Government to spend £200 million to buy care home places
It's to speed up the discharge of hospital patients and reduce the strain on hospitals
Ministers will spend up to £200 million buying thousands of extra care home beds, to speed up the discharge of hospital patients and reduce the strain on hospitals.
Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, will also announce £50 million additional capital funding for hospitals today, as the government comes under intense pressure to alleviate the crisis in the NHS.
Labour criticised the plans as "yet another sticking plaster" rather than an attempt to fix the "buckling" health and care services.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN), which is undertaking strike action over pay, argued the strategy "won't make a difference" without halting the "exodus" of staff.
Some of the strain on the NHS comes from around 13,000 people occupying hospital beds in England - despite being medically fit to discharge - because they need further care before going home.
Mr Barclay is committing funding to immediately buy short-term placements in community settings, including care homes, to fund stays of up to four weeks per patient until the end of March.
He hopes thousands of extra patients will be discharged in the coming weeks, freeing up much-needed hospital beds.
If successful, this will reduce pressure on A&Es and speed up ambulance handovers by allowing patients to be admitted to wards from emergency departments more quickly.
Rather than new beds funding coming from the Treasury, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said up to £200 million will be redirected from existing health budgets to fund the scheme.
The additional £50 million coming from DHSC's capital budget will be used to expand hospital discharge lounges and ambulance hubs to help tackle queues of paramedics waiting to hand over patients.
Mr Barclay said: "The NHS is under enormous pressure from Covid and flu, and on top of tackling the backlog caused by the pandemic, Strep A and upcoming strikes, this winter poses an extreme challenge.
"I am taking urgent action to reduce pressure on the health service, including investing an additional £200 million to enable the NHS to immediately buy up beds in the community to safely discharge thousands of patients from hospital and free up hospital capacity, on top of the £500 million we've already invested to tackle this issue."
Shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, said Labour would instead "tackle the root cause of the crisis" by recruiting and retaining more carers.
"This is yet another sticking plaster to cover the fact that under the Conservatives, our health and care services are buckling," he said.
"The Tories' failure to fix social care means thousands of patients who are medically fit to be discharged remain stranded, leaving hospitals gridlocked. It is worse for patients and more expensive for the taxpayer."
RCN England director, Patricia Marquis, said the "aspiration in this policy is right".
"But the lack of beds in social care isn't really the problem, it's the lack of staff," she added.
"Without investment in staff, providing more facilities - whether it's more beds in care homes or hospitals - won't make a difference.
"Nursing staff are leaving the profession in their droves and pay is a key factor. To halt the exodus, ministers must pay them fairly."
Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak and Mr Barclay hosted health leaders in Downing Street for emergency talks on Saturday as A&E units struggle to keep up with demand and trusts and ambulance services declare critical incidents
The wave of strikes is adding to the pressure and the Health Secretary will host union leaders for talks on Monday.
But nurses are set to walk out on another two days this month without a breakthrough, which looks unlikely with Mr Barclay unwilling to negotiate on this year's pay settlement.
In an oral statement to MPs, he will also set out a series of other measures aimed at addressing the pressures facing the NHS this winter.
They will include six areas trialling longer-term solutions to free up hospital beds and ensure patients get the care they need.
The history of the NHS in pictures:
NHS is established
The National Health Service was formally established in 1948 at what is now Trafford General Hospital in Manchester. The service was started by Aneurin Bevan under the government of Clement Atlee. Its aim was to create a system of free healthcare to all. One of the first patients was Sylvia Diggory, aged 13, who was suffering from a liver condition.
Prescription charges introduced
Soon after its inception, charges for prescriptions and dental care were introduced. Each prescription would cost one shilling, while dental care would require a £1 payment. Charges would eventually be dropped and then reinstated in 1968.
NHS discoveries
Throughout the 1950s, thanks to the pioneering technology the NHS was using, a number of medical advancements were made. Polio vaccinations were rolled out in the UK, the structure of DNA was found and the link between smoking and cancer was proven.
Treating new diseases
As time went on and the NHS grew, so did its capacity to look after those who were unable to be treated before. The Mental Health Act in 1983 was the first time the concept of consent was raised in treating those with mental health issues. Nurses also treated people suffering from AIDS in the late 1980s and, together with the government, helped to reduce the stigma of the disease, which primarily affected gay men.
Opening to the public
In order to cope with the increasing demand for the NHS, the structure of the service changed. In 1991, NHS Trusts were established in the first of a wave of reorganisation for the service. People would later be able to donate organs more easily with the introduction of the NHS Organ Donor Register.
Stretched resources
In the 21st century, the NHS came under pressure as a result of stretched resources. With the rising cost of medicines, the government voted to bring in longer working hours and minimal increases in pay for NHS staff in 2015. This resulted in a mass picket of junior doctors around the country for better working conditions. It was the first general strike in the NHS' history and the first instance of industrial action in 40 years. There have been further strikes in 2023
NHS during coronavirus
In 2020, a new disease named COVID-19 began to spread around the world, eventually reaching the UK at the end of January. The resulting pandemic led to NHS workers being on the frontline of the disease. Support for the NHS grew massively and during lockdowns, so-called "Claps for Carers" would take place every Thursday to thank the NHS and its staff for protecting the public during the pandemic.