NHS Assessment

This photo was taken last month of Mum enjoying the summer sunshine in the gardens of the care home.

The care home notified me that they wanted Mum to be assessed for Funded Nursing Care Contributions which I agreed to. I then received an email confirmation of the appointment less than 24 hours before the appointment in which I was informed Mum would also be assessed for eligibility for NHS Continuing Healthcare.

As I was notified of the appointment at such short notice I was unable to attend in person but trusted the care home to ensure a fair process. The NHS requested me to to complete an Individual / Family Statement of Needs Form which offered me the opportunity to provide my view on Mums needs.

A couple of months later I received the results of the assessment which concluded that Mum is not currently eligible for the continuing care, however she is entitled to receive the Funded Nursing Care Contribution which is paid directly to the care home at the rate of £158 per week.

I didn’t expect Mum to receive approval for the continuing care at this stage. The NHS provide a thorough report of their assessment. They test the individual on the following care domains:

– Behaviour
– Cognition
– Psychological and Emotional Needs
– Communication
– Mobility
– Nutrition
– Continence
– Skin
– Breathing
– Drug Therapies and Medication
– Altered States of Consciousness
– Other Significant Care Needs to be taken into consideration

Each Care domain is assessed against a scoring of level of need as follows:

– No needs
– Low
– Medium
– High
– Severe
– Priority (this score only applies to some of the domains)

Mum scored low for most domains such as behaviour, nutrition, breathing. She scored severe or high for the cognition and communication. I agree with the assessment results, although next time she is assessed I will ensure I am present at the assessment so that I can actively participate and provide my feedback and opinion in person.

Hope this may help anyone who wants to know more about the NHS continuing care assessment.