<< Go Back
 

Care for elderly 'let down by fragmented system'

Older people are being let down by a social care system in which they are "passed like a parcel" between services, a committee of MPs has said.

The Commons health select committee wants local areas in England to deliver "joined-up" care, health and housing.

Funding pressures were reducing older people's quality of life, MPs added.

The government said "urgent reform of the care and support system is needed", and that it was creating the conditions for more integration.

The committee's report said that the Health and Social Care Bill - currently making its way through Parliament - would not simplify a fragmented system in England.

Rather than the current system of multiple funding sources, the MPs are calling for a single local body with the power to commission health, support services and housing.

The precise model would depend on local circumstances, they suggest.

The committee says in its report: "Despite repeated attempts to 'bridge' the gap between the NHS and social care... little by way of integration has been achieved over a 40-year period.

"These separate systems are inefficient and lead to poorer outcomes for older people."

Funding gap denied 
 
Evidence was cited in the report that services which worked together to help keep older people well could potentially save the NHS £2.65 for every £1 spent by, for example, avoiding emergency admissions to hospital.
 
To read the full article please click here
 
 
Article from the BBC News Website, Author Jane Dreaper http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16910795
 
<< Go Back
Agent Login
Sponsored By...
Sitemap