Discharge Planning Contoh

Discharge from hospital:
pathway, process and practice
READER INFORMATION
Policy
HR/Workforce
Management
Planning
Clinical
Estates
Performance
IM & T
Finance
Partnership Working
Document Purpose Best Practice Guidance

ROCR Ref:
Gateway Ref:
1074
Title
Discharge from hospital: pathway, process

and practice
Author
Health & Social Care Joint Unit and Change

Agents Team
Publication date
28 Jan 2003
Target Audience
PCT CEs, NHS Trusts CEs, StHAs CEs, Care Trusts

CEs, Medical Directors, Directors of PH, Directors
of Nursing, PCT PEC Chairs, NHS Trust Board
Chairs, SHA CEs, Allied Health Professionals,
Communications Leads, Emergency Care Leads
Circulation list
Description
This good practice guidance updates and builds

on the Hospital Discharge Workbook published
in 1994. The Government Response to the Health
Select Committee Report on Delayed Discharges,
issued in November 2002, indicated that the
workbook would be updated to reflect the
Governments commitment to tackle delayed
discharges in line with its commitment in the
NHS plan.
Cross Ref
Hospital Discharge Workbook 1994
Superceded Docs
Hospital Discharge Workbook 1994
Action required
Incorporate into discharge planning process
Timing
Immediate effect
Contact details
Jenny Mudge
Department of Health, Health and Social Care
Joint Unit
Room 214 Wellington House
133-155 Waterloo Road
SE1 8UG
020 7972 4329
jenny.mudge@doh.gsi.gov.uk
For recipient use
Further copies of this document are available from:

Department of Health
PO Box 777
Lodon SE1 6XH
Crown Copyright 2003
Produced by Department of Health
30473 1p 10.5k Feb 03 (RE)
CHLORINE FREE PAPER
The text of this document may be reproduced without formal permission or charge for personal or in-house use.
First published: 2003
30473/Discharge from hospital: pathway, process and practice can also be made available on request in braille, on audio cassette tape,
on disk, in large print, and in other languages on request.
30473/Discharge from hospital: pathway, process and practice is available on the departments website at: www.doh.gov.uk/jointunit
Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgements
vii
Useful abbreviations
Glossary
xi
1.
Introduction and overview

1.1 Delayed transfer of care
1.2 Improving discharge performance
1.3 The governments policy
1.4 Key principles
1.5 How to use the workbook
1.6 References
1
1
2
3
3
5
5
2.
Background information: policy context

2.1 Introduction
2.2 Rights and responsibilities
2.3 Service standards
2.4 Future service developments
2.5 References
3.
Developing a whole system approach

15
3.1 What are the characteristics of whole system working?
15
3.2 Who is included?
17
3.3 Whole system working for effective hospital discharge
18
3.4 The contents, characteristics and components of a good inter-agency discharge policy 19
3.5 Action steps
22
3.6 Practical example
22
3.7 References
22
Appendices
3.1 Supporting the system
23
3.2 Transport
29
3.3 Discharge planning self-assessment tool
32
4.
Involving patients and carers

4.1 An overview of the issues
4.2 Key features to achieve successful involvement
4.3 Assessing need
4.4 Action steps
4.5 Practical examples
4.6 References
Appendices
4.1 Carers assessment checklist
4.2 Carers assessment and care plan
4.3 Patients and carers leaflet
7
7
8
10
12
14
35
35
36
37
40
40
42
43
44
45
iii
5.
6.
7.
Co-ordinating the patient journey

5.1 An overview of the key issues
5.2 The patient journey
5.3 Pre-admission assessment
5.4 Admission to the ward
5.5 Equipment provision
5.6 Discharge lounges
5.7 Transport
5.8 Action plan
5.10 Multidisciplinary and inter-agency teamwork
5.11 References
Appendices
5.1 Medicines management
5.2 Discharge checklist
5.5 Discharge needs of people who are homeless
5.6 Admission of people with additional needs
5.7 Guidelines for the acute sector when caring for someone with a learning disability
5.8 Common problems and simple solutions
47
47
49
50
54
58
58
58
58
59
59
62
Intermediate care, transitional care and sheltered housing

