Advice needed - elderly friend needs to go into care

nimbo

bugslet wrote: »

2. It's £23.5k here as well that you get to keep and I understood that was a national level ( though I'm not an expert on it).

.

nationally the figure that would be taken into account is £23,250 exactly

then for everything over £13 k (ish) they charge £1 for each £250 you have...

Goldiegirl

The hospital wouldn't discharge her to go home alone if they feel she couldn't cope. They have social workers who deal with this sort of situation.

Now that she's 'in the system', they will be looking after her, and when she's well enough to leave hospital, they'll be talking to her about care arrangements. They'll make the best possible arrangements for her, taking into account her personal circumstances.

nimbo

meritaten wrote: »

There does come a point when a persons 'agreement' can be overridden.
are you in contact with the hospital hun? who is her 'next of kin' on her notes?

The hospital should not be sharing this kind of information with you, it goes against all kinds of rules and regulations they should have in place...

URM no there isn't. Unless she is deemed to not have the capacity. his is difficult, and she doesn't seem to be 'mad' just set in her ways. Her next of kin would have no say in this, it would have to be done by a medical professional, as there is no way this woman needs sectioning.

If this woman has capacity as defined under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 - then she would have to be supported in making a bad decision. People wish to remain in their own homes for all sorts of reasons - they may not seem logical to us, but that doesn't mean they're wrong.

She needs to have an assessment of needs carried out (call adult social services), and if she is deemed to have critical (and in some cases substantial - eligibility is a local decision) needs then the council has to meet them.

She can refuse to pay, but they cannot withdraw services or refuse to provide them if they meet the eligibility criteria locally (once they have been identified). They can work to recoup the monies however... Community Care Act 1990 / Fair Access to Care DoH 2010 / 11 (sorry can't quote the name of that one it's long)...

Any medical care needs should have the costs met under the Continuing Care Act (NHS) sorry can't remember the year but it may be 1990...

If she wishes to remain in her own home than there is nothing that can be done if she is deemed to have capacity, and with no underlying issues of dementia, and from what has been described here there is no reason to think that she does not have this...

nimbo

Goldiegirl wrote: »

The hospital wouldn't discharge her to go home alone if they feel she couldn't cope. They have social workers who deal with this sort of situation.

Now that she's 'in the system', they will be looking after her, and when she's well enough to leave hospital, they'll be talking to her about care arrangements. They'll make the best possible arrangements for her, taking into account her personal circumstances.

the hospital have a need to discharge if medically necessary - the council would have to fund any excess bed days if they have not got a care plan in place...

hospitals follow the medical model of care not the social model of care...

they will not keep her any longer than is medically necessary - sorry.

If she refuses to allow access to services than the actions open to the social worker are very limited.

A person has the right to make poor decisions - why is this woman so against the concept of having a person come into help her?

Person_one

nimbo wrote: »

the hospital have a need to discharge if medically necessary - the council would have to fund any excess bed days if they have not got a care plan in place...

hospitals follow the medical model of care not the social model of care...

they will not keep her any longer than is medically necessary - sorry.

Trust me, hospitals regularly have to hold on to elderly people who are medically fit to be discharged but have nowhere safe to go yet.

Torry_Quine

nimbo wrote: »

the hospital have a need to discharge if medically necessary - the council would have to fund any excess bed days if they have not got a care plan in place...

hospitals follow the medical model of care not the social model of care...

they will not keep her any longer than is medically necessary - sorry.

If she refuses to allow access to services than the actions open to the social worker are very limited.

A person has the right to make poor decisions - why is this woman so against the concept of having a person come into help her?

Not so.

The local authority does not fund people in hospital, in fact one of the reasons people stay in hospital longer than medically required is due to lack of funding for social care.

nimbo

Torry_Quine wrote: »

Not so.

The local authority does not fund people in hospital, in fact one of the reasons people stay in hospital longer than medically required is due to lack of funding for social care.

if through not organising another place for them to go yes the local authority does

Delayed Discharges (Continuing Care) Act 2007

nimbo

Person_one wrote: »

Trust me, hospitals regularly have to hold on to elderly people who are medically fit to be discharged but have nowhere safe to go yet.

you obviously have a wonderful hospital, and local authority having worked for the NHS, and then the LA where I live this never happened at either end for people in my area...

Also now training as a social worker all lecturers and guest lecturers have stressed the horrid situations that arise when a person is medically fit for discharge and will not accept services that they try to set up for them on discharge....

Mojisola

Person_one wrote: »

Trust me, hospitals regularly have to hold on to elderly people who are medically fit to be discharged but have nowhere safe to go yet.

This happened last year with my Dad.

The funding panel of the LA wanted him to go home with a care package in place. The hospital refused to discharge him because they said he needed to go into residential care.

We had to move him into a residential home and he paid privately.

When he was reassessed after having been in the care home a month or so, the funding panel finally agreed that he did need to be there.

Savvy_Sue

Goldiegirl wrote: »

Now that she's 'in the system', they will be looking after her, and when she's well enough to leave hospital, they'll be talking to her about care arrangements. They'll make the best possible arrangements for her, taking into account her personal circumstances.

Trouble is, she may not be entirely truthful. "Oh, I'll be fine, my neighbour comes in every day and brings me a meal" when actually all the neighbour wants to do is pop in once a week ...