Covid-19 has exacerbated the social care crisis – but a national service isn’t the answer
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When we talk about the NHS, the National Health Service were assume it is a national service. To some extent it is, as it covers the whole UK, but not exactly in every area.
The Government funding is paid over to CCGs, Clinical Commissioning Groups, and there is one for every area of the UK. It is these CCGs who decide how the funding is allocated to each aspect of health, be they hospitals, primary care (Doctors, Dentists,etc), various community services and others. Certain aspects of health will be funded to varying degrees by the CCGs, so in effect while the NHS is portrayed as a National service, it is in reality a Local service and there is no reason why Social Care could be done so.
Whatever is done the responsibility needs to be taken away from Local Authorities and really needs separate authorities of its own in the various areas of the UK, thereby having sole access to funding, which will be distributed according to local demands and needs.
What is essential is that the funding needs to be sufficient for each areas demands and needs, which again will be difficult.
For Local Authority Social Services, when they are conducting Assessments of Need they should have been recording all needs whether they could or could not be funded. However, in reality many Social Workers have been restricting needs by only recording the needs which have a realistic chance of being funded.
So using this information will, if the intention is to fully fund Social Care so all needs can be met, be insufficient, as there will be needs which have not been recorded. This is a disgrace, while the Social workers will feel they are being helpful to not give persons in need of care false hopes.
But first we need a Government commitment to really solve the crisis in Social Care, but this is not anywhere on the horizon and I feel it will never be, because this Government and in fact any Government, do not fully understand the need for Social Care, as they to are more concerned about funding, (Money) rather than actual need. This is because they have no knowledge of Social Care and why it is required by the most vulnerable people within the UK.
This is evident by their actions on the Welfare State, the Benefits system.
They believe their own hype that there needs to be no skill in delivering Social Care, when there is a great deal of skill for Social Care to be delivered correctly on the basis of good quality care.
It is not just delivery of care whether it be in Care Homes, Home Care, Supported Living, Respite Care, Hospices, etc because as well as care delivery, there needs to be an understand of the person to whom care is being delivered to, emotional support, the ability to adjust care, etc to how each person is in any particular point in time, as people in need of care are not automatons, they are human beings and have a range of emotions and feelings which could change day by day, hour by hour, etc.
Unfortunately, much of the care is delivered as though persons in need of care are automatons, devoid of feelings, emotions and especially choice. This then leads to poor quality care and a feeling that you are not respected.
The above are some of my thoughts and there is a major crisis in Social Care, which is why I created the petition, Solve the crisis in Social Care, https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/solve-the-crisis-in-social-care .
This petition highlights some of the problems which were and are creating the crisis and further information can be found https://www.dropbox.com/s/v8h8caytwwh3beq/Solve%20the%20crisis%20in%20Social%20Care%20%208.docx?dl=0
Hopefully if and when sufficient signatures are obtained the Government will sit up and notice, for sometimes miracles do happen.
But firstly Social Care needs YOU, so please sign and share the petition.
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