Panorama will focus on the crisis in care this evening describing it as a 'slow motion car crash'.
Alan Long sets out Mears' response to what is undoubtedly a crisis in our care sector from one of the largest providers still in good financial health:
Only around 10% of the already insufficient social care budget reaches front line homecare. This can’t be right when the main health and social care strategy is to look after people in their own homes. Double front line homecare spending now. It will pay for itself immediately, in keeping people out of hospital and residential settings.
The Social Housing Green paper fails to give any priority to specialist housing development, despite the chronic shortfall of this type of housing, which is proven to reduce health and social care costs and improve service user wellbeing. Commit to more specialist housing such as Extra Care now.
The Social Care Green paper has been delayed 6 times. We are passionate about Brexit but fail to give the time and effort to those in this country that need it most today. Publish the way forward now.
Our homecare workers still largely hourly paid and not salaried as with the rest of the health and social care workforce. This reflects lack of investment and fails to deliver to the strategic intent of an integrated health and social care workforce. Commit to treating homecare workers like other health and social care workers now.
Local Government commissioning of homecare services remains one of paying for minutes spent in a service users home. Travel time is not paid directly and rates paid are in no way linked to the quality of care delivered. Services are also delivered in silos with service users often confused about who is doing what. Commission joined up homecare service now and pay for the full time it takes to deliver a service.