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| Finding care Who Organises Care | Assessment | Care Plans | Choosing a Care Home | Monitoring Care | Complaints |
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Many families feel guilty about moving a relative or close friend into a care home, yet some people are actually happier being around other people and knowing that they will get regular meals and medical attention. They may actually feel more independent when they no longer have to rely on family or friends to take care of them. Still it isn't an easy choice and this section has been developed to help you, the users and purchasers of nursing and residential care, to choose a care home and to seek the highest standards of service from providers. The right choice can only be made if you users and purchasers are well informed and have the confidence to demand high standards. There are several hundred nursing and residential care homes in West Sussex, all of which are regulated by either the West Sussex County Council Social Services Department, the West Sussex Health Authority or both if the home is dual registered. However, from 1st April 2002 all care homes will be registered by The National Care Standards Commission. |
Sometimes admission to a care home, either for convalescence or a longer stay, may need to be organised in a hurry. Particularly if the person needing care is in hospital after an illness that prevents them from going home immediately or has been assessed by the hospital medical team as needing long term care in a residential or nursing home. There are so many things to do - sorting out finances, choosing and visiting homes and making decisions about which one to choose. At caringinfo.com our aim is to give you as much information as we can on the choices open to you. But above all be realistic. It is unlikely that one home will provide everything you hope for. Some decisions that will be taken will be based on practical aspects of providing care and may have nothing to do with what you would prefer in terms of home comfort. The following brief guide is presented in sections that take you in easy stages through the various steps in reaching your goal of finding the right care home. Refer to our "Jargon Buster" for brief explanations of some of the common terms that you will hear used by medical and care professionals. Who organises care? If you are living at home, the NHS professionals that you are the most likely to see are your family doctor or your community nurse If you are in hospital and are looking for care at home or a care in a residential or nursing home before you can be discharged there will probably be doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists and social workers concerned with your care. They should be involved in discharge planning, and will decide whether you need continuing care or community care. Care Assessments A care assessment, sometimes called a needs assessment, helps the care manager to decide what social, nursing and medical care a person needs. If you are in hospital, your care manager should carry out the care assessment with hospital staff. The care manager will organise a case conference with these people to discuss your needs. If you are at home, the care manager may ask for information from your family doctor, district nurse, or other health service staff who care for you. It will be easier to get answers to the more difficult questions if you are closely involved in the assessment processes. You should be able to see copies of the assessment and care plan Care Plans The care manager uses all the information in the assessment to decide on the care plan. A care plan is a written description of the level of care someone needs and can expect to receive. A complete care plan should include a goal for everything that is being assessed. The home you choose should receive a copy of this assessment, but you would expect staff at a good care home to carry out their own assessment and then to plan the care they will provide. A nursing and residential care plan should be regularly reviewed Each resident will have a different care plan. The assessment leading to the home’s care plan will be more detailed than the one carried out by social services, although the same points are included. What to look for in choosing a care home The choice of a residential or nursing home for oneself, a relative or a valued friend can be one of the most difficult decisions a person must face but what are some of the practical points to look out for? Listed below are questions that we feel should be asked when visiting a potential residential or nursing home: There may be other questions that you wish to ask and the home should supply answers that satisfy your every doubt or uncertainty. There should be no trace of secrecy or evasiveness if the home is being run properly. Visit as many homes as you can. Once you have walked around and decided if the atmosphere is what you would like, use this final checklist. What the staff should ask you on your first visit: (if not, and you like the home, ask if you can do these things) For those choosing a home for a relative or a friend: Can we visit your relative / friend to make our first assessment? (A good home will want to meet the potential resident before accepting them). The bottom line: Visit more than one care home and visit more than once. Ask a lot of questions and trust your own feelings about the places you visit. Care Monitoring and Assessment Your individual needs must be regularly and routinely assessed. Staff should be able to tell you how often assessments and care plans are reviewed. There should be clear responsibility for assessment and care plans and, if nursing care is provided, this responsibility should lie with a nurse. Relatives and friends involved in the care of a resident should make regular appointments with the resident’s care manager so that they can keep up to date with what is happening, and with what changes, if any, need to be made. Formal meetings to discuss care are better than informal chats in the hallway. If you find some of the technical terms baffling, don’t be afraid to ask for a simpler explanation. If you think that you are not being told everything, write down a list of questions to ask your care manager. If she or he cannot answer them, arrange to meet again when they have obtained the answers. What if I'm not satisfied with the care ? In the first instance raise your concerns with the manager of your care home. All care homes should have a written complaint procedure, in the event that you are unable to resolve your concern, and this will tell you which agencies you can contact for further advice. In the unlikely event that you are unable to resolve your complaint, the care home's complaints procedure will tell you how to get in touch with the Local Government Ombudsman. Guidance on how to make a complaint about a service can be obtained from: The National Care Standards Commission West Sussex Area Office, Ridgeworth House, Liverpool Gardens, Worthing, West Sussex BN11 1RY Tel: 01903 222950 |
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