6.1 Intermediate care
6.2 Transitional care
6.3 Sheltered housing
6.4 Action plan
6.5 References
Appendices
6.1 Housing
89
89
91
92
92
93
Continuing health and social care

7.1 What is continuing care?
7.2 Who is responsible for providing and funding continuing care?
7.3 Where is continuing care provided?
7.4 What effect does the provision of continuing care have on delayed transfers of care?
7.5 Assessing the need for continuing health and social care
7.6 The Direction on choice for accommodation
7.7 Dealing with disputes
7.8 Action plan
7.9 References
64
69
71
73
74
76
79
84
94
97
97
97
99
99
100
101
102
103
104
Foreword
Admission to and discharge from hospital can be a distressing time for individuals, their families
and friends. For most people, however, treatment will be successful and they will return to their
usual way of life very quickly through the provision of an accurate diagnosis, treatment and
rehabilitative service. Some people will need additional help to enable them to do so over and
above their medical treatment. These needs can be many and varied and cannot be met by the
NHS alone.
It is increasingly evident that effective hospital discharges can only be achieved when there is
good joint working between the NHS, local authorities, housing organisations, primary care
and the independent and voluntary sectors in the commissioning and delivery of services
including a clear understanding of respective services. Without this the diverse needs of local
communities and individuals cannot be met.
Government policy and recent legislative changes aim to help you work more creatively across
the traditional organisational boundaries. I have been impressed by the enthusiasm and
commitment to achieve real improved outcomes for people and of the better use of resources
that is taking place throughout England. This workbook, primarily concerned with the care of
adults with physical ill health, has drawn together some of those examples of good practice to
assist commissioners, practitioners and managers in their efforts to improve the processes of
discharge planning. It recognises the importance of close working between specialist mental
health and learning disability services, and that many of the principles and practices will apply
equally to younger adults and children, although further guidance on these will be issued
separately.
The key messages contained in this publication are:
Understand your local community and balance the range of services to meet health,
housing and social care needs.
Ensure individuals and their carers are actively engaged in the planning and delivery
of their care.
Recognise the important role carers play and their own right for assessment and
support.
Ensure effective communication between primary, secondary and social care to ensure
that prior to admission and on admission each individual receives the care and
treatment they need.
Agree, operate and performance manage a joint discharge policy that facilitates effective
multidisciplinary working at ward level and between organisations.
Foreword
On admission, identify those individuals who may have additional health, social and/or
housing needs to be met before they can leave hospital and target them for extra
support.
At ward level, identify and train individuals who can take on the role of care
co-ordination in support of the multidisciplinary team and individual patients
and their carers.
Consider how an integrated discharge planning team can be developed to provide

specialist discharge planning support to the patient and multidisciplinary team.
Ensure all patients are assessed for a period of rehabilitation before any permanent
decisions on care options are made.
Ensure that the funding decisions for NHS continuing care and care home placement
are made in a way that does not delay someones discharge.
The workbook provides you with guidance and practical tools in a way that allows you to focus
on those areas that are presenting you with challenges at a local level. It also directs you to other
sources of information and websites where you can obtain useful advice that will help you
achieve improved outcomes for individuals and meet performance targets.
Jacqui Smith
Minister of State for health, social care, long-term care,
disability and mental health
vi
Acknowledgements
Thanks to the following organisations and professional groups who made a valuable contribution to
this publication:
Age Concern
Anchor Trust
Aragon Housing
Care and Repair, England
Carers UK
Coverage Care
Help the Aged
Independent Healthcare Association
National Care Standards Commission
National Housing Federation
Nestor Healthcare Group
Sanctuary Housing Association
Sheffield Churches Council for Community Care
Somerset Care
Sunderland Carers Centre
The NHS Confederation
The Papworth Trust
The Parkinsons Society
The Pasque Hospice
The Princes Royal Trust for Carers
The Stroke Association
Westminster Healthcare
Ambulance Service Association
Association of Directors of Social Services
British Dietetic Association
British Geriatric Society
British Association of Social Workers
Charted Society of Physiotherapy
Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists
Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrist
Local Government Association
Royal College of Nursing
Royal College of General Practice
Social Service Departments in the following Authorities:
Bedfordshire County Council
Cambridge County Council
Cheshire County Council
City of York Council
Cumbria County Council
vii
Acknowledgements
Essex County Council

