Celebrating New Disciples
www.stdavidsdiocese.org.uk Gorffennaf/July 2011 Insulting, dispassionate, inappropriate Jack Evershed, a past chairman of the Community Health Councils of Wales, takes a long, hard look at the care of elderly and vulnerable people in our society, and says it is in all our interests to act now HE report entitled ‘Dignified Care’, by Ruth Marks, Older People’s Commissioner for Wales, on the Ttreatment of elderly people in care is damning of our society. This is not only because of the content, but also the fact that, to those involved in monitoring these services, it is not surprising. Many people now need- elderly patient receiving care in an ing care have contributed to the NHS hospital as bedblocking. This NHS from its foundation, on the demonstrates an “institutional“ atti- understanding that there would be tude that the older generation are a state-provided care from cradle to problem - people are living longer, grave. The arcane, and what should often with chronic conditions, and be merely semantic, differentia- the welfare state was not set up tion between social and health care to cope with such a population is only of interest to managers of profile. For managers the elderly budgets. Patients and their fami- are an expensive, problematic lies want, and should expect, high clientele. The NHS management quality care regardless of provider. argument is that the care provided (There is another debate here about in a hospital bed for many elderly how this totality of care should be people is inappropriate but where funded but the overriding moral this is all that is available society position is that excellent care should demand that such care be should be available to all without made appropriate.
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