Warning over fines for bed-blocking

The proposed system of fining local authorities for delayed
discharges could result in older people being placed in homes they
do not want to be in, the Independent Healthcare Association (IHA)
warned last week.

The association said that patients coming out of hospital might
lose the right to choose as “social services will be under pressure
to place them somewhere, even if it is not of the individual’s
choosing”.

The IHA said that many providers still believed that health and
social services were reluctant to work with them. It suggested that
NHS and social care staff should be provided with an up-to-date
list of independent care providers in their area, and that primary
care trusts and social services should be required to involve
private providers in service planning.