Families lose faith in care homes
CARE homes have such a bad reputation that more than a third of families would refuse point blank to consider placing an ageing relative in one, says a survey.
Home care specialist HomeTouch also found that two in five (39 per cent) would only do so if there was no other option.
And almost half (45 per cent) had no trust in the overall running of or quality of care homes in the UK.
The report also found people woefully unprepared for the cost of caring for their elderly parents.
Most think the annual bill will be around £19,000 – the reality is £52,000.
Two elderly parents who need care could run up bills of as much as £520,000 over a five year period. Dr Jamie Wilson, founder and chief of HomeTouch, said: “We believe the root cause relates to quality of staffing.
“A care home may receive £450 a week from a Local Authority for each resident. For a 30-bed care home this equates to £13,500 a week.
“But after overheads of rents, utilities, management etc are covered, this leaves very low amounts to cover staffing which means staff are paid at minimum wage. Ultimately delivering a regulated healthcare service to vulnerable people requires motivated, skilled and committed staff.
“Realistically good care cannot be provided in a care home setting below £700 to 800 a week.”
The findings come after latest data from the Care Quality Commission watchdog deemed nearly a third of residential care homes inadequate or in need of improvement.
More than 20,000 allegations of abuse by care home workers against the elderly and vulnerable have been made in the last three years, according to Freedom of Information figures obtained by the BBC.
Of the claims, 12,000 were of neglect, more than 3,000 were of physical abuse, 2,400 were of psychological abuse and 400 were of sexual abuse.
Some elderly people were left for days without proper medication.
TAKE NOTE...BRITONS STILL PREFER TO PAY CASH
CASH is still king for UK consumers with two in three uncomfortable with a “cashless” society.
Pensioners are the age group most worried about a reliance on cards and digital banking.
Whereas a cashless society is most appealing to those aged 25 to 34, says research by Mintel.
One in seven Britons now no longer carry or use cash, compared to one in 25 in 2005. And 55 per cent of purchases were made by card in 2016, compared to 35 per cent a decade ago.
However the top three methods used between February and April this year were cash, “chip and pin” debit card and direct debit or standing order.
Patrick Ross from Mintel said: “Alternative payment methods continue to grow, but the demise of cash has been greatly exaggerated. Cash continues to play an important role in life.”