If only I’d known I had a choice, I wouldn’t have come here to the care home.
I could have told them what I really would like, but I just had to fit in with what they wanted. They didn’t say it to my face but I’m sure they had me down as one of those bed blockers. And my family said I must not go on living alone. Read the rest of this article »
The state needs to increase the amount it spends on caring for older people, but there is wide support for a system in which providing care for an individual in old age is the joint financial responsibility of the state and the individual or family. At the second Caring Choices event, in Birmingham on 25 May, three-quarters of participants accepted that a private financial contribution to the costs of care should be part of the funding solution, while one-fifth said that providing care should be the sole responsibility of the state. Read the rest of this article »
Having decided to live in a residential home and arranged which of my treasured lifetime possessions to take with me, I knew it was up to me to adjust to this great change in my lifestyle.
There was naturally some apprehension. However, my lasting impression of my move to the care home is one of extraordinary relief.
I feel relief at knowing help is at hand day and night, relief that I need not feel alone, relief at no more waiting at bus stops in the rain, relief that my family are assured that I am safe and cared for. Read the rest of this article »
Dignity in later life very quickly becomes threatened when older citizens need ongoing care.
Currently, older people have to have their needs assessed separately by several health and care professionals:
At the end of this bewildering adventure, older people and their families are increasingly advised that effectively they’re on their own and responsible for funding their care. More often than not, it is the agency providing care or the care home that has to advise people and their relatives about the true cost of care. Read the rest of this article »
A new survey shows that two-thirds of the public would prefer to see funding for care services assessed by level of need and not based on ability to pay. The YouGov survey, commissioned by the Caring Choices partners, shows a gap between expectation in social care funding and the current reality of the means-tested system.
Today’s edition of Radio 4’s consumer affairs programme You and Yours is on the future of social care. The programme was recorded at the Caring Choices event recently held in Manchester, where the audience put their questions to a panel which included Sir Derek Wanless; Anne Williams of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services; Mervyn Kohler of Help the Aged; Liz Carr, disabled campaigner, broadcaster and comedienne; and Ivan Lewis, the minister responsible for social care.
Details: Radio 4 You and Yours, 12.00pm on Monday 7 May
Full programme details
If you miss the original broadcast you can listen to it online here or read a transcript of the programme.
What are your views on the future funding of long-term care? If you’d like to tell us what you think, please take part in our online survey.
The first Caring Choices event has demonstrated a strong consensus that the government should invest more public funds in social care for older people, but also a growing acceptance that the individual and the family have a joint responsibility with the state for the costs of long-term care. In a wide-ranging debate in Manchester on 26 April 2007, two-thirds of participants recognised that a private contribution was necessary, while one-third said that social care should be the sole responsibility of the state. Read the rest of this article »
