Elderly missing out on meals in social care fiasco
ONE in five people cared for in their own homes have gone without meals and felt unsafe moving around without assistance, a report reveals.
The survey, by a group of charities, also found that two fifths were unable to leave their home without help.
More than a quarter of families with someone who needs care said their relative had been unable to cope with washing or dressing, the survey for the Care and Support Alliance found.
The campaign group said the social care system was failing to provide carers for those who could live at home but needed help with daily routines.
The research also provided the latest indicator of the scale of bed blocking, in which thousands of older patients whose treatment in hospital has ended continue to occupy beds because there is no care package available for them at home.
It found that one in eight families have a loved one who has had to stay in hospital because they were too frail to go home without care, and there was no one to look after them. The findings were gathered from a survey of nearly 4,000 people who need care, as well as the family members who provide it.
The alliance of more than 80 charities including Age UK, Scope and the Alzheimer’s Society, blamed the Government for failing to put more money into social care.
The Government is expected to put forward a social care initiative in a Green Paper by the end of July. Government support for social care at home has been falling since the early 2000s.
The report yesterday said the number of adults who get care at home fell by a quarter in four years after 2010, and more than £6billion has been taken out of the care budgets of councils.
The fall in levels of care at home has come alongside the development of the 15-minute visit – in which care workers are required to provide all necessary assistance for a vulnerable person in a quarter of an hour.
Of the 3,915 people surveyed, one said her mother was not given lunch, but was left cold soup by her bed.
Mark Lever, co- chairman of the alliance, said: ‘The stories of frustration and heartache we heard are all too common.
‘Regardless of someone’s condition or age, people should be getting care so they can live safely and with dignity. The Government must ensure the upcoming Green Paper proposes effective ways of meeting the country’s social care needs and urgent funding is also required.’