Birmingham Enablement Service Update
A report setting out proposed improvements to the City Council’s enablement service is to go before cabinet.
Key service changes which the report states will benefit local citizens:
- Now – only 20% of service users leave enabled. Future – 80% will be enabled.
- Now – evening and weekend shifts do not have adequate staff cover to meet service users’ needs. Future – there will be consistent staffing cover across the working week.
- Now – there is no capacity to support hospital discharge and referrals from hospital are being turned down. Future – enablement will be a key service for older adults with a focus on hospital discharge.
- Now – service users report seeing up to 15 different carers a week. Future – service users will recognise their enablement team and key enablement assistant.
Cllr Paulette Hamilton, cabinet member for health and social care, talks about why improvements to the enablement service are needed:
The enablement service helps people recover skills and confidence to live at home after a spell of illness or hospital stay; allowing them to live independent lives, with minimal support. We are committed to delivering a first-class enablement service and for this to be delivered by Birmingham City Council staff.
Sadly, that’s not what we have now. 80% of service users are failing to get what they need, because we don’t have staff available when they are needed. Service users are seeing up to 15 different staff a week; this isn’t right for people receiving very personal care.
Care and health services are under intense pressure at the moment and the enablement service should perform a vital role in lifting some of that pressure by helping people back into independence, while relying less on expensive care. That is why our NHS partners support our improvement plans. I firmly believe this service – carried out in-house – can be the jewel in the crown of the wider support we offer to vulnerable citizens.
Read the full story here.