Don’t leave social care out of the equation | Social care

The overcrowding of the hospital throughout the year of the NHS is not the product of a single failure, but the result of two interdependent pressure systems: health and social care (NHS Corridor Care Crisis all year in England, according to experts, on September 1). The government’s ambition to build an “NHS adapted to the future” through prevention, neighborhood services and digital tools is welcome, but this vision risks treating symptoms rather than causes if social care is excluded from the equation.

Unless there is sufficient capacity in community social care to support people who recover at home, logjam will persist and “corridor care” will remain a reality. The evidence is clear: investment in a timely manner in community services such as realtitude and intermediate care prevents unnecessary admissions, accelerates safe discharges and offers solid return on investment for NHS.

The reform is late. The government has established a roadmap for the transformation of the NHS, but, the Casey commission not mentioning 2028, the reform of social care is still pending. Until then, the NHS reform program will already be years to come, and disconnection between the two systems will be deepened. If ministers are serious about relieving pressure on hospitals, they must treat health and social services as equal partners. Social care is not optional for recovery of the NHS; It is at the heart of that.
Kathryn Marsden
CEO, Social Care Institute for Excellence