B&BS taking recuperating patients is ‘not ruled out’

A HEALTH minister has said he would not rule out the NHS paying bed and breakfast owners to take in recuperating patients and free up hospital beds.

Philip Dunne said ministers and health bosses “can’t close our minds to looking at new ways of doing things”.

It comes after a hospital backed down over plans to offer home owners £1,000 a month to host discharged patients in their spare rooms.

But Mr Dunne suggested such an idea could be workable if B&B owners had “relevant experience” in healthcare while others could be given training to enable them to offer the service.

It was reported last week that startup company Carerooms had been in talks with NHS trusts and councils in Essex to link up members of the public with patients who have had a minor procedure, such as a knee operation, but who live alone without support.

Then, after a backlash over potential safety risks, Southend Hospital in Essex said it had “no intention… to support the pilot at this time”.

Mr Dunne’s comments are likely to reignite the debate over the viability of such an initiative. He told Pienaar’s Politics on BBC Radio 5 Live: “This is an isolated case. They are trying something new. We can’t close our minds to looking at new ways of doing things.”

Asked if he believed it could be a good idea, he replied: “I wouldn’t immediately reject it. I think one has got to trial different things. I think Southend Hospital has said they are not ready to do this at the moment.”

Mr Dunne said discharging patients to untrained people “wouldn’t be a good thing”. He added: “Any discharges for patients who need care other than care with their normal living requirements will need to be trained.”

Mr Dunne said “there may be some specialists who have the relevant experience”, like nurse training or employment in a residential care facility, who could set up such a facility.

Asked if he believed other people could be trained in order to offer the service, he said: “They would have to get it. We are talking very hypothetically here because this is not happening. It is an idea. Also I think it is worth making the point we are not talking about people who have major health needs, we are talking about people who may have had minor procedures.”