Hertfordshire County Council
Kent County Council
Leeds City Council
Liverpool City Council
London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham
London Borough of Sutton
London Borough of Southwark
Middlesborough Council
North Yorkshire Council
Redcar and Cleveland Council
Rotherham Metropolitan Council
Sheffield Council
Stockton on Tees Council
Sunderland City Council
Managers and clinicians from:
Addenbrookes Hospital NHS Trust
Airedale NHS Trust
Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust
Brighton & Sussex University Hospital NHS Trust
Central North West London Mental Health NHS Trust
City Hospital Sunderland NHS Trust
Ealing Hospital NHS Trust
East Kent Hospital NHS Trust
Harrogate Health Care NHS Trust
Hertfordshire Partnership Trust
Hitchingbrooke Hospital Health Care NHS Trust
Hull & East Yorkshire Hospital NHS Trust
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Lothian University Hospital Trust
Merseycare NHS Trust
National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery NHS Trust
Northumberland NHS Care Trust
Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust
St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust
St Marys NHS Trust
Southdowns Health NHS Trust
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust
South West London NHS Trust
Southern Derbyshire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
Sunderland NHS Trust
Surrey Ambulance Service NHS Trust
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust
Westcountry Ambulance Service NHS Trust
York Health Services NHS Trust
York Health Services Trust
Ashford Primary Care Trust
Camden Primary Care Trust
Central Liverpool Primary Care Trust
viii
Acknowledgements
Epping Forest Primary Care Trust

Hartlepool Primary Care Trust
Hounslow Primary Care Trust
Maldon Primary Care Trust
Morecambe Bay Primary Care Trust
North West Surrey Primary Care Trust
Slough Primary Care Trust
West of Cornwall Primary Care Trust
Woking Primary Care Trust
Avon, Gloucestershire & Wiltshire Strategic Health Authority
St Georges Medical School
The Modernisation Agency
National Patient Access Team
ix
Useful abbreviations
A&E
BCHS
CAT
CIC
CMHT
CPA
COPD
CTPLD
DH
FNC
GP
HIA
IDT
ICES
LAS
LD
LOS
LTC
MAU
MDT
MH
NHS
NLD
NSF
ODPM
PALS
PCTs
PEG
POD
RNCC
SALT
SAP
SITREPs
StHA
SSD
TTA
TTO
Accident and Emergency

Better care higher standards
Change agent team
Common information corps
Community mental health team
Care programme approach
Chronic obstructive airways disease
Community team for people with a learning disability
Department of Health
NHS funded nursing care
General practitioner
Home Improvement Agency
Inter-disciplinary team
Integrating community equipment services
Local ambulance service
Learning disability
Length of stay
Long-term care
Medical Assessment Unit
Multidisciplinary team
Mental health
National Health Service
Nurse-led discharge
National Service Framework
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
Patient Advice and Liaison Service
Primary care trusts
Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy
Patients own drugs
Registered nurse contribution to care
Speech and language therapy
Single assessment process
Situation report
Strategic health authority
Social services department
To take away
To take out
Glossary
Assessment:
a process whereby the needs of an individual are identified and

their impact on daily living and quality of life evaluated.
Avoidable admission:
admission to an acute hospital, which would be unnecessary

if alternative services were available.
Care management:
a process whereby an individuals needs are assessed and

evaluated, eligibility for services is determined, care plans drafted
and implemented, and needs are monitored and reassessed.
Care manager:
a practitioner who, as part of their role, undertakes care

management.
Care package:
a combination of services designed to meet a persons assessed

