Continuing Healthcare Funding in Hampshire

Continuing Healthcare Funding in Hampshire

What is Continuing Healthcare Funding?

NHS continuing healthcare funding in HampshireWhen people live with long-term, or complex health needs, they are eligible for free social and health care completely funded by the NHS. This means to access NHS funding, your relative must:

  • have ongoing and significant physical or mental health conditions.
  • be in the position where healthcare needs can not be prevented and the intent of funding is to ease symptoms and improve quality of life.

This Continuing Healthcare can be provided outside the hospital, in your relative’s home or in a care home. For more information on Continuing Healthcare Funding please visit the Age Space Guide to NHS Funded Care.

How to Apply for NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding in Hampshire

If you are thinking about applying for NHS Continuing Healthcare Funding, the best person to talk to is your relative’s GP. If your elderly relative has recently been into hospital, it is likely that healthcare professionals there will recommend applying if they think your relative is eligible.

Initial Screening

The first step in the process involves a healthcare professional taking your relative through an initial screening process. This can take place at a GP surgery, hospital, care home or the home. Staff will use an NHS checklist to help assess needs.

This checklist will then be sent to the Continuing Healthcare Funding committee in Hampshire who will make the decision over whether you are eligible for the next step – a full assessment.

Full Assessment

NHS continuing healthcare funding in HampshireThe second step is a full assessment. This involves a multi-disciplinary team of health and social care staff in Hampshire, such as doctors, nurses, therapists and social workers assessing your relative to decide whether they have a primary healthcare need. In particular, they will look at the complexity, intensity and predictability of your relative’s condition.

Anyone else involved in the care of your relative, such as carers, family and friends will be invited to be involved. If an advocate is required to support your relative through the assessment process, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board will be able to arrange this for you.

The team will aim to gather a full picture of your relatives health and care needs by looking at the 12 following areas:

  1. Breathing
  2. Nutrition
  3. Continence
  4. Skin
  5. Mobility
  6. Communication
  7. Psychological and Emotional Needs
  8. Cognition
  9. Behaviour
  10. Drug Therapies and Medication: Symptom Control
  11. Altered States of Consciousness
  12. Other significant care needs to be taken in consideration

These care needs are then considered against NHS Continuing Healthcare’sย four key indicatorsย to assess whether your relative has aย Primary Health Needย and should therefore be recommended eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare:

Nature:ย this describes your needs and the type of needs e.g physical, psychological, etc. Nature also describes the effects of your needs on you and the type of help you may require to help manage and meet your needs.

Intensity:ย this considers the extent and severity of your needs and the type and level of support you need to meet them, which includes the need for ongoing or continuous care.

Complexity:ย this describes how your needs may interact or affect each other, which may make them difficult to manage or control. It also looks at the level of skill required to monitor your symptoms, treat your condition and/or manage your care.

Unpredictability:ย this looks at how your needs may vary and fluctuate and how a difficulty in predicting changes in your needs might create challenges in being able to manage or meet them. This includes the risks to your health if adequate and timely care is not provided.

You can find out more information through the website link provided below:

Want to know more? Listen to our Age Space podcast on continuing health care funding for discussion on this complicated issue.