Panorama's 'Expose' Of Domiciliary Care Should Come As No Surprise, UK

Main Category: Caregivers / Homecare
Also Included In: Seniors / Aging
Article Date: 15 Apr 2009 - 0:00 PDT

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Action on Elder Abuse (AEA) has welcomed the Panorama programme 'Britain's Homecare scandal' as a timely reminder of what is commonly known by the sector, the regulators and by the Governments - both Westminster and Edinburgh. Domiciliary care is under-funded, and cannot easily deliver reliable quality care. While there are thousands of people working in the sector providing the best care they can, they are undermined by a system that has been failing for years.

Gary FitzGerald, Chief Executive of AEA said, "It is time that the public woke up to the reality of what living at home means for many thousands of older people. A minimal service often run on a shoe-string, supported by carers who are invariably over-worked and under-paid, and provided by Agencies who are forced to operate with smaller and smaller budgets. While there may well be individual carers who must be held to account for their failings, the real culprits here are not those carers or indeed their employers, but a system whereby local authorities drive down costs at the expense of the most vulnerable people in our society. Government knows this. Regulators know this. And so do the service users and their relatives. It is totally unacceptable and has been happening for years. And it's time everyone else understood what is actually going on in their communities"

Nearly half a million people receive support from domiciliary care agencies, the overwhelming majority being older people with increasing levels of frailty and dependence. But criteria for such support has been tightened on an annual basis as local authorities seek to find 'savings', and fewer and fewer people qualify for such support.

Concluded FitzGerald, "The Government repeatedly says that older people want to remain living in their own homes for as long as possible. But they omit to mention that older people don't want to live isolated and cut off from society, relying for very personal care on services that are often too unreliable and uncertain to guarantee a reasonable quality of life. If we can pour millions of pounds into the coffers of banking institutions, isn't it about time we asked why we can't afford to give our older people the sort of services that they deserve? We need to be very clear on this point; individual carers may deserve criticism. Individual care agencies may be culpable. But it is the Government that has created this situation and presides over a reality that is far removed from their rhetoric."

1. Action on Elder Abuse is a national charity which aims to protect, and prevent the abuse of, vulnerable older people. It does this by raising awareness of the issues, encouraging education and by giving information and support to those in need. It has the only national freephone helpline dedicated to this cause and callers may ring from Monday to Friday between the hours of 9.00am and 5.00pm on 080 8808 8141 from the UK or 1800 940 010 from the Republic of Ireland for confidential support and information. For further information on Action on Elder Abuse go to website: http://www.elderabuse.org.uk

2. Gary FitzGerald, CEO of AEA, worked for over twenty years in social care provision, managing a variety of domiciliary care services.

Source
Action on Elder Abuse

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