The National Care Forum (NCF), a leading association for not-for-profit social care and support organizations, has responded to the recent announcement from the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the Rt. Hon. Steve Barclay MP, regarding emergency funding for hospital discharges.
In a statement, Professor Vic Rayner OBE, CEO of the NCF, acknowledged that the funding was welcome and that care homes can and do make a real difference in enabling people to leave the acute system, gain support and rehabilitation, and then continue their journey home. However, she also emphasized the importance of strategic thinking in this process, noting that this is a response to a crisis that is years in the making.
To that end, the NCF is calling on the government to turn this crisis into an effective care response, and has outlined five principles to guide this effort:
1. Care providers must be at the ICB decision making table. Care organizations have a strategic role in ensuring communities and people get the care and support they need. Local health and care crises should not be discussed without the participation of care providers, who can be equal partners in the commissioning process. This requires a strategic approach that recognizes the importance of high-quality care providers and enables them to be part of the long-term solution.
2. Fund the discharge at a level that enables care providers to pay their staff a wage that reflects their expertise and skill. Care providers deserve to be compensated fairly, and underfunding has resulted in high levels of vacancies and staff turnover. Providing adequate funding will help ensure that care providers are able to recruit and retain skilled staff.
3. Plan for March 2024, not just March 2023. The crisis is a long-term problem that requires a long-term solution. Organizations should be able to take on new staff, invest in new facilities and develop in-house rehabilitative resources, but this requires planning and certainty. Without a long-term vision, the funding will be consumed by short-term fixes and not lead to a sustainable solution.
4. Wrap the rehabilitative resource around the individual. Discharge from hospital should be supported by skilled physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and social workers to ensure that individuals are properly supported as they transition from hospital to home or care setting.
5. Invest in prevention. People would rather stay at home than go to hospital. Preventing hospitalization in the first place is key to addressing the long-term problem, and this requires addressing delays in assessment, ensuring social care funding addresses more than just acute needs, and addressing challenges around access to primary care.
In conclusion, the National Care Forum welcomes the emergency funding announced for hospital discharges, but highlights that this is a long-term crisis that requires a strategic and long-term solution. Care providers must be included in the decision-making process, and funding must be adequate to compensate staff, adequate planning and certainty should be given, support should be given to the individual and investment should be made in prevention. These principles will help the government turn the crisis into an effective care response that addresses the long-term problem and ensures that individuals receive the care and support they need as they transition out of the acute system.
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