article thumbnail

Ministers seek volunteer social care army to speed up hospital discharges

The Guardian

Exclusive: Volunteers sought in England to take equipment and drugs to people’s homes among other tasks Health ministers are to recruit a new volunteer army for social care to ferry medical equipment and drugs to people’s homes in a bid to free up congested hospital wards.

article thumbnail

Social care staff carrying out tasks previously undertaken by NHS, without extra funding, say directors

Community Care

There are also concerns that councils are taking on responsibilities that should fall to the NHS, because of the drive to discharge people from hospital as quickly as possible, which means people are leaving wards with greater needs than previously.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

£200m for NHS to buy short-term care placements to speed up discharge

Community Care

Integrated care boards (ICBs) will be able to use the money to buy beds in care homes or other settings for up to four weeks in order to speed up hospital discharges, freeing up beds to admit people stuck in accident and emergency departments.

article thumbnail

65,000 adults waiting at least six months for assessment as unmet needs mount, warns ADASS

Community Care

The figure, dating from the end of February, is six times that recorded in September last year, and comes with most directors reporting they have had to prioritise assessments for cases of suspected abuse or neglect, hospital discharge or reablement following a temporary residential care stay. ADASS May 2022 survey: key findings.

article thumbnail

£10m boost to adult social care funding to tackle NHS winter pressures

Community Care

This can be spent on meeting adult social care needs, supporting the provider market, speeding up hospital discharge and otherwise reducing NHS pressures. The £2.14bn improved better care fund (iBCF), the same as in 2022-23. Councils’ share of the £4.8bn in NHS funding, up by 5.7%

article thumbnail

Government Covid funding for adult social care ends

Community Care

Ensuring that care providers and councils have the staff and capacity to handle hospital discharges is crucial to ensure people get the right care at the right time, and to freeing up NHS time and space. However, in the letter, NHSE/I director of community health Matthew Winn admitted post-discharge capacity may reduce in some areas.

article thumbnail

Government reinstates cap on care costs change that cuts benefit to less well-off

Community Care

However, ministers made a concession on another amendment by peers, which would have required NHS bodies to consult current or prospective carers of hospital patients before hospital discharge to determine whether they are willing and able to provide care, where they have safety concerns around discharge.