Continuing Health Care

Yes, we managed to get CHC for my Mother when her Altzehimers progressed to a point where she was doubly income tinent, needed assistance with eating, washing, moving, and could not do anything for herself. It took six months to go through the asessment process. Untill then we had funded her full care costs for 6 years after selling her home.

We got it too - though the money did not actually appear until after he had died.

It is very important to be systematic about this and to look at the criteria, decide which ones apply to your relative and list your justifications for these decisions. When you go to the November meeting you will have all the necessary ammunition at your fingertips. Print out the assessment forms and fill them in according to your decisions. Be ready with evidence to back these up.

Unfortunately many health/social care professionals have not had proper training in this and often tell people wrong information.

Try this website: caretobedifferent.co.uk/paying-care-home-fees/

We don't get CHC for mum even though she has been on end of life care since January, is doubly incontinent and can do nothing for herself. The argument is that, as she is in a foetal position in bed, there is less need for close supervision!

As we had been thinking mum was about to die, we gave up. In monetary terms, we are no longer actually spending money as her pensions cover her contribution and the local council covers the rest. We did start off with well into 3 figures and are now down to £18k ish!

Kitty Doesn't being on "end of life" care automatically mean that her costs are met by the state? I thought that was the point of it

Apparently not. It seems to mean that the gp sees you more often and the home has a stock of drugs to help.

I think that originally CHC was sold to the public as a better way to provide end of life care when all the wards for older people were closed.

Sadly as soon as a budget gets mixed up with social care workers think they have to guard it and avoid paying out.

So much is wrong with the whole system for older people at present, but no one seems to want to tackle and solve it.

It is a concern as it will effect us all sooner or later.

Social care workers do not think they have to "guard it and avoid paying out." The money comes from the NHS and not the SSD budget.

Those making the assessments are bound by the rules that they have to work under - I think you will find that they do not like the any more than you do!

However, since these rules were introduced there has been little training for the staff administering them and lots of mistakes are made.

We were originally told that we did not qualify, but as soon as they saw that we had done our homework (and realised that my work history was in social and hospital care!) they bit the bullet and paid up.

The problem lies on the fact that so few people know their rights and just knuckle under when given wrong information.

Kitty My DM qualified for CHC even though she didn't need 'nursing' or any particular health treatment, other than her medication (which she was perfectly capable of self-administering until the last couple of weeks of her life) and a weekly injection from the District Nurse. In her case, she had been given just a few weeks to live and she was in a residential care home. The fees didn't get reimbursed until after she had died, but at least they were paid!

If your DM were not in her 'care' home, would she be able to self-administer her drugs etc? That may be a critical factor. Keep fighting!! (As if you need that extra burden )

Just been looking for some info for you.

Here's a link:

www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/what-is-nhs-funded-nursing-care.aspx

The quote below is from that page:

Who is eligible for NHS-funded nursing care?

You may be eligible for NHS-funded nursing care if:

you are not eligible for NHS continuing healthcare but have been assessed as needing care from a registered nurse

you live in a care home registered to provide nursing care

Thanks all for the input. I am at the stage now where my next meeting is with NHS England rather than the local cgc. I will look at all the links you have put up for me, although to be honest I have been researching all this over the last four years! I almost know the national framework for CHC of by heart.

I have everything ready for the meeting, once November comes I will again read through everything with a fine tooth comb. I am not one to flog a dead horse, so to speak but I am certain that I am right in this case, and will not give up the fight at the moment. I have some very valid points to put accross, the way the cgc are getting around this at the moment is by saying they are using their professional judgement. This really doesn't cut the mustard as far as I am concerned. Every case has to be coughlan compliant for one thing, and this clearly has not been, even though they say differently, they have given me no proof that it has been. There are also points where they are trying to wriggle out by using pedantry...can you believe that!
So I still fight the good fight, but it is draining, and horrible having to go all through how Mum was again, it wasn't nice.
Just for good measure whilst dealing with all this, all around the time my Mum passed away we had just lost ALL our money, Huby was working but ill, and I couldn't get him to agree to see someone until he just about ground to a halt. Suddenly he is diagnosed with a degenerative and progressive disease. stopped working( self employed) I had had breast cancer, Mum died and so on and so on. It is a wonder we didn't go crazy to be honest. I am a fighter though, and we do have a sense of humour, we joke that probably we have gone crazy but no one has the heart to tell us . Sorry just wanted all that off my chest.

Hubby not HUBY

P art of their argument is my decision that, as she was close to death, mum should have no ongoing medication or be weighed. Stupid idea on my part!

Oh Kitty I despair! Btw, when I typed 'burden' in my previous post, I was referring to all the care and worries you're dealing with, not your DM - I didn't word it very well!!

llrina You sound very clued up, so I hope you're successful.

Professional judgement does not come into it at all. The decision is based on observable facts.

I completely agree with you on that Luckygirl, this is why I am still fighting.