Released On 2nd Oct 2023
Sector calling for end of life care review
Leading sector organisations are calling for Government to review the way older people are cared for at the end of life.
The new Coalition of Frontline Care for People Nearing the End of Life, which includes Care England, the British Geriatrics Society (BGS) and the Gold Standards Framework Centre (GSF), is calling for enhanced core training in end of life care (EOLC) for the UK’s three million generalist frontline health and social care workers. The coalition also wants to see a step-change in health and care integration from the new Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) and heightened recognition of end of life care by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
In an open letter to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Rt Hon Steve Barclay MP, and Social Care Minister, Helen Whately MP, the coalition has said that existing NHS resources could be better used to transform a vital system of care that is failing those most in need.
Professor Keri Thomas OBE, founder and Chair of the GSF Centre, the leading training provider in end of life care for frontline health and care staff, said, 'Everyone deserves gold standard care at the end of their life. Most hands-on care for people in their final year of life is given by the frontline generalist workforce, in both health and social care. Therefore, it makes sense to ensure that those giving most care to most people in their final years, in any setting, are well trained in end of life care.
'The current system, however, is particularly failing vulnerable older people in their final years and the situation will only worsen as the population ages. Patterns of dying are changing too. Healthcare systems must adapt to the age-related conditions causing deaths and long-term illnesses, such as the UK’s biggest killer – dementia, by equipping frontline teams to provide proactive, personalised, coordinated and system-focused care for people in their final years.
'Research shows that given the choice, most people would prefer to die at home or in a care home yet almost half die in hospital. Unless more frontline health and care professionals receive specific end of life training and support, we will see further increases in emergency admissions and hospital deaths, which is not what we or the public want.'
The open letter has been signed by the leaders of seven health and care organisations which represent the health and social care workforce providing frontline care to those in the last years of life. These include: the Gold Standards Framework Centre (GSF), Care England, the British Geriatrics Society (BGS), the National Care Forum (NCF), the Homecare Association, the Association of Retirement Communities Operators (ARCO) and the Community Hospitals Association.
Highlighting the fact that about a third of the NHS budget is currently spent caring for people in the last year of their lives, the coalition has stated that minimal investment would reap considerable rewards and cost-savings, reducing avoidable hospitalisation, cutting waiting times and fulfilling people’s preference to die at home.
Driven by the ageing population, the number of UK deaths is projected to rise by 25% in the next 20 years, with numbers aged over 85 set to double.
Furthermore, about 40% of emergency hospital admissions of care homes residents are considered preventable, The Health Foundation has found, and EOLC training such as the GSF can dramatically decrease these, according to a recent GSF-accredited care homes survey (2023).