannot cope with the workload they have .i will be housebound ,my self respect and dignity wil be gone i have a good support system ,why should i have to have strangers to wash ,feed and undress me just so the goverment can save money and care orgs can make money the goverment can save money many other ways but we disabled are the easiest target ,its bad enough being disabled let me keep my dignity and self respect those who get the care element should be given a choice the money or the help you cant have both ,i am only 53 let my life have some sort of dignity please
most of the care groups and stake holders will be rubbing their hands together at the thought of all that extra money what about the sick and disabled no one seems to be asking them what they want not all of us want strangers controlling our lifes we are the ones that count not stakeholder or carers
How is it going to be addressed that those in discretionary areas do not find the Governmental /LA discretionary bias against them .
All these institutions including the charitable usually have one corporate director and enquiry line . its no good giving advice if there is nothing of substance there .
Surely those without carers have different more pressing needs , why is one group used to demine the other?
By devolving means no one in charge so those on corporate remits and contracts can dictate to professionals via.HMCS said on asking why the admnin making decisions illegally said " Admins do not address discretion" This is the hub of the matter . What is more important the issues or process. All these call centres only consider process.
I have read "Shaping the Future of Care Together" and would like to raise an issue that is not actually mentioned in the Green Paper-namely NHS Continuing Care funding.
From what I have read I believe that this funding is non means tested and is very difficult to obtain.
I look after a 96 year old mother who has type two Dementia and who requires round the clock private care. For this level of care-we pay between £1600-£2400 a month. Now I appreciate that this is quite a bit less than the cost of Nursing Home Accommodation in North West London-but it is still a considerable strain on our financial resources.
In order to decide who meets/doesn't meet the criteria for NHS Continuing Care a Decision Support Tool is used. This tool considers some 11 areas of client medical need but fails to take into account the financial strain experienced by Families who have put money aside for their "rainy Day". This cannot be right. Those of us who have savings and investments of £23,000+ get little or no financial help from the government.
I would be interested to hear from anyone who has tried to get funding for NHS continuing care and from those who succeeded.