Scottish Social Policies - Term Paper Example

Scottish Social policies The Scottish government through consulting the social department acknowledges the fact of introducing some social policies to guide the public or the social workers while taking care of the older adults. Apart from children, older adults are regarded as the most vulnerable societal members with regards to societal exploitations. Older adults and their representatives (attorneys or human right activists) have always represented their problems in the social debates but the outcome is always dismal or dissatisfying. Their main concerns are usually attached to poor relationship between the Scottish government and the older adults, existence of the intergenerational tension and the overall marginalization of the older adults (Marshall, 2007). Older adults are usually faced with various problems and these are negligence, social discrimination and general withdrawals, lack of finances or poor economical status, due to lack of jobs and governmental support and poor health among others. However, the Scottish government recognizes the importance of the older adults in the society. This discourse is about some of the Scottish social policies known to ease the lives of the older adults in the country and some parts in the United Kingdom. The Scottish government funded and initiated a project dubbed ‘reshaping Care for the Older People’. The initiative calls the local authority and the national health services to join hands and ensure older adults lead healthy, affordable and comfortable life without depending on other family or society members (Clarke &Hanson, 2003). The project also entails the assessment of the existing social legislations meant to care for the older adults among other vulnerable groups. The Social work act (1968) is the general policy describing major elements of the social services meant to comfort the older people in the Scottish government. The policy was introduced as a remedy to the various social problems facing the older people in the society. The policy was later divided into various subdivisions to tackle the real social problems. The older people are vulnerable to various chronic diseases like diabetes, Tuberculosis, high blood pressure and skin disorders among others (Healy, 2009). The introduction of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act in 1972 was meant to provide effective and affordable health care to the older adults to limit chances of their deaths due to the chronic diseases. The policy guarantees the older adults among other vulnerable or disabled people to access medical care without any discrimination. It was evidence that major older adults were denied the opportunities to be admitted in the private and public health care due to the fact that they could not afford the services and the general assumption that they were already dead, due to their old age. Since the introduction of the policy, older adults have been encouraged to seek medical services from the private or nationally funded health care facilities and report any mistreatment or biasness in the nearest police stations or government offices. The recent researches indicate there has been a remarkable improvement in the older adults’ health and this is indicated by reduced death rates of the vulnerable group. The health care facilities were made to have different sections or rooms to admit the older adults rather than being admitted together with the active young generations. This has reduced the competition levels and set reluctant atmosphere to boost their recovery. Some local health care facilities have taken their own initiative to start home care programs to the older adults. This entails regular monitor of the older people in their respective homes (Joseph, 2004). These results from tee fact that majority of the older people prefer being admitted in their respective homes rather than being taken to strange avenues. There are various nurses who specialize in home care programs and this has greatly improved the health of the older adults. However, the home care program is faced with various challenges for instance; some older adults could be living in remote regions which are not easily accessible. This hinders prompt health care more so during emergencies. Some older people live alone in such homesteads and there is no one to remind them of their medications, and this greatly hinders their recovery. The Disabled persons (Services, consultation and Representatives) Acts, introduced in 1986, requires the mentality disabled to have a representative. Furthermore, the act requires the local authority and health sector to be informed of any mental disorder patient admitted for duration beyond six months for further assessment and treatment (Parker, 2008). This Act was proposed after it was revealed that majority of the older adults with mental disorders would be admitted in various hospitals then released when their conditions worsen, only to die later due to the social frustrations and the general financial inadequacies. The law ensures that the mental patients are subjected to friendly environment under government care incase there is no active family member to settle the patients’ medical bills. Since the bill was introduced, the mentally handicapped older adults have special centers where they socialize with one another through game and long chats. They are also provided with balanced diet to boost their general strength and stability (Sheldon, 2000). The Scottish government later introduced the NHS and Community Care Act in 1990 to ensure every Scottish is entitled to access health and social services within the country. The laws become part of the organizational structure of major private and public health and social facilities, in other words, the facilities made a priority to provide respective services to the Scottish irrespective of economical status, age, race and religion among other dividing factors. The NHS and Community Care Act was implemented in 1993 as a major reform in the both social and health care departments. Before the Act, the elderly people were not regarded as humans