Elderly as a vulnerable population - Research Paper Example

More protection for elderly and vulnerable people Mark Gould Friday, 18 March After a series of damning reports highlighting serious flaws incare and treatment of old and vulnerable people, the Department of Health has today launched new guidelines to protect patients in NHS care.The four guides remind staff and managers across the health service and in private organisations providing NHS funded care of the importance of personalised care and dignity and offers practical advice on how to deliver this.

They offer practical guidance about investigating suspected neglect and a series of questions for managers to ensure they are meeting their care responsibilities. Recent reports such as the Health Ombudsman’s Care and Compassion report and the revelations about care at hospitals in Staffordshire have highlighted shocking examples of failings in NHS and care services. The Department of Health stresses that the vast majority of patients receive a high standard of care, but it says no failings are acceptable.

The new guidelines have been produced in collaboration with the Care Quality Commission, ADASS and Royal Colleges of Nurses and GPs as well as frontline staff to develop practical guidance for staff across the NHS. The four documents cover the roles of service managers, boards, NHS commissioners and how to carry out self-assessment and assurance to ensure services are safe.Practical help given in the guides includes:A step by step advice for staff on how to investigate suspected neglect; Six fundamental safeguarding actions for managers to take and a list of questions they should ask themselves to ensure they are meeting their responsibilities; and Advice for commissioners on how they can build safeguarding into commissioning and make this part of their joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

Care services Minister Paul Burstow said:“This guidance has been developed with staff and stakeholders to ensure they address the day-to-day safeguarding issues facing staff and managers. Small changes like ensuring all staff are aware of the full range of all the safeguarding procedures in place at their organisation can make a real difference to patients.”Chief Executive and Registrar of the Nursing and Midwifery Council Professor Dickon Weir-Hughes said:“As the professional regulator for nurses and midwives we are committed to strengthening the safeguarding of adults and welcome this new material to further support the professionals who care for them.

“Having contributed to the work of this health advisory group, we are confident these newly published materials will be of interest to a wide range of professionals and will support them in their understanding, practice and decision-making in relation to safeguarding adults.”