Welsh government announces £8m to support people outside hospital
The Welsh government has provided an extra £8m this winter to support people at greatest risk to receive care at or close to home and reduce pressure on hospitals.
The funding will wrap care around the most vulnerable to help them avoid hospital admissions. It will be used to increase community health and social care workforce capacity in the evenings and on weekends, including increasing the hours of community nurses and end of life care clinical nurse specialists.
Funds will also deliver services such as the assessment of those people living with frailty or other complex needs and agreeing a plan to support their wellbeing and independence at home, particularly during illness or following an injury. This care is tailored to each person’s specific needs and could include community nursing, reablement, rehabilitative therapy, mental health support or a combination of these and other services.
Visiting the Home First team in Carmarthenshire, which serves the Hywel Dda University Health Board area, Welsh health minister Eluned Morgan said: ‘What matters to older people in need of care and support is to be cared for in familiar surroundings with familiar people. They do not want to go to hospital unless this is really necessary.
‘They are also less likely to lose their confidence and muscle strength, and less likely to pick up infections than in hospital.
‘We are committed to driving change and transformation, and going further, faster to make sure more people can get the care and support they need at home or in their community. To enable this, learning about best practice needs to be shared across Wales.’
Julie Morgan, deputy minister for social services, added: ‘Good health and wellbeing are the key to our ability to enjoy life to its full. This is particularly important to people in the later years of their life.
‘Older people have accumulated a lifetime of experience, knowledge and learning, and have significant role to play in our society. We must reshape services, ensuring older people can continue to enjoy life, and ensuring our health and social care system is fit for the future and our increasingly ageing population.
‘Our longer-term strategic vision is for a national care service in Wales.’
Jill Paterson, director of primary care, community and long-term care at Hywel Dda University Health Board, said: ‘We were pleased to be able to tell the Health Minister Eluned Morgan about the great work being done to support our Home First initiatives. It demonstrates partnership working at its best and we are seeing some very positive outcomes thanks to this approach to healthcare. We look forward to continuing to work with Carmarthenshire County Council, Delta Wellbeing, the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust and a range of third sector partners.’
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