Comments on: Assessment and choice in long-term care

By: AM

AM — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:47:44 +0000

I work in a PCT where there is only one assessment of people’s needs in Nursing Homes – this covers the social work assessment, Eligibility for NHS Continuing Care and if necessary the Registered Nursing Care Contributions. 3 assessments aren’t necessary!

By: David Cole

David Cole — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 12:01:05 +0000

Of course, there should be a clear distinction between choice and selection. We choose to satisfy a want, we select to fulfil a need. An instrument for unified assessment partially exists in the National Framework’s decision support tool for Continuing Healthcare. It addresses eleven “domains” of care and each domain is given a heuristic set of rules from which the assessor must make a subjective judgement. The principle could be converted to be quantified and described in a way easily understood, so that the average person is made aware of the 1 in 5 risk of a score, increasing as age increases to a care-critical level. This may inspire acceptance that the sooner something is done the better. Whether an objective decision would then be to purchase private insurance, or to approve specifically dedicated collection of premiums through the tax or national insurance system, remains a matter for continuing debate.

By: Teresa Richards

Teresa Richards — Fri, 25 May 2007 09:36:12 +0000

I agree with the article when it says that the assessment process is in need of change and simplification. I take issue with the statment that some people choose budget care as we would choose a budget airline. I think this is untrue. Many elderly people are forced to choose so called budget care because they have no other option. Elderly care is the ultimate post code health care system.

By: Roger Hook

Roger Hook — Tue, 22 May 2007 13:39:14 +0000

Very helpful, brief and clear article showing how simple the issues really are. Trouble is the government is frightened to address those issues. In much the same way that it is running from the issue of Council Tax and local authority funding, the government is continually postponing any decisions on long-term care. However, the longer it is left to drift, the harder the decisions will be!

By: Jacqui Greenfield

Jacqui Greenfield — Mon, 21 May 2007 20:42:41 +0000

Really refreshing to see the whole complex mess described so succinctly and clearly.
I take it that the common assessment framework does not apply to people needing residential care? I wonder if there is local authority and health service that have even began to make a start on consolidating the processes as much as they are able.