Extra cash to ease winter pressures

Torbay is to get a cash helping hand to ease winter pressures on health services.
The Bay will receive £388,000 of urgent and emergency care funding as winter illnesses take their toll.
The aid was welcomed by Torbay MP Kevin Foster.
It is part of a £40 million government funding pot for local authorities to strengthen their urgent and emergency care resilience and performance this winter.
Local authorities within integrated care systems identified by NHS England as experiencing the greatest challenges with urgent and emergency care were invited to put forward proposals for access to the fund and the Government have now set out details of how much each local authority will receive.
Mr Foster said: “Too often our local hospital is under pressure due to delays with being able to discharge people ready to leave hospital, but in need of care package. This latest funding is welcome news and will help relieve pressure on Torbay Hospital this winter”.
The funding will speed up hospital discharge, boost social care provision and prevent avoidable hospital admissions in local areas.
The £40 million funding is in addition to £200 million announced in September to boost resilience in the NHS and help patients get the care they need as quickly as possible this winter. It can be used to buy more services aimed at keeping people out of hospital, as well as more packages of home care, which allow people to leave hospital faster and build back their independence.
Home care packages can include enabling a carer to come to an individual’s home a couple of times a day to help them with everyday tasks, such as getting dressed. The money can also fund an increase to the amount of specialist dementia support available in the community, services which also help to keep people out of hospital.
Other local authority proposals included services such as patient transport provision to take people home from hospital, the provision of technology to monitor people at home, and additional capacity to undertake more assessments of an individual’s care needs.
Compared to this time last October, there has been a nine percent fall in the number of patients staying in hospital after they are ready to be discharged, freeing up space on wards and helping flow through the system.
The regional allocations will be paid on December 4.