needs.
Care pathway:
an agreed and explicit route an individual takes through health

and social services.
Care planning:
a process based on an assessment of an individuals needs that

involves determining the level and type of support to meet
those needs, and the objectives and potential outcomes that
can be achieved.
Care programme approach:
the formal process (integrated with care management) assessing

the needs for services for people with severe mental health
problems.
Carer:
a person, usually a relative or friend, who provides care on

a voluntary basis.
Commissioning:
the process of specifying, securing and monitoring services

to meet identified needs.
Direct payments:
cash payments from social services in lieu of community

services.
Gateway worker:
a person whose role is to strengthen access and to provide

community triage for those who may need urgent contact
with specialist mental health services, and to ensure smooth
pathways between primary care and specialised services.
Independent sector:
includes both private and voluntary organisations
Multidisciplinary:
when professionals from different disciplines, such as social

work, nursing and therapy, work together.
Multidisciplinary assessment:
an assessment of an individuals needs that has actively involved

professionals from different disciplines in collecting and
evaluating this information.
xi
Glossary
xii
Protocols:
a plan detailing the steps that will be taken in the care and
treatment of an individual.
Rehabilitation:
a programme of therapy and reablement designed to restore

independence and reduce disability.
1. Introduction and overview
This publication has been compiled to assist health and social care commissioners, managers
and practitioners working in the statutory and independent sectors to improve local hospital
discharge policy and practice. It is based on research evidence, best practice and current
thinking, and builds on the very successful Hospital discharge workbook first published by the
Department of Health in 1994.
Additional information on avoiding unnecessary hospital admission and on discharge planning
is available on the Change Agent Team website which is updated frequently as new information
becomes available. A Learning and Improvement Network has also been set up to help
organisations review and improve performance. See website:
www.doh.gov.uk/jointunit/changeagents.htm.
The processes and practices for best outcomes and those that maximise independent living for
all adults who are to be discharged from acute care, community hospitals and other settings are
described. Although many of the principles outlined might apply equally to children, additional
guidance on the needs of children as patients will be included within the forthcoming National
service framework for children. Also, this workbook does not deal specifically with adults being
discharged from mental health facilities. However, many individuals being discharged from
hospitals will have other concurrent issues to be taken into consideration, such as mental health
difficulties or learning difficulties. The publication is based on the understanding that:
many people admitted to hospital fear the experience of hospitalisation and of losing
their autonomy; they want to return to living their previous lives as soon as possible and
every effort should be made to help them do so;
acute hospitals should only be used for the delivery of the services that cannot be
provided as effectively elsewhere in the health service, social care or housing system.
During 2003 the Change Agent Team will collaborate with the Modernisation Agency to
publish additional ways of improving local practice.
1.1 Delayed transfer of care

The research literature on hospital discharge goes back at least thirty years and there is
remarkable consistency in the research findings, which continue to report on the breakdowns in
routine discharge arrangements. In particular, older people make up a disproportionate number
of those whose discharge from hospital is delayed and who are waiting for other services.1,2
The Health Select Committee on Delayed Discharges argued that delays in discharge can be
seen as the symptom, and cause, of poor bed management in hospitals and a failure of
communication between health and social care. Beyond this analysis, the Committee argued the
importance of focusing on the experience of individual patients.3
The problems concerning hospital discharge are of a number of different types, these include
discharges that:
occur too soon;
are delayed;
are poorly managed from the patient/carer perspective;
are to unsafe environments.
The causes of these difficulties are diverse, and include:
internal hospital factors (e.g. the timing of ward rounds; the wait for diagnostic test
results; the delay in referring for a home assessment and of this taking place; the
organisation and management of medication; and the availability of transport);
co-ordination issues (e.g. the communication and organisation of different health, social
care and other community-based services):
capacity and resource issues (e.g. the limited availability of transitional and
rehabilitation places; placement difficulties associated with care homes; and availability
of a home care provider);
patient/carer involvement/choice (e.g. the lack of engagement with patients and carers
in decisions about their care and the limited availability of choice of care options; and
the lack of involvement by independent sector providers in operational and strategic
planning issues).
1.2 Improving discharge performance

