Articles

Unrealistic MP Expectations Contrast with Care Sector Crisis

13/10/2016

A care crisis that could be unparalleled in British history is threatening to leave thousands of elderly people uncared for, according to a new report.

 

As a result of increasing cuts to the care sector, the Care Quality Commission is set to emphasise the impending disaster, with hundreds of homes having to prevent taking any extra clients or employees due to a severe lack of funding.

Sixty-four homes have already been forced to close due to the crisis, while 70% of adult social care organisations are now facing special measures.

 

In a damning verdict, the report will indicate that over half of the care homes and other industry organisations have been continuing to degenerate despite already being ordered to improve.

 

Staff shortages are of particular concern, with over 10% of positions vacant and left unfilled.

Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers which represents the country’s hospitals, suggested that ministers were disregarding the scale of the problems.

He told the Commons health select committee: “I think we all know that the social care system is actually in a rather worse state than people are pretending and that actually the spending review settlement is too little too late.”

In Spring, the NHS published a record deficit of £2.45bn, although Hopkins suggested the books had been cooked and the figure was actually £3.7bn.

“I do think we are in danger of living in a bit of a fantasy world here,  in terms of actually not being prepared to recognise where we really are,” he told MPs, saying it was now “impossible” for the health service to meet the expectations on it.

He called for increased expenditure for social care, in order to ensure better care outside hospitals.

"We actually think where the pressure is greatest in the system, it's social care....if there's more money to be spent, that’s where we say it should be spent,” he said.

Stephen Dorrell, a former Conservative health secretary, said it was disgusting that funding for social care had “flatlined” in recent years, while funding was spent on hospitals.

“The biggest inefficiency is to use NHS acute hospitals as social care,” the chairman of the NHS Confederation said.

Simon Stevens, head of the health service has repeatedly said any extra funding should go towards easing pressures on social care, with thousands of elderly people in hospital desperately needing their own living space.

A Department of Health spokesman said: “This Government is committed to making sure funding is used effectively right across the health economy.

"That’s why we are giving local authorities access to up to £3.5 billion extra for adult social care by 2020 to make sure the right care is available for people when they are ready to leave hospital, and integrating the health and social care systems for the very first time."