AN END to 15-minute care visits, which force disabled people to
choose between staying thirsty or going to the lavatory, one
charity reports, is among the demands in a Care Charter launched
this week by Citizens UK.
Representatives from 200 members of the movement, including
churches, synagogues, and mosques, gathered at Friends House in
Euston, London, on Tuesday, promising a "community-led revolution
in social care".
The charter calls on care providers and commissioners to ensure
that 90 per cent of care is provided by a "small team of named care
workers", to train care workers in dealing with dementia, and to
pay them a living wage. The aim is to secure a deal from the next
government to reform the care system, including providing
sufficient funding.
Among those supporting the charter are private health-care
companies, including Bupa, the English Community Care
Association, and UNISON.
Barbara Nalumu, a care worker and member of Citizens UK, said:
"I want to provide good care, but it's not possible when you're
rushing in and out. When I am on a 15-minute visit, I sometimes
stay behind longer because my client needs more time. I only earn
just above the minimum wage, and I don't get paid for travel time.
Even after a 50-hour week, I only take home £170, and this is
reduced to £100 after paying for my petrol and car that I need for
work. I have to work such long hours, and still it's so hard to
provide for my daughter and grand-daughter."
Last week, the disability charity Leonard Cheshire reported that
two-thirds of local councils were commissioning 15-minute visits
from care workers. It says that adults take, on average, at least
40 minutes to carry out essential tasks including getting up,
washing, dressing, and eating breakfast, and warns that disabled
people are being forced to "choose between staying thirsty and
going to the toilet".
The charity's report was published to coincide with the Report
Stage of the Care Bill in the House of Lords on Wednesday last
week.
The Bishop of Carlisle, the Rt Revd James Newcome, has declared
his support for the Leonard Cheshire campaign: "It is intolerable
to think that people are expected to rush through these tasks in as
little as 15 minutes. I hope that the Government can act and
reverse this worrying trend of shorter and shorter care
visits."