[Scotland] Radical plan to pay family members £15 an hour for elder care

Across Scotland, a radical plan to pay family members to take care of a loved one in order to ease the crisis in the NHS is under consideration, Daily Record reports.

The Government will look at proposals to pay relatives to do the job of home carers in a bid to prevent hospital bed blocking and ease the pressure on a sector that is struggling with huge staff shortages as a result of the pandemic.

However, the scheme is a controversial one because family members could be given £15 an hour. The figure is £5 more than the average care worker earns and the minimum rate unions demanded for care workers last year.

Orkney reportedly offered the scheme, which is already in place in some parts of England, over the Christmas period because of severe staff shortages on the island.

The chief executive of Scottish Care Dr Donald Macaskill said “whole system pressure” was similar to the situation with ambulance delays in 2020 which saw hospital delays leading to waits for paramedics at home.

He said, “It’s one giant circle and when it collapses – as it is at the moment with social care ­– we aren’t able to provide care in the community.

“Councils and the NHS are already asking families to do more but these are people already running on empty.

“Paying families for care allows them to take leave from their work to take care of their loved ones in the short-term.

“We will need to start looking at these solutions all over Scotland. It is being done in some areas of the south of England already.

“Pre-pandemic we already had a shortage of home carers for lots of reasons but at the moment the lack of staff because of Omicron is critical.”

Up to one in four home care staff are currently off work as a result of COVID sickness, exposure or self-isolation rules.

As soon as patients are fit enough to go home from the hospital, they would ordinarily be discharged. But for many elderly or vulnerable patients with more complex needs, an assessment must be carried out while they are in hospital to determine what further help can be offered.

For the elderly, that might mean receiving a care package at home or going into a care home. But current absence rates means no one is available to draw up the plans or to take on new cases; leaving patients on wards needlessly.

Dr Macaskill said, “There are very real pressures to keep flow from hospital to home going. It’s to prevent people who are otherwise clinically ready for discharge from staying too long in hospital.

“The problem we are facing is at the worst staff absence rate that most organisations can remember. Where Omicron is at its most robust, there are some organisations with 25 per cent absence rate.

“If you don’t have the staff, you can’t deliver the service.”

The latest figures show that there are just under 50,000 Scots receiving care in their homes; a higher number than the 30,000 living in care homes. Care-at-home packages generally involve professional carers providing services like helping people to wash, dress or get ready for bed. Some home care workers are also trained to help with medication or toilet needs.

The SNP’s Social Care Minister Kevin Stewart confirmed that the Government was “exploring options” to provide support.

Source: Daily Record

(Quotes via original reporting)

Across Scotland, a radical plan to pay family members to take care of a loved one in order to ease the crisis in the NHS is under consideration, Daily Record reports.

The Government will look at proposals to pay relatives to do the job of home carers in a bid to prevent hospital bed blocking and ease the pressure on a sector that is struggling with huge staff shortages as a result of the pandemic.

However, the scheme is a controversial one because family members could be given £15 an hour. The figure is £5 more than the average care worker earns and the minimum rate unions demanded for care workers last year.

Orkney reportedly offered the scheme, which is already in place in some parts of England, over the Christmas period because of severe staff shortages on the island.

The chief executive of Scottish Care Dr Donald Macaskill said “whole system pressure” was similar to the situation with ambulance delays in 2020 which saw hospital delays leading to waits for paramedics at home.

He said, “It’s one giant circle and when it collapses – as it is at the moment with social care ­– we aren’t able to provide care in the community.

“Councils and the NHS are already asking families to do more but these are people already running on empty.

“Paying families for care allows them to take leave from their work to take care of their loved ones in the short-term.

“We will need to start looking at these solutions all over Scotland. It is being done in some areas of the south of England already.

“Pre-pandemic we already had a shortage of home carers for lots of reasons but at the moment the lack of staff because of Omicron is critical.”

Up to one in four home care staff are currently off work as a result of COVID sickness, exposure or self-isolation rules.

As soon as patients are fit enough to go home from the hospital, they would ordinarily be discharged. But for many elderly or vulnerable patients with more complex needs, an assessment must be carried out while they are in hospital to determine what further help can be offered.

For the elderly, that might mean receiving a care package at home or going into a care home. But current absence rates means no one is available to draw up the plans or to take on new cases; leaving patients on wards needlessly.

Dr Macaskill said, “There are very real pressures to keep flow from hospital to home going. It’s to prevent people who are otherwise clinically ready for discharge from staying too long in hospital.

“The problem we are facing is at the worst staff absence rate that most organisations can remember. Where Omicron is at its most robust, there are some organisations with 25 per cent absence rate.

“If you don’t have the staff, you can’t deliver the service.”

The latest figures show that there are just under 50,000 Scots receiving care in their homes; a higher number than the 30,000 living in care homes. Care-at-home packages generally involve professional carers providing services like helping people to wash, dress or get ready for bed. Some home care workers are also trained to help with medication or toilet needs.

The SNP’s Social Care Minister Kevin Stewart confirmed that the Government was “exploring options” to provide support.

Source: Daily Record

(Quotes via original reporting)