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September 2011
incorporating The Number One magazine for the care sector
no.184 • £4.75 In association with
Staffing issue should be a priority - claim By Dominic Musgrave HOW care homes will be staffed in future to cope with the ever increasing aging population must be addressed now, it has been claimed. Sheila Scott, chief executive of the National Care Association, said where the extra carers are to come from should be made a priority by the Government. Speaking at a regional conference for care home owners and managers organised by the association in Derby, she said: “I find it extraordinary that we know the number of people requiring care will rise, yet no one at Westminster has got their head around this fact that this will happen. “They seem to think these extra staff are just going to materialise. The biggest challenge of all facing the sector is where are the staff to care for this rising number going to come from. “A colleague of mine says that at interviews in years to come it will no longer be a case of asking the questions about the job but simply when can you start? “We have to make the care industry an attractive place to work. There are a lot of graduates out there at the moment who cannot
get a job, so what talents do they have that we can tap into. We need to open our minds to opportunities, but some times we just don’t and get on with it.” Sheila also gave her views on the fees debate surrounding the care industry, adding that she had ‘no sympathy’ for the Government because the extra £2bn it earmarked last year for social care should have been ring-fenced. “There seems to be expectations that standards will keep rising, but this has to be the year when local authorities and PCTs get real and understand that the current financial climate is no different for care homes than everybody else,” added Sheila. “CRB checks have gone up, inflation has gone up, the amount the CQC charges care homes to register has risen by up to 40 per cent, and the minimum wage rises in October, yet most local authorities have either cut or at best froze the amount they pay. “Whatever happens, all care homes have seen a cut in fees this year, and we have to look at what we are going to do to maintain the standards of care.” Do you agree with Sheila’s opinions? Email Dominic Musgrave your views at dm@whpl.net or ring him on 01226 734407.
Incentive scheme first for Torbay care homes
Actress Beverly Callard officially opened a new £4.5m care home in Pontefract. Best known for her role as Liz McDonald in Coronation Street, she pulled a pint in the bar of the 64-bed Willow Park facility which has been built by North East based Eric Dixon (pictured above). To find out more turn to page 22
TORBAY is the first place in the country to use the Commissioning for Quality and Innovation payment incentive scheme to improve care and quality within homes. The local Care Trust and Care Quality Forum, which is made up of care home providers across the bay, developed six key indicators to assess care homes against the CQUIN framework. The national NHS initiative rewards healthcare providers for excellence in providing quality services. Hannah Hurrell, senior commissioner at Torbay Care Trust, said incentives are linked to a proportion of the homes’ income from the Trust and dependant on evidence submitted to meet agreed indicators. She added: “CQUIN aims to ensure that residents will receive the same high quality services, wherever they are cared for. It also means that homes are encouraged to continue to develop their quality and innovate.”