Could the NHS save money and improve at the same time?
I think the answer is a big YES.
Not everyone knows that the daily cost of one bed at any NHS hospital is around £500, often more. That can be over £3,000 a week. For ONE bed. For a single patient.
You probably know that there are a lot of elderly people in hospital who, although medically fit for discharge, are stuck in hospital, only because there’s nobody to support them at home. (Ever heard the awful expression "bed blocking"?)
Live-in care could - and should - be the solution as live-in care providers support patients in their own home, short or long term for about £1,200 to £1,600 a week. That, of course, is a lot of money, but only about ONE THIRD or maximum HALF of the cost that the NHS has.
This solution would mean that hospitals could free up beds more quickly, new patients could get their hospital treatment sooner, the taxpayer would pay less, and, most importantly, elderly people could recover in their home environment instead of being stuck in a hospital ward.
Simple as that? Well, you can make it more complicated, find excuses and try to prove this is not easy to be done, but in fact it is. It's that simple.
For further information or if you know someone who could benefit from full time care at home please feel free to contact me directly.
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