Take loved ones home from hospital
HEALTH bosses in West Wales are urging families who are able to take loved ones home from hospital and care for them to do so in an effort to ease pressure on the NHS.
Across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire, Hywel Dda University Health Board said there is currently an “unprecedented demand on health and social care services which is leading to significant delays in care provision”.
Difficulties in discharging people who no longer need medical care from hospital – many of whom have complex personal circumstances and needs – is leading to significant bed shortages and lengthy ambulance waits at A&E departments, which means paramedics are unable to respond to other 999 calls in the community.
Social care and health teams are doing everything possible to support people who are well enough to leave hospital but need ongoing care.
Priority is being given to the most vulnerable, and alternative health and care packages are being offered as a short-term measure. More carers and health staff are also being recruited to support people in need.
The advice from Hywel Dda is that anyone with a relative or loved one in hospital who is well enough to go home, but is waiting to be discharged with homecare and community support, to consider if they can help them to get home more quickly.
Health bosses suggest some families may be in a position to support relatives at home or even placing them into temporary residential or nursing care.
Hywel Dda argues that spending as little time in hospital is better for patients and means beds can be freed up for others with urgent care needs.
Supporting older patients to get home from hospital efficiently is an important part of their recovery and it also protects them from negative consequences of hospital admission, such as hospital acquired infection, falls and a loss of independence.
To help alleviate pressures at its hospital sites, the health board has opened a number of same day emergency care (SDEC) units, which people may be referred into if they have a condition that can be seen and treated quickly, without necessarily requiring hospital admission.
Hywel Dda’s director of nursing, quality and patient experience, Mandy Rayani, said: “We are dealing with a combination of high numbers of attendances, particularly in our Emergency Departments, and challenges in health professional staffing.
“Our GP practices and hospitals are busy and while many of the Covid regulations have been removed, we still need to follow specific requirements for the safe treatment of those patients with Covid-19 and those without.
“We are working with our local authorities as there are difficulties in discharging some patients due to similar staffing challenges the social care sector is facing. This means we have very limited beds available to accommodate patients who need admission.
“Our teams are helping patients by their clinical priority, but this does mean that in some cases, waits in our emergency departments are hours long and far in excess of what we would strive to deliver.
“If you need medical help, please think carefully about the services you choose.”
People are asked to only attend an emergency department if they have a life-threatening illness or serious injury, such as:
Severe breathing difficulties Severe pain or bleeding Chest pain or a suspected stroke Serious trauma injuries (eg. from a car crash)
If you have a less serious injury then please visit of the health board’s minor injury units.
They can treat adults and children over 12 months of age, with injuries such as:
Minor wounds
Minor burns or scalds
Insect bites
Minor limb, head, or face injuries Foreign bodies in the nose or ear