Trusts ‘failing’ the elderly

Apr 14 2008 by Jule Wilson, The Journal

ATTEMPTS to end the postcode lottery over who gets continuing NHS healthcare have failed, according to figures obtained by the charity Age Concern.

Figures for the three months after new guidelines came into force showed there were still big differences around the country in the numbers of older people who are paying for healthcare that should be free.

Continuing healthcare is funded by local Primary Care Trusts (PCT) when most of an individual’s care needs are classed as medical as opposed to social, in which case the funding would be the responsibility of the local authority.

Following an overhaul of the framework by which it is decided if an individual is entitled to receive continuing NHS healthcare, Age Concern said the numbers accessing it should have increased.

But it names Newcastle, Gateshead, South Tyneside, County Durham and Sunderland Teaching PCTs as being among more than 80 nationwide which it says are routinely failing older people and their families.

The numbers accessing continuing care in those areas have in fact dropped, in some cases dramatically, with Newcastle PCT now ranked as the 12th worst in the country.

Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern said: “Fewer people are now getting Continuing NHS Healthcare overall, despite the introduction of new Government guidelines to make entitlement fairer.

“This should have qualified an additional 5,500 people for Continuing NHS Healthcare but huge differences remain in how many people are getting continuing care between Primary Care Trusts nationwide.

“There has been some improvement in the disparity between PCTs, but, huge cutbacks made by those that were supporting the most people have outstripped the gains made by the PCTs that were giving this funding to the fewest people.”

Overall, the North East is ranked at the top for access to continuing care, with 40 people out of every 50,000 getting their entitlement compared to less than 20 in the East of England.

But there were large discrepancies within the region, with Newcastle PCT giving continuing care to an average of 15 people per 50,000 head of population in December 2007 and County Durham giving it to 60.

A spokeswoman for Newcastle and North Tyneside Primary Care Trusts and Northumberland Care Trust said: “We understand that continuing care is a complex and highly sensitive area which can affect people at a very vulnerable stage of their lives.

“To make the system fairer for everyone, new national guidance that sets out a single, national system for determining eligibility for NHS continuing healthcare was introduced on October 1, 2007.

“This new framework means we needed to develop and deliver education and training across North of Tyne to ensure timely assessment and reviews.

“The impact of a broader assessment base will lead to higher numbers of assessments being required, which will impact on front line community nursing services.”

Nobody could be contacted for a comment from any other local PCT at the time of going to print.

Care figures

AVERAGE number of people receiving continuing care per 50,000 head of population in 2007:

:: North Tyneside PCT: 26.66.

:: Newcastle PCT: 15.07.

:: North Tees PCT: 34.29.

:: Cumbria PCT: 15.33.

:: Northumberland Care Trust: 35.06.

:: Middlesbrough PCT: 34.89.

:: Gateshead PCT: 30.42.

:: Darlington PCT: 42.70.

:: South Tyneside PCT: 46.29.

:: Hartlepool PCT: 83.01.

:: County Durham PCT: 60.48.

:: Sunderland Teaching PCT: 53.46