Discharge from hospital is a process and not an isolated event. It should involve the
development and implementation of a plan to facilitate the transfer of an individual from
hospital to an appropriate setting. The individuals concerned and their carer(s) should be
involved at all stages and kept fully informed by regular reviews and updates of the care plan.
Planning for hospital discharge is part of an ongoing process that should start prior to
admission for planned admissions, and as soon as possible for all other admissions. This
involves building on, or adding to, any assessments undertaken prior to admission. Local
implementation of the single assessment process (SAP) needs to take account of this critical
issue.
Effective and timely discharge requires the availability of alternative, and appropriate, care
options to ensure that any rehabilitation, recuperation and continuing health and social care
needs are identified and met.
The governments policy
1.3 The governments policy

A number of medium and longer term policy initiatives are in place that require close
collaboration and joint planning across the health and social care system in order to deliver
improved positive outcomes for patients. This applies particularly to the independent sector in
ensuring that opportunities they offer are always considered and kept under review. These
policies are supported by an investment plan linked to challenging performance targets, many
of which have an impact on the processes that contribute to effective hospital discharge. These
are described in more detail in Section 2.
1.4 Key principles

The key principles for effective discharge and transfer of care are that:
unnecessary admissions are avoided and effective discharge is facilitated by a whole

system approach to assessment processes and the commissioning and delivery of
services;
the engagement and active participation of individuals and their carer(s) as equal
partners is central to the delivery of care and in the planning of a successful discharge;
discharge is a process and not an isolated event. It has to be planned for at the earliest
opportunity across the primary, hospital and social care services, ensuring that
individuals and their carer(s) understand and are able to contribute to care planning
decisions as appropriate;
the process of discharge planning should be co-ordinated by a named person who has
responsibility for co-ordinating all stages of the patient journey. This involves liaison
with the pre-admission case co-ordinator in the community at the earliest opportunity
and the transfer of those responsibilities on discharge;
staff should work within a framework of integrated multidisciplinary and multi-agency

team working to manage all aspects of the discharge process;
effective use is made of transitional and intermediate care services, so that existing acute
hospital capacity is used appropriately and individuals achieve their optimal outcome;
the assessment for, and delivery of, continuing health and social care is organised so that
individuals understand the continuum of health and social care services, their rights and
receive advice and information to enable them to make informed decisions about their
future care.
The benefits of effective discharge planning are:

for the patient
needs are met;
able to maximise independence;
feel part of the care process, an active partner and not disempowered;
do not experience unnecessary gaps or duplication of effort;
understand and sign up to the care plan;
experience care as a coherent pathway, not a series of unrelated activitities;
believe they have been supported and have made the right decisions about their future
care;
for the carer(s)
feel valued as partners in the discharge process;
consider their knowledge has been used appropriately;
are aware of their right to have their needs identified and met;
feel confident of continued support in their caring role and get support before it
becomes a problem;
have the right information and advice to help them in their caring role;
are given a choice about undertaking a caring role;
understand what has happened and who to contact;
for the staff
feel their expertise is recognised and used appropriately;
receive key information in a timely manner;
understand their part in the system;
can develop new skills and roles;
have opportunities to work in different settings and in different ways;
work within a system which enables them to do so effectively;
for organisations
resources are used to best effect;
service is valued by the local community;
staff feel valued which, in turn, leads to improved recruitment and retention;
meet targets and can therefore concentrate on service delivery;
fewer complaints;
positive relationships with other local providers of health and social care and housing
services;
avoidance of blame and disputes over responsibility for delays.
How to use the workbook
1.5 How to use the workbook

