Barely a day goes by without a tabloid headline claiming that our care system is in ruins and our older loved ones will be left without the care they need as they reach later life. And it seems that often care homes take more than their fair share of bad press with stories, at best, of inadequate care amongst other more serious accusations.
Despite the drama of the sensationalised headlines in the British press, it’s fair to say that the majority (if not all) of those who run care homes have the interests of their residents at the centre of everything they do.
Let’s not forget too that care homes are businesses, someone’s livelihood and in certain terms, no different to someone who has decided to run a garden centre, a hairdressers, or dare I say it, a hotel. But of course, they are different and come with huge challenges that require both the demands of caring for human life whilst trying to run a sustainable and successful business, without which the health care system would simply implode on itself.
In a report published in 2017 by our partners Rix & Kay Solicitors, The challenges for care homes and their residents, a wide range of care home owners were interviewed about what they thought the main issues were facing their residents. The results uncovered some hugely insightful observations and help us understand the dynamics between care homes and their residents.
Unsurprisingly, many care home owners think that paying for care is at the top of their residents “worry list” and the feeling is most definitely mutual. But interestingly, safety and security came out even higher. 72% of care home owners believe feeling safe and secure is the number one priority for their residents.
An extract from The challenges for care homes and their residents
What do care home owners think is most important to their residents
We will take a look in more detail at some of the themes that emerged including transitioning to a cared environment, access to information and the quality of care.
You can read more about the report and request a full copy from the Rix & Kay website
