Opinion: Realising the potential of social care
Sean Harriss is Senior Advisor at PPL, a management consultancy that specialises in tackling challenges in the UK’s health and social care sector.
The July 4 general election seems a long time ago, especially given the riots and all the talk of a painful Budget on October 30. Cast your mind back to the campaign that preceded the landslide outcome and despite Ed Davey’s stunts and moving personal video, social care (rather than the NHS) didn’t get much of a look in, either in the manifestos or especially the public debate.
Photo by Narupon Promvichai
In the immediate aftermath of the election things haven’t got much better. There has been a useful discussion at the margins about the possibility of a national care service but little clarity about what this means and an explicit decision to delay further a cap on care costs. On the other hand, there has been plenty of debate about a broken NHS and the need for reform to improve services, productivity and access.
So, the early signs are that social care as yet hasn’t risen up the political agenda other than a potential commitment to have a Royal Commission which many commentators would be wary of as the sense of crisis is immediate and not something that needs further analysis but rapid action.
But enough doom and gloom, we are at the start of a new government and a sense of purpose and optimism is required! What the above analysis shows is that without a concerted effort social care will remain at the margins of the political and public debate unless something changes. Those of us who care about social care need to make the case much better and in a way that has a better chance of creating the necessary sea change.
At the heart of this is really trying to make the Department of Health and Social Care reflect its name. NHS England will always look at social care as an enabler of the NHS, and particularly the discharge system for an overrun NHS. The civil servants and ministers in DHSC have responsibility for the whole system and it is here that our efforts must lie, along with explaining to the whole of government the pivotable role that social care can play in delivering so many of the government’s priorities.
At PPL, based upon our experience and expertise, we believe that the positive argument that social care needs to make includes the following:
- By creating a preventative model of social care that supports independence and a strengths-based approach involving primary care and the voluntary sector we will prevent admissions and reduce demand on a creaking NHS
- Too many adults are out of work due to learning disability, physical disability and mental health – this is poor for them and for an overstretched labour market so supporting them into meaningful economic activity and work is a win for everyone
- Many councils are teetering on the edge of financial collapse due to the costs of providing social care and are increasingly cutting services that support economic growth, the environment and housing to pay for it. Investing in a more preventative model will over time both reduce the financial pressure and free up resources to drive other priorities
- By professionalising and upskilling the social care workforce and more specifically integrating this with NHS workforce planning will not only create a more integrated system but help with the workforce crisis in the NHS itself
These arguments and the advantages of developing a mature, well resourced and properly focused social care system need to be made at multiple levels, with civil servants, ministers and most importantly with the hundreds of new MPs. Many of these MPs will have campaigned energetically on the NHS; they need to be educated and nurtured to understand that without a proper social care system not only will the NHS continue to struggle but many of their other priorities will fail to be delivered, too.
Social care is the key to unlocking so much for the new government. At PPL we have seen over the last 17 years that there is so much power in working in partnership and across communities to deliver positive change. So, let’s work together to change the narrative and understanding so that DHSC and other departments see it as an answer to many problems not just a glorified hospital-emptying service.
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