As previously described, effective discharge planning is a complex process. This workbook
provides guidance on each of the specific stages involved within a whole system approach.
Each section provides an overview of the issues and sets out the key principles of good practice
and the specific messages for:
commissioners of health and social care;
managers of health and social care;
front line staff working with patients and carers.
1.6 References
1. Taraborelli et al. (1998). Hospital discharge of frail older people: a literature review with practice
case studies. Edinburgh: Scottish Office Central Research Unit.
2. Audit Commission (2000). Inpatient admissions and bed management in NHS acute hospitals.
London: The Stationery Office.
3. House of Commons Health Committee Delayed Discharges (2001-02). Vol. 1. London:
The Stationery Office.
2. Background information: policy

context
2.1 Introduction
The two White Papers The NHS plan: a plan for investment, a plan for reform and Modernising
social services set out an agenda of intense reform, reinforcing the importance of health and
social care working together in the planning and delivering of care.1,2
Other policies that relate to and have an impact on avoiding unnecessary hospital admission,
the effective use and co-ordination of health, social care and housing resources and hospital
discharge planning are:
The Health Act.
Building Capacity and Partnership in Care.
Patient and Public Partnership in the new NHS.
Carers (Recognition and Services) Act and the Carers and Disabled Children Act.
NHS Funded Nursing Care in Nursing Homes.
The Direction on Choice.
Fair Access to Care Services.
The National Service Framework for Older People (including medicines management).
The National Service Framework for Mental Health.
Valuing People.
Supporting People.
Community Care (Delayed Discharge, etc.) Bill (subject to Parliamentary approval).
The consistent and strong message within each of these is the need for statutory and
independent agencies to work together with their local communities to plan, commission and
deliver services. Strong and positive engagement is therefore essential. An equally clear
expectation is that those individuals who require services, and their carers, will be actively and
fully informed participants in the planning and delivery of their care. Effective clinical
governance arrangements are to underpin the delivery of health care and, for local authorities,
Best Value Reviews will ensure effective provision and use of social care services.
The Health Act 1999 paved the way for the NHS and local authorities with social service
responsibilities to work together.3 The introduction of joint priorities for health and social care
adds further emphasis to the expectation that joint working will underpin the delivery of
improved services and health gains in local communities. Practical guidance on using the
flexibilities under the Health Act can be found on website: www.doh.gov/uk/jointunit.
The new powers resulting from the Act are:
Pooled budgets the ability for partners each to contribute agreed funds to a single pot,
to be spent on agreed projects for designated services.
Lead commissioning the partners can agree to delegate commissioning of a service to

one lead agency.
Integrated provision the partners can join together their staff, resources and
management structures to integrate the provision of services from managerial to front
line level.
Building capacity and partnership in care 4 launched a new agreement between the statutory and
independent sectors to encourage a more strategic, inclusive and consistent approach to capacity
planning at a local level. The independent sector is defined as providers of social care, health
care and housing. Detailed information can be located on website:
www.doh.gov.uk/buildingcapacity. The agreement promotes constructive co-operation between
all parties involved in providing care and support for adults. It recognises the valuable
contribution of the independent sector in managing capacity within a whole system approach.
It also provides advice on how capacity in the sector can be stabilised, increased and confidence
in the market boosted. The principles contained in this document should be adopted.
Improvement, expansion and reform: the next three years5 sets out the priorities and planning
framework for health and social care. The areas in which the health and social care system will
be changing are outlined. The emphasis is on more choice for patients, payment for results in
the NHS and new incentives for health and social care to provide appropriate services for older
people outside hospital. The need for improved access to services, improving the overall
experience for patients and reducing health inequalities are highlighted.
2.2 Rights and responsibilities