and their privacy was compromised. The community care enables the older people to have independent life in their respective homes or familiar environment within the community. The Act requires the elderly adults to access meals, sanitation and entertainment in their respective homes. The recent researches indicate that such care has greatly lengthened the lifespan of the elderly adults enrolled in such programmes. The Scottish government incorporates with the private sector to ensure the elderly people’s social rights are protected. The government ensures they remain full members of the society, for the longest period possible. The elderly adults have easy access to relevant resources, so that they can lead healthy or decent life just like the younger generation. The government ensures the older people can participate in the public, social as well cultural activities, without any kind of discrimination. There are various communication channels established to enable the elderly people learn on the current social and cultural activities in the country (Erikson, 2006). The social policies are also meant to enable the elderly people enjoy the freedom of choosing various lifestyles, provided one has the energy and the resources to lead such lifestyle. This came as a result of numerous complains that the elderly adults are discriminated in some national and entertainment avenues, because of their old age. Currently, the elderly adults can rent the modern housing facilities in any part of the country provided one can afford such facilities, unlike ten years ago, when the real estate owners could discriminate against them. The social policies also require that housing designs for the elderly people to be in such away that they can easily enter and move around the facilities through various supporting structures (Roberts, 2000). The elderly people can also easily access the private and public health care facilities, unlike ten years ago when the old people would die in their respective homes due to the general negligence and lack of resources to access the medical or health care services (Winner, 2004). The social policies also appreciate the fact that some elderly people put up in some organized institutions like the elderly people homes among others. It is important that their privacy and constitutional rights are not violated. There have been several reports associated with the rape, abuse and discrimination of the elderly people in such facilities. The social policies require the elderly people to make individual initiative or engage the group leaders in reporting such cases to the nearest NHS offices among responsible organizations (Thompson, 2002). Part two Major Scottish social policies were established after long consultations with the social care agencies among other related organizations. This chapter will focus on some two basic Scottish social policies and their ties with the social care agencies among others. The Regulation of Care (Scotland Act) was established in 2001. The law was implemented to improve the quality of services in the home cares, and make it meet the national standards as stipulated in the national health agenda. The policy gave rise to about twenty national standards, which are regularly monitored to improve the national social care. Both the private and the government sector have joined hands to ensure the success of the social policy. The government later set the National Care Standards Committee (NCSC) to help achieve the stipulated health and social standards (Dalley, 2000). However, it is worth mentioning that the stipulated standards would have different impacts in different parts or regions of Scotland. But the same yard stick or measure is used to assess the same standards to ensure generalized improvement in the social and health care. Some of the results of the policy include, the inclusion of new regulations and standards in the privately run nursing homes, in other words, all private nursing homes are required to produce social plans to meet the stipulated standards before being awarded operating licenses or certificates. The same strategy has become responsibility of the health and social agencies, where more than twenty private home cares have been closed for not complying with the stipulated social or health care standards. The policy also require that a room in the home care or medical facilities should accommodate a maximum of two patients or older people, to enhance privacy and meet the standard health conditions. This has limited the spread of contagious diseases like skin disorders, tuberculosis and fever among others. The rooms should also have good spacing, lightening and air conditioning, unlike when patients or older people could be admitted in single rooms with poor sanitation among other undesirables. Susan Deacon, who was the minister for Health and community care established the Joint Future Group to enhance the social and health care in the country. This created a platform where both tee private and national sector would share idea and resources to improve the national social and health care. Health and social care become a responsibility of all community members. It is after this strategy that there were more volunteers and stakeholders in the social and health care. Majority of nursing students among others in the medical sector devoted their time and energy to volunteer in the regional home care and other health care facilities (Priestley, 2003). There was a remarkable drop in the older adults’ death rate. The ministry also partnered with the financial and economical sector to provide employment opportunities to the older adults and the less fortunate in the country. The government insisted on workplace diversity as one of the mandatory conditions to keep the operational certificates. The older adults can now be assigned less demanding roles or duties like cleaning and paper works among others. Regular assessments are conducted to ensure the older adults and the physically handicapped are enjoying their democratic rights in such working places. Joint future is still regarded as the best way to improve social