| Synopsis: |
Based on June 2007 figures, around six and a half thousand older people in Northern Ireland receive do miciliary services specifically tailored to their needs while a further 30,000 receive simple elements of support which help them to live independently. This report finds that, in line with the Department's objectives, many aspects of social care and the promotion of domiciliary care have improved and continue to do so.Between 2002 and 2007, domiciliary care provision has increased by 35 per cent which in the Department's view demonstrates that domiciliary care has increasingly been replacing residential care as the first choice for people with a particular level of need.But the process of change and development is far from complete: there continues to be a relatively high-dependence on institutional forms of care, for instance, 60 per cent of the GBP 394 million spent by Trusts on older people in 2005-06 went to the residential and nursing home sectors; the number receiving less complex services such as Home Help has fallen; domiciliary care resources tend to be concentrated on those individuals with high-level needs; and, there remains a constant level of unmet need among those awaiting domiciliary care.The report benchmarked where services stand in relation to: prevention and rehabilitation; needs assessment; direct payments; staff recruitment and retention; private/voluntary sector provision; and, quality of service. |