Marie Curie response to NHS funding announcement
Comment published
Simon Jones, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Marie Curie, commented:
“Whilst any increase in resources for the NHS is very welcome, our analysis of emergency admissions and continuing healthcare for people at the end of their lives shows that they are spending much longer in hospital than they need to and the availability of social care is a significant factor.
“In order to reduce the pressures on over-stretched hospitals, we must invest in supporting people at home, in their communities. This means more investment for not only community nursing and primary care services, but social care, too.
“Properly resourced health and social care services working very closely together leads to a much better quality of life for people at the end of their lives and a much more efficient and effective care system. To address the resources issues faced by one in isolation from the other is the politics of the ostrich – sticking your head in the sand and hoping the problem will go away.”
“For people at the end of their lives, they don’t have the time to wait for extra funds for social care in 2020.”