Cutting from my local paper

Here's a cutting from my local newspaper, the Surrey Comet. Click on the picture....
Ann

On being thankful for the many things that older age has brought to life.....

The Launch of:  Older Age: the route to 21st Century Wellbeing - Royal Festival Hall: 26th June 2013

“No loneliness at this event; when older people were feisty, animated, sharing stories and joking”

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An electric event. It’s testamount to how much more confident older people feel these days that many were throwing questions at Care Services Minister Norman Lamb, Observer journalist Katherine Whitehorn  and film-makers, including those from ITV. They were all joining in discussions on the serious and growing issue of age - older age.We were there to hear about the project report’s findings of the “The Shaping our Age” research.

This was the culmination of a three-year Lottery-funded project and was undertaken by the Royal Voluntary Service (previously known as the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service), Brunel University and De Montfort University.  The Older Peoples’ Reference Group, there to advise and steer the Project, was represented by older people from the four nations.  I chaired the Reference Group during the three years.

In the research it was discovered that older people, that is those 65 and older, do not feel old; they do not want to be labelled thus, and they certainly do not want to be patronised and treated as children. Much of the research focused on loneliness and the lack of social connectedness and visual examples were  given of how in bringing people together and offering a choice of activities, engenders a sense of 'well being.'. 

Loneliness can be endemic as one grows older and often occurs  when adult children leave home, a partner dies or if community contact becomes non-existent or fast diminishes. 

Yet, on this sunny launch day it was almost impossible to conjure up a picture of loneliness, when older people were feisty, animated, sharing stories and joking. It was a time for celebration and older people were at the heart of it.  

So what makes up this major issue of loneliness?  There are no easy answers so the learning from the report  should be taken seriously; it is a source of practical support in working out what works.

On the homeward journey I had time to ponder on the findings of the research and the day's events and I was thankful for the many things that older age has brought to life.  For me I am blessed with what was missing when I was younger; family, friends, mobility, and sufficient resources to buy a cup of tea!  Those are some of the things that are more likely to have been experienced by most when younger, not older. 

Launch day for the report brought to the fore what is needed now and for people to act on the findings and achieve positive outcomes for those whose life in older age is lonely and diminished in different ways. 

Ann Macfarlane
June 2013 

Personal Budgets in residential settings

I am an Expert-by-Experience and undertake inspections with Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspectors. Inspectors have a duty to ensure that all medical and social care facilities and services meet a set of mandatory regulations that focus on Standards.

I usually accompany inspectors who inspect residential, nursing home and hospice settings and all visits are unannounced.  The buildings, environments, together with the services that people may need and receive, may vary greatly. For example, some homes offer en suite facilities and single and double bedrooms, others either no or just one or two en suite rooms and only single occupancy. The services, too, vary and the choices people can make may rest on how much they can afford to pay, the home's location, their network in terms of relations and friends. Where relatives live and how much control they have over a person's ability to control their own lives, particularly in terms of their financial position, can make a significant difference to where they will reside and what services and support they can expect.

On inspections I am charged and want to focus on the quality of peoples' lives within these settings. As a disabled person, people are generally pleased to communicate with me because they recognise I may have some understanding related to their experience. One of the main topics of conversation is around ordinary, day-to-day living and how it has changed for them. Tasks, such as the ability to make decisions and act upon them spontaneously, include buying and writing greetings cards, making a telephone call, sorting and hanging clothes in their wardrobe, changing their mind over what to eat for lunch or eating an additional snack. Repeatedly people say they feel 'imprisoned' because they cannot go out through the front door without assistance and days can go by without feeling fresh air on their skin or being in touch with nature. People say they feel isolated from family and friends and from their local community, enjoying leisure activities they once enjoyed and even having the services from a familiar GP.

In some residential settings much emphasis is placed on 'person-centred' care, support and activities and emphasis put on equality of opportunity and integration. For many people, this approach remains a pipe dream. This is where personal budgets could significantly change peoples' lives and experiences within these settings. A part of the fee that people pay, usually on a monthly basis, could be retained by the individual or relative to support a 'person-centred' approach to daily living. If personal budgets are part of the information given to people as they make life-changing decisions, then it could make a huge difference to people who either opt to go into a residential setting or for whom this is the only way in which they can be adequately supported. People living in their own home in the community and who need support have a right, following a community care assessment, to be provided with information on a personal budget. So, irrespective of where a person lives, a personal budget should be offered. A personal budget enables people to purchase equipment, services or personal assistance to enable them to live life in the way they choose.

Personal health budgets are also becoming available which will enable people to buy an additional range of health and social care services.  Personal health budgets are being piloted in parts of the country and it is hoped that will soon be available to all in the same way people access personal budgets.

Ann Macfarlane OBE

Disability Equality and Independent Living Consultant