‘Permanent sense of crisis’ in care homes needs to end

Sweeping change is needed to ‘inject humanity’ back into care homes, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has declared.

The call comes following a year-long personal inquiry by John Kennedy, Director of Care Services at JRF, who has 30 years’ experience working in care homes, in conjunction with care provider the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT).

The inquiry unearthed a ‘blame culture’ which, along with bureaucracy and the current business model, has contributed to the ‘permanent sense of crisis’ that plagues the care sector today. The inquiry argues that personal relationships need to be put at the heart of how care homes are run and regulated – replacing today’s ‘impersonal and insecure’ culture.

The report makes a number of recommendations for change including improving pay and working conditions for the UK’s 1 million care workers and extending the remit of regulation to include these issues.

With care managers having been identified as vital for running good care homes, the report also calls for a professional body to be set up. This would set national standards for care managers and develop a licence to practise for those in charge.

Having found that more than 100 separate items of paperwork have to be regularly completed in care homes, the report also puts an emphasis on cutting this figure to free up care managers’ time.

Another serious problem underlined by the inquiry is the way care is funded. The sector accounts for 1.8% of national expenditure (£12 billion). This is contrast to NHS services, which accounted to 15.3% of national expenditure, or £102 billion. The report argues that care homes should be an essential partner of the NHS, rather than a ‘poor relation’.

John Kennedy, who led the personal inquiry for the Joseph Rowntree Trust, said: “Real change is needed to end the neglect of our care home sector. Currently the system is set up to fail, with the minimum resource, effort and value placed on care homes.”

As part of his inquiry, Mr Kennedy spoke to people being cared for and people shaping the delivery of services – including relatives, care staff, managers, cleaners and volunteers – as well as regulators, commissioners and the public. The care home inquiry used social media to broaden the range of views and seek an honest and immediate response from those closest to care homes.

“We need a clear vision for our future care, based on the reality of our human condition. Kindness and compassion need to be nurtured, it can’t be just legislated. The care home sector needs to be brought in from the cold: valued, supported and fully part of a co-ordinated system. Care home providers also need to step up and accept their wider social responsibility – if you are in it just for the money, you’re in the wrong business,” Mr Kennedy added.