Care & Healthcare "Self-funders" - alone and neglected by the care system
31/07/2008
A new report from the The Relatives & Residents Association (R&RA) has shown that many older people seeking help and advice from their local councils on self-funding when thinking of moving into the care system are frequently neglected.
More Stories
Hospital parking – a stealth tax too far
I empathise with Peter Nassan (MT June), and I am sure with thousands of others regarding the disgraceful parking charges levied on the sick and their relatives by NHS hospitals.
Care fees: who should be paying the bills?
Every year tens of thousands of people are forced to sell their homes to pay for care fees. But should they really be paying at all when their needs are primarily medical? In the first of a series of articles for Mature Times, John Harrison - a specialist lawyer with 23 years’ experience in the field of asset protection - shares his knowledge of “the system”. We’ll hear about the ploys that some less than scrupulous local authorities use to persuade people to part with their money. The names have been changed, but the cases are real.
1966 hero's plea: don't leave prostate treatment to chance
World Cup legend Sir Geoff Hurst, MBE, backed by leading doctors, MPs and patient groups is appealing for all men with prostate cancer to get access to the best care as it has emerged 7 out of 10 with advanced disease do not receive chemotherapy despite being eligible for treatment.
London hit hardest by government's 'flawed' social care funding
Millions of pounds of funding for social care could be taken out of London and the South East by "flawed government funding mechanisms".
Right care Right deal: The future of social care
There is a growing consensus that the social care system is in crisis. Under-funded and misunderstood - the care and support system in the UK has become a distress service, meeting only the needs of the poorest and most debilitated. Paul Cann, Director of Policy at Help The Aged, explains how a new campaign is calling for nothing less than a revolution in social care.
Over a million protest against polyclinics proposals
Dr Laurence Buckman, chairman of the British Medical Association's GPs Committee has delivered a petition to 10 Downing Street with
1,236,085 signatures of patients and the public urging the government to support and invest in the current model of NHS general practice - and not polyclinics.
A million male pensioners live alone, says Help the Aged
A study by charity Help the Aged shows that more than one million male pensioners are living alone in Britain, with close to half of them saying they feel lonely and trapped in their own home. The research also found that widowhood and divorce meant older men often lost contact with relatives - who are increasingly likely to live some distance away.
GPs still prescribing psychotic drugs for dementia patients
The BBC's File On 4 has questioned more than 355 GPs and discovered that more than half are regularly prescribing the powerful psychiatric drugs risperidone and olanzapine to elderly dementia patients - despite a safety warning issued four years ago.
New “end of life” good practice guide launched
National charity Counsel and Care has launched a new good practice guide on end of life care in care homes for older people.
Call for overhaul of social care
Council leaders across the UK have said that care and support systems must be "significantly simplified and adequately funded" to meet the challenges of an ageing population and to ensure that disabled and older people get the care they expect and deserve.
A significant step for carers - but the important questions are still unanswered
The Government has announced its 'National Strategy For Carers' - a new £255 million drive to improve the lives of carers specifically aimed at increasing the amount of respite care. But the real problem - the paltry £50 a week Carer's Allowance and the lowest benefit of its kind in the UK - has not been addressed.
An end to the Blue Badge postcode lottery?
For many months Mature Times' readers have been commenting on the use, abuse and availability of Blue Badges. Meanwhile, the Commons Transport Committee admitted today that the award of blue badges had become a "postcode lottery", and that the adherence by local councils to Blue Badge operating guidelines was "patchy". They have therefore called for a review of the eligibility criteria to take in a wider range of people with mobility difficulties.
NHS at 60: ask the patients - but will they be heard?
As the NHS prepares to celebrate its 60th birthday on July 5th, we are asking readers to tell us what YOU feel about the service: its achievements over six decades, your experiences of treatment - and what you would like to see for the future.
Have YOUR say in two public consultations affecting older care
Having been a casualty of the loopholes in the Care Standards Act 2000 when my late mother was living out her days in a care home, I would strongly urge Mature Times readers to make sure their voices are heard on matters concerning future care standards in the UK.
