Even the government has recognised this fact. In an interview with Sian Williams on BBC Breakfast Time on 30/9/09, the Prime Minister said: “institutional care” is where most people “least want to go”. He further confirmed that the government is planning legislative changes which will allow as many people as want and need to the opportunity to be cared for in their own home.

Gordon Brown has been speaking to BBC Breakfast’s Sian Williams, the day after his keynote speech to the Labour Party conference – click here to watch the full interview. To skip to the point about social care for the elderly fast forward to 4:20 section of the interview.

In a workshop entitled “Who cares? Reforming Long-Term Care” Professor Jon Glasby said that the current system placed an unfair burden on individuals.

He said that alternative methods of funding long-term care needed to be considered, including:-

? Introducing compulsory long-term care insurance
? Abolishing long-term care fees
? Drawing on the value of homes through equity relief

Professor Glasby said that he hoped that the government’s Green Paper on care and support, due this year, would provide an opportunity to stimulate debate on the issue and lead to the overhaul of the system. He said: “There is the risk that we retain the status quo, with a few tweaks, but I believe the existing system needs a radical overhaul to fund long-term care for older people. It is a fundamental personal and political issue that is at stake and we really need to think and talk about where we may go next.”

“I personally think that it does not make sense that we distinguish between people who are “sick” and those who are “frail” or “disabled”. One service is free and the other is means-tested, which has significant implications for who pays and who provides. It does not make sense that someone who has cancer and is being treated in hospital pays nothing, while someone who is in a care home and is being treated in a similar way for Alzheimer’s is charged for their care. It is not meaningful to have a separate system of health and social care.”

Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, said today that most people affected by the virus would recover and the government had a “clear plan” to help prevent the virus spreading.

Given that the people whom we support with care will be one of the most vulnerable groups at risk from the imminent Swine Flu pandemic we want to ensure that the advice issued by the Department of Health is communicated to all clients and staff accordingly.

The Department of Health has issued some broad guidelines for anyone who may show flu-like symptoms:

• Those affected should stay at home and contact health services by phone.
• Good hygiene is particularly important. Washing your hands with soap and water is a good way to stop the spread of germs. It is important you cover your nose when sneezing, ideally using a disposable tissue which is immediately binned to avoid any transmission of the virus.
• Swine flu symptoms are similar to those produced by standard, seasonal flu.
• If you think you or a member of your family has the virus, you can check your symptoms and get official advice from the NHS Direct symptom checker.

The government has issued the following advice for those who think they are a family member might be infected:

1. Stay at home and rest; take medicines such as aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol to relieve symptoms (following the instructions with the medicines)
2. Children under 16 must not be given aspirin or ready made flu remedies containing aspirin
3. Drink plenty of fluids
4. Contact your surgery for further advice
5. For advice and information visit www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk, go to NHSDirect Interactive on digital satellite TV by pressing the interactive button on the remote control, or telephone NHS Direct on 0845 4647 47

There are Department of Health briefings at www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publichealth/Flu/index.htm, including the Chief Medical Officer’s guide to pandemic flu.

For some this may only be small things such as appointments but in other cases it can be worse, such as forgetting the faces of loved ones or precious memories. This can be extremely distressing for those who are close to the sufferer.

There are a few things that can be done to help remember the appointment or perhaps even jog the memory into remembering some of those past events or faces.

Having a white board with the date and the events that are due to happen that day such as doctor’s appointments or friends visiting will be very useful.

Also, regularly looking through photos, letter or perhaps scrap books from the past may help bring back some of the memories that have been lost. Visiting as often as possible and asking questions about past homes, friends and pets may also help.

Also, music is a very powerful memory jogger and there are certain songs that will always take us back to a time when the same song meant something to us. It has also been discovered that music can be a help to dementia and Alzheimer’s sufferers.

The CQC is now the independent regulator of all health and adult social care in England and their aim is to make sure better care is provided for everyone, whether that’s in hospital, in care homes, in people’s own homes, or elsewhere.

The CQC has wider powers than its predecessor the CSCI and the new care regulator will be independently checking the services provided by the NHS, local authorities, private companies or voluntary organisations. The CQC also protect the rights of people detained under the Mental Health Act.

The CQC is there to make sure that essential common quality standards are being met where care is being provided and they have said that they intend to work towards improving care services. The CQC is there to help promote the rights and interests of people using care services and where there is cause for concern or standards are not being met or the service being provided is “unacceptably poor”, they have a wide range of enforcement powers to take action, up to and including closing down the offending service provider.

A link to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website can be found here

Alternatively they can be contacted as follows:

CQC Telephone: 03000 616161
Email: enquiries@cqc.org.uk
Care Quality Commission
St Nicholas Building
St Nicholas Street
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 1NB