Continuing Health Care - Preparing to fight PCT's decision

cohentb

Hi CHC Scandal

Thanks for the info. I agree it's terrible the way they try and hide from their obligations. I will ask for the county court rate . i hadn't heard that we could claim for redress so will check out the websites you mention.I feel the same as you. If they are changing the system then they need to be honest and up front. In the meantime they should be meeting their obligations. When you go in to hospital here they give you a little booklet. All about care homes and LA assessments. NO mention of CHC.They try and pretend it doesn't exist. It makes my blood boil.
Anyway, Thanks again for the info.

margaretclare

cohentb wrote: »

Hi CHC Scandal

Thanks for the info. I agree it's terrible the way they try and hide from their obligations. I will ask for the county court rate . i hadn't heard that we could claim for redress so will check out the websites you mention.I feel the same as you. If they are changing the system then they need to be honest and up front. In the meantime they should be meeting their obligations. When you go in to hospital here they give you a little booklet. All about care homes and LA assessments. NO mention of CHC.They try and pretend it doesn't exist. It makes my blood boil.
Anyway, Thanks again for the info.

DH and I have both been hospital in-patients over the past few years, the most recent was him, of course - 4th knee replacement, February this year, following septicaemia due to an infected knee replacement last October.

We've never been given a booklet like that!

cohentb

It probably varies from different PCTs. Also on the type of ward. This was on a heart/stroke general medical ward. With lots of elderly ill. It was called "Planning for Discharge" and given out on admission!

margaretclare

cohentb wrote: »

It probably varies from different PCTs. Also on the type of ward. This was on a heart/stroke general medical ward. With lots of elderly ill. It was called "Planning for Discharge" and given out on admission!

Well neither of us has been on that type of ward but one might suppose that 'planning for discharge' was a common factor for all types of hospital admission.

Savvy_Sue

cohentb wrote: »

It probably varies from different PCTs. Also on the type of ward. This was on a heart/stroke general medical ward. With lots of elderly ill. It was called "Planning for Discharge" and given out on admission!

Far better to give it out on admission than wait until the day before!

I've always had some kind of leaflet detailing what I should and shouldn't do post-op, including how many hours I should leave it before I boil a kettle to make my own tea. That's always been post-anaesthetic. I thought 48 hours after minor gynae surgery was a bit OTT, but there you go.

greenflamingo_2

Just received letter from IRP basically upholding PCT decision as "sound". However the IRP could only investigate the period when my fil was assessed, so ignoring any deterioration and new medical decisions over the past 9 months. They have changed the number of high needs now to 4 High Needs. He was originally assessed with the DST and MDT as 3 High Needs and the PCT Eligibility Panel changed it to none !

We are now having to start the whole process again covering the period after the initial assessment and are hoping to get 5 High Needs as he is doubly incontinent (the assessment ruled "No Needs"). We also managed to get a letter from his GP saying that he had an inguinal hernia and with a tiny risk of strangulation which could not be operated upon due to his existing medical conditions.

The IRP has sent us a acknowgement to fill in and I quote:

"I confirm that I have received the Independent Review Outcome Letter and Report"

"I accept the findings and will be taking no further action"

OR

"I do not accept the findings"

Each of these options has a tickbox next to it. I would welcome advice on what to put as I do not trust anything from the NHS. I am pleased that we have an additional "high needs" but intend to begin the whole process again. I am thinking of just ticking the confirmation of the letter and report box and nothing else as I do not want to sign something that may compromise further action.

Any advice welcomed on what to do ?

LittleVoice

Surely you would tick for both having received the letter/report and that you don't accept the findings. Why would that prejudice further action?

greenflamingo_2

It seems rather ambigious to me in that if I put down I do not accept the findings of the IRP then the next step I think is the Ombudsman who will probably refuse to look at the case as some of the medical issues happened after his first assessment.
Or am I wrong here and can still request a review by the PCT?

Unfortunately the IRP is very inflexible and if you produce evidence of medical deterioration after the first assessment has been done it will not look at it until the PCT has done another review of the patient. So basically back to square one and starting all over again - this time from the first day after his first assessment period. And yet more feet dragging by the PCT and reports by so called medical assessors who dont even look at the nursing home records of the patient they are supposed to be assessing!

It all seems designed to keep you running around in circles and taking forever to resolve. However, we are determined to keep going for as long as it takes.

mike88

Thanks very much to those who offered me such helpful advice in connection with my claim for my mother's Nursing Home fees. My claim was successful and the whole process took less than 3 months to complete. Having said that I can't imagine anyone being more eligible for such expenses on health grounds but without information from this site I would not have known that such a claim could be made.

Biggles

I was about to post in this thread to ask for advice regarding my mother. The situation is now resolved, but I'll outline it below just in case it adds to the overall picture.

The situation was that she deteriorated in her care home some time before christmas, later diagnosed as due to a stroke, and had another stroke early Jan, passing away peacefully mid-Jan.

The PCT weren't helpful and nothing was offered or suggested. They took their time and had to be asked and reminded several times, which was worrying because the longer it went on the harder it would be to make a case (due to care staff changing, forgetting etc, medical records moving on and so forth) but finally they have recently agreed full NHSCC from 1 December.

The family are satisfied with that, as we didn't really believe she had any case prior to December.