Council initiatives to reduce waiting times for older people needing social care in Wales are beginning to bear fruit and, in another welcome development, the surge in demand for care post pandemic has now reduced, finds an Age Cymru report Why Are We Still Waiting? (WAWSW)
This is Age Cymru’s third annual report on delays in accessing social care in Wales for people aged 55 and over.
However, despite these welcome developments nearly one in four (24%) of older people are still waiting more than 30 days for a social care assessment, with the longest wait being 639 days. While one in six (16%) are waiting more than 30 days for a social care package to be implemented.
The challenge facing local authorities in Wales remains high as the report found that individual older people have increasingly complex needs and as the population ages service providers will have to continue to adapt their services.
WAWSW found that communication from councils with older people and their families must also improve as there were instances where people were not given the right information when they first approached social care which meant they didn’t get the appropriate help when they needed it.
The research also discovered poor communication between hospital and social care staff which meant that some older people remained in hospital longer than needed, making an already difficult time for older people and their families unduly stressful.
And poor communication was found to be the source of frustration for many families trying to get to grips with the charging arrangements for social care within the challenging environment of a cost-of-living crisis. There is concern that some older people may be paying above the amount allowed under the Welsh Government’s Fairer Charging arrangements.
Disappointingly plans to provide better help for unpaid carers have struggled to progress and initiatives continue to be hampered by a lack of long term, sustainable funding.
The report’s author, Age Cymru Policy Officer Helen Twidle, welcomed the efforts made by councils tackling the challenge of providing social care to an ageing population with complex care needs but called for significant improvements in many areas.
Helen Twidle says “Local authorities need to focus on those individuals who are waiting more than 30 days to have a care package in place as a person’s mental and physical health can deteriorate rapidly while they wait for support.
“There also needs to be a focus on how information is communicated to older people and their families, especially around the complexities of charging.
“Regional Partnership Boards, local authorities and third sector services need to work better together to improve the availability of earlier intervention and prevention support for older people.”
Minister for Social Care, Dawn Bowden, said: “I am pleased that waiting times for older people needing social care in Wales have fallen over the last 12 months, however we are aware there is much more to do.
“We remain committed to improving outcomes for older people through early intervention and integrated care in the community, with more than £145 million provided to local authorities, health boards and third sector organisations through the Regional Integration Fund. Our investment into creating Age Friendly communities is also enabling more older people to be active in their local communities and to access a range of healthy ageing activities.
“We will continue to work with Age Cymru to understand the experiences of older people accessing social care and to ensure they can access the support they need when they need it.”
For more information and to view the full report call 0300 303 44 98 Monday to Friday between 9am and 4pm, email [email protected], or visit www.agecymru.org.uk/why-are-we-waiting
