The way older people are being cared for in England is
"shameful" and "scandalous", Age UK and the Alzheimer's
Society said.
Both charities criticised the quality of care and the way it
was rationed as they published fresh evidence on the state of the care sector. It
includes figures that suggest the number of older people not getting help has
risen by nearly 50% since 2010.
There are now an estimated 1.2 million over-65s going
without help for care - nearly one in eight of all older people. Some 300,000
of them have difficulty with three or more tasks, including dressing, bating
and going to the toilet. Councils agreed to help under half the 1.3 million
people who approached them for care last year. The BBC identified 11 councils
that rejected more than 75% of applications. Where home care was provided
"serious problems" were identified in the way dementia patients were
treated. Staff said they had not been given enough training to cope with the
complex needs people had. Families reported examples of poor care, including
loved ones not being given medication, being left in dirty clothes for days and
going missing after homes had not been properly secured.
Alzheimer's Society chief executive Jeremy Hughes said:"From the scandals we have exposed, it is clear home care workers are not
fairly or adequately equipped with the skills they need to support vulnerable
people. There simply is not enough money invested in the social care."
The Care Quality Commission, warned the sector was at
"tipping point" - with the lack of care having an impact on hospitals
through rising accident and emergency attendances as vulnerable people sought
help.
Caroline Abrahams, of Age UK, said, "The sad irony is
that it would be far more effective as well as infinitely more humane to give
older people the care and support they need."
Izzi Seccombe, of the Local Government Association, said:
"Unless social care is properly funded, there remains a growing risk to
the quality and safety of care, and the ability of services caring for our
elderly and vulnerable to meet basic needs such as ensuring people are washed
and dressed or helped out of bed."
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