Daily Mail Exposes Cost of Discharge Delays to the Public Purse
The National Care Association has responded to a recent The Daily Mail which lays bare the reality of serious failings in the health system which has a direct impact on the lives of real people needing care and attention.
The NHS spends approximately £2.6 billion annually on patients who remain in hospital beds despite being medically ready for discharge, with insufficient social care resources identified as the primary cause of these hold-ups, according to newly released official data.
NHS England has published its first calculations showing that discharge delays for medically cleared patients result in monthly expenses of roughly £220 million.
The organization estimates each unnecessary overnight hospital stay at £562, noting that nearly 391,000 patients remained in facilities beyond the point their physicians deemed medically appropriate during September.
Whilst the government continues to invest billions into a healthcare system struggling with structural challenges, it is failing to consider viable alternatives, according to industry representatives. They argue that investment in the social care system could provide a significant solution to the growing crisis.
In a statement, the National Care Association said it is “appalled” by the wastage of public funds outlined in recent reports, which it believes underestimate the true scale of the problem. With Local Authorities commissioning social care at approximately £800 per week, the organisation argues that utilising social care services would deliver substantial cost savings. “This really is not rocket science,” the Association stated.
The National Care Association has reiterated that the social care sector does have capacity across the country, but claims Local Authorities are not accessing it due to a complex funding framework of their own design. “Creating complex frameworks for the cheapest options has become an art for commissioners,” the organisation observed.
The Association also raised concerns that Continuing Healthcare Assessments are not being applied in the best interests of eligible individuals. It described the system as one where eligibility criteria are complex, opaque to the public, and applied inconsistently across the country.
Nadra Ahmed CBE, EC of National Care Association said:
‘Social Care remains the solution to ensuring that those who need care and can access it in a timely manner in their best interest. We cannot continue to pour money into a broken NHS systems led approach which continues to fail those who need care and support. The reality is our NHS colleagues should concentrate on acute care and funding should be made available through their budgets and government settlements to invest on the social care solutions.’
