Philp sings praises of new assessments

Professionalism has got in the way of delivering person-centred
care to older people, the government’s national director for older
people, Ian Philp, has warned.

Speaking at a conference organised by Community Care last week,
Philp said that older people needed support to make their own care
decisions rather than have professionals make decisions for
them.

He hailed the single assessment process (SAP), introduced to
improve assessments of older people’s health and social care needs,
as a “revolutionary” improvement.

He added: “”SAP is a complex solution to a complex problem so, if
you’re struggling to bring together the health and social care
record, don’t worry, because it’s hard. It means giving up power
and control.”