NHS leaders are calling on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to honour his pledge to fix social care ‘once and for all’ and to set out a timetable for reform.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the Health for Care coalition, led by the NHS Confederation, urges Johnson to address both the immediate social care crisis and the need to put services on a sustainable footing.
The letter warns a second wave of Covid-19 would leave the NHS unable to clear the backlog of routine operations unless there is a “comprehensive and funded plan to support social care services through the winter months”.
In June, more than 50,000 patients had been waiting more than a year for their operations, compared to fewer than 2,000 in February.
“With the potential of a second wave, localised outbreaks, and the challenges of winter ahead, we are now gravely concerned about the ability of social care services to cope,” it said.
The stark message from leading health organisations comes amid warns that patients will end up stranded in hospital because arrangements are not in place in the community or in care homes to support them.
“These difficulties will be compounded by the need to simultaneously provide care and rehabilitation to patients suffering from the long-term effects of Covid-19 and those who have not had Covid-19 but have experienced a decline in health as a result of shielding during lockdown,” the letter said.
The Health for Care coalition sets out four points for reform, including a workforce strategy that encompasses health and care, tackles the recruitment and retention crisis in the sector, and addresses the “serious inadequacies in pay, training and career progression for social care staff”.
The letter also urges care eligibility to be based on need and widened to include both older people and those of working age with unmet or under-met need.
In addition, the coalition calls for a set of measures to support unpaid carers which recognises their contribution to the economy.
The fourth ask urges the government to build stronger ties between the health and social care sectors, and between them and the wide array of community, voluntary and third-sector providers.
“Covid-19 has highlighted the critical role that social care plays in supporting the NHS, but it has also exposed a fractured, understaffed and underfunded system in desperate need of reform,” said Niall Dickson (pictured), chief executive of the NHS Confederation and chair of the Health for Care coalition.
“Social care services urgently need immediate funding to deal with the aftermath of the pandemic and to prepare for the possibility of further localised outbreaks, as well as a long-term plan, which successive governments have failed to deliver,” he added.
