yourcarehome.co.uk blog

Scanner or Sledgehammer?

There is a new piece of technology for care homes and residents currently being pioneered by Nottingham City Council.  Basically, it appears to be a button which can be inserted into clothing which can record the name of the owner of said clothing, plus details about whether the owner has any allergies etc which determine whether the item should be washed in a certain way.

The main use, however, appears to be ensuring that the owner of the clothes can be identified - 

"Using a hand-held device, staff key in the patient's name, their allergy details and whether they have an infection - this information is then transmitted to a microchip inside the button.
Waving the same device over an item of clothing displays all this information so the clothes can be distributed correctly."

Now forgive me for standing in the way of technological advances, but can't a name tag in a shirt serve the same purpose?  And wouldn't it be quicker for the care home worker to glance at the name on a name tag rather than having to carry a scanner everywhere and then wave it all over the shirt until it beeps and gives tells them the name?  I know there is nothing more infuriating than visiting mum and seeing her in a cardigan she would never choose to wear in a month of sundays, but surely a scanner is the proverbial sledgehammer to crack the egg???

The old overtaking the young

This week, there has been a report in the US stating that in the next 10 years, the number of people over 65 will, for the first time, outnumber those under 5 years old.  In addition, it states that the number of people over 65 in the world is increasing at an average of 870,000 each month.

These figures seem phenomenal and certainly the report warns of "significant challenges".

So is it all doom and gloom?  Thankfully not, according to John Appleby, Chief Economist on health policy at the King's Fund.  He comments that the number of 65 year olds has outweighed the number of under 5's in the UK for some time, and that the figures generally are presented in such a way as to promote alarm.  

However, although he points out that "the burden" of the elderly will be spread over decades, he fails to add that the provision for elderly care is already at crisis point - I don't think we can spare another decade before we figure out how the elderly will be cared for.

The Social Care Funding proposals - what do they mean?

So the Government Green Paper on adult social care funding is now published, essentially giving three options for future funding.  This now opens a debate which will continue until 13 November, then a white paper establishing what is actually going to change will be published in 2010.

There has rightly been a fair amount of press coverage and analysis as well as bloggers comments - we have sifted through all of these to bring you the best and most informative of these articles and opinions:

The Government's Green Paper on Social Care - how will this affect me?

by yourcarehome.co.uk's financial expert, Andrew Dixson-Smith

Social care green paper: reaction in quotes

by the Guardian

Care funding: pros and cons of the options

by the Telegraph

Q&A: Social care plans

by the BBC

Elderly 'give up their memories'

by The Today Programme, BBC Radio 4

You pays your money and you take what’s given

Decline and Falls (blog) - Peregrine Pickles, Guest Blogger for yourcarehome.co.uk

Decent, brave and bold. But the backlash has already begun

Polly Toynbee for The Guardian (comment)

What are your thoughts about the proposed care funding options?  email us at info@yourcarehome.co.uk and let us know...

Pets in Care Homes

Last night on Radio 4's The World Tonight, I listened to an interview with Nick Palmer MP regarding pets in care homes.  Nick was pushing for a Parliamentary bill to ensure that the request for owners to take pets with them into care homes should receive full consideration 

Certainly, the emotional effects of leaving a much loved pet behind when moving into a care home should not be underestimated, especially if that pet has been a constant companion.  However, the representative from the National Care Association pointed out that it can be sometimes inappropriate and unfair on the other residents, and also could compromise hygiene levels.

It is a difficult question - a care home should be just that - a home... but to what extent should that impact on the other residents?

Don't forget, in our advanced search facility, you can search for care homes which accept pets - just do the normal search, then select the features you want to refine your search...