NHS Confederation - Phil McCarvill: Older people's social care urgently needs support
15 Sep 2016 09:06 AM
Responding to the report ‘Social care for older people: Home truths’ by The King’s Fund and the Nuffield Trust, Phil McCarvill, Deputy Director of Policy at the NHS Confederation, said more financial support and leadership is needed.
“Insufficient social care funding is now the most urgent threat to the NHS and the wider health and care system.
“In August we told a Commons Select Committee that too little money is being provided for social care and this is putting increasing pressure on the NHS.
"In the run up to last year’s Spending Review we urged the Government to stop seeing the NHS, social care and public health as three separate funding streams and instead view them as part of a single system. If we are to truly join up health and care then we need to support people to receive the care when and where they need it. Inadequate funding in one part of the system has a profound impact on the other parts to deliver the right care. Without this, local coordination and planning will become increasingly disjointed and the care individuals receive will suffer.
"Our members in, partnership with social care organisations are working hard to transform services in their local communities but it’s vital that the government supports this work by providing the funding social care so desperately needs.”