care in the country. It enables a single professional to conduct care assessment while the final touches are done by a specific specialist. The bill or law later gave birth to the patient’s charter which has greatly shaped the Scottish social care. It was established in the year 1991, after various social stakeholders realized specific gaps in the national social care. The charter is mainly concerned with the patients’ rights and health care standards among other care issues or elements. However, it is important to mention that some of the patients’ rights already existed when the charter was first introduced. The existing rights included the rights to receive health care in any part of the country despite the race, economical background, age, religion and ethnicity among other dividing factors. Patients could also access the necessary health care on the basis on need and not the ability to meet such expenses. All patients are also entitled to emergency medical care, irrespective of time and venue. The patients also have the rights to know any treatment procedure as well as the omitted alternatives and the reasons for such omissions. Adult [patients have the rights to access their health records ten keep it confidential (Preston-Shoot, 2001). Children below the age of 18, have the right to be accompanied by their parents or guardians and be assisted in various decisions making. However, such children have the right to keep their health records confidential from the parents, provided it will not compromise their health conditions. The Scottish government has invested a lot in improving the lives of the less fortunate, the physically and mentally handicapped, the children, the older adults and whole citizens in general. Various social reports indicate that major developmental sectors have been compromised by poor social and health care in the country. The government through the help of local stakeholders has established various strategies to enhance quality social care. The element of ethnic minority was enhanced when the nursing as well as midwifery council code of professional conduct collaborated with the International Council for nurses to make nursing care universal or meet the stipulated international standards. The nursing unit is required to respect human life, dignity as well as the generalized human rights. Both the conventional nursing and the midwifery should meet such standards despite the patients’ race, sexuality, economical status, religious and political belief, culture and the overall lifestyle among other social traits (Twigg, 2002). The welfare policy in Scotland has also improved the social care in the country. The welfare policy was traditionally incorporated in the United Kingdoms social policies but was adopted in Scotland in the year 1999 after keen consultations with the private sector. Welfare is considered one of the national motivational schemes. Welfare could also imply some social bonuses or practices to improve the citizens’ living conditions. It is considered some of the current devolutions in the national public health among others. The welfare policy has also enhanced politicians’ concerns with matters pertaining the social and health care status in the country. Currently, at least the Scottish parliamentary committee set some time to discuss the existing social and health care, as well as the relevant strategies to enhance or improve it further. The government spends about a third of the entire national budget on health and social care, and this is considered a remarkable improvement since the year 1999. The welfare policy also apply in various organizations or work places, and here all the workers and the employers have the right to enjoy their social and health rights as stipulated in the Scottish constitution (Crawford and Walker, 2004). The welfare policy requires the employees to access free and fare employment opportunities, without any sort of discrimination. Workplace diversity is now a necessity in any work place and here all workers, whether illiterate, old adult, physically handicapped among other less fortunate individuals must play certain roles in the national development. To conclude, the older adults are likely to be aced with various social and economical limitations and these are poor economical status, poor health, social discriminations and poor competition abilities among others. Due to such limitations, the Scottish government has formulated various social policies to protect the old adults among other less fortunate from social discriminations and exploitations. The government has also incorporated with the local and private health care facilities to establish well managed home care facilities for the older adults. Home care could also imply some older adults admitted in their respective homes or familiar environment, where they can access balanced diet or meals, entertainment, medical care and general social care (Hogg, 2000). The government has also established some policies to enable the older adults’ acess their security funds without any difficulties. The Scottish government has also enhanced the general social and health care through the introduction of welfare policies and Health care act among other policies, whose generalized aim is to enhance standard social and health care in all parts of the country. Works cited Clarke, A., Hanson, E. (2003) ‘Seeing the Person behind the Patient: Enhancing The Care of Older People using a Biographical Approach’, Journal of Clinical Nursing, Vol. 12, No. 5, pp 697-706. Crawford, K and Walker, J (2004) Social Work with Older People, Exeter: Learning Matters Dalley, G (2000) ‘Defining Difference: Health and Social Care for Older People’ Care Services for Later Life, London: Jessica Kingsley Erikson, E. (2006) Childhood and Society Harmondsworth: penguin Healy, J. (2009) Coming Up for Care: Assessing the Post-Hospital Needs of Older Patients, London: Policy Studies Institute Hogg, J. 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(2004) Quality Work with Older People: Developing Models of Good Practice, London: Central Council for Social Work and Education Read More