Patient and public involvement in the new NHS6 recognises that patients and their carers are the
experts in how they feel and what it is like to live with, or care for, someone with a particular
condition. It is essential that any assessment and care planning process, continually engages the
patient and their carers, and provides information in a way that helps them make unprejudiced
decisions about treatment and care. Also, it is now a requirement that health trusts put in place
Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) to work with patients and their carers.
The booklet Your guide to the NHS replaced the Patients charter and is available for the public,
as well as patients in hospitals and community settings, to clarify NHS responsibilities and
standards of care. Included in the booklet is a section on discharge from hospital and what help
is available for ongoing care and support. The information is also available in audiocassette,
Braille and a comprehensive range of languages and can be accessed on website:
www.nhs.uk/nhsguide.
The Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 19957 and the Carers and Disabled Children Act
20008 acknowledge the important role that carers play and the need to help them maintain
Rights and responsibilities
their own health and well being. The 2000 Act gives carers the right to have their own needs
assessed and local authorities the power to supply certain services direct to carers. The role of
carers must be taken into account in any discharge planning.
In October 2001, Free nursing care in nursing homes9 enabled all people who were funding their
own care (self-funders) to become eligible for the nursing component of that care to be funded
by the NHS. In April 2003, the responsibility for assessing and funding nursing care for all
care home residents transfers from local authorities to the NHS. The NHS responsibilities for
funding care are based on meeting the costs of registered nurse time in providing, delegating
or supervising care.
The guidance requires health and social care commissioners to work together to contract jointly
with care home providers to meet individuals care needs.
Although patient choice is considered extremely important, patients who have been assessed as
not requiring NHS continuing in-patient care, do not have the right to occupy, indefinitely, an
NHS bed (with the exception of a very small number of cases where a patient is being placed
under Part 11 of the Mental Health Act 1983). They do, however, have the right to refuse to
be discharged from NHS care into a care home. In such cases the hospital, social services and
community staff should work with the patient and his or her family to find a suitable
alternative. The Direction on Choice (LAC (92)27 and LAC (93) 18), that describes the current
position is under review. Further information will be available on the Department of Healths
website: www.doh.gov.uk.
Local authorities are responsible for carrying out community care assessments under Section
47(1) of the NHS and Community Care Act, and Section 47(3) should involve the NHS and
housing, where appropriate.10 They may provide community care services to individual adults
who have needs arising from physical, sensory, learning or cognitive disabilities and
impairments, or from mental health difficulties. If they are eligible, a care plan on how best to
address those needs through the provision of either appropriate services such as home care,
residential care, day care or direct payments. The local authoritys responsibilities to provide
such services are principally set out in the National Assistance Act 1948, the Health and Social
Services and Public Health Act 1968, the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970, the
National Health Services Act 1977, the Mental Health Act 1983 and the Disabled Persons
(Services, Consultation and Representation) Act 1986.
The NHS and local authorities are bound by a duty to co-operate and to secure and advance
the health and welfare of individuals (NHS Act 1977, NHS and Community Care Act 1990,
Health Act 1999). The NHS is responsible for the assessment of continuing health care needs,
in conjunction with social services. New guidance on continuing care was issued in June 2001,11
which requires all strategic health authorities (StHAs) to review and agree new criteria for fully
funded, continuing NHS health care. Primary care trusts and local authorities were required to
be involved in agreeing these new criteria, and to have only one set of criteria across each StHA.
In addition, the guidance stated that local authorities and the NHS should agree joint eligibility
criteria for mixed packages requiring both health and social care.
Fair access to care services12 requires local authorities, by April 2003, to review and make explicit,
their eligibility criteria. The eligibility framework is graded into four bands critical,
substantial, moderate and low. The criteria should be graded by the risk that an individual, or
his or her family, is exposed to. This will determine the nature of, and speed by which, services
are provided. Local authorities should make only one eligibility decision with respect to adults
seeking social care support. Separate criteria for specific types of services should not operate.
Reviews should take place at regular intervals. Local authorities are able to make direct
payments to individuals as described in the Community Care, Carers and Childrens Services
(Direct Payments) (England) Regulations (2002) in accordance with the principles outlined in
the Health and Social Care Act 2001 and the Children Act 1989. In 2003, every local authority
is required to offer older people access to direct payments in the same way as they are available
to younger people. This will mean that every older person assessed as being in need of care will
be given the choice of receiving a service or a cash payment to purchase care for themselves that
might better suit their needs.
2.3 Service standards

The National service framework for older people (NSFOP)13 was published by the Department of
Health in March 2001 and includes eight standards of care for older peoples services. Each one
contains key milestones.
1.
Rooting out age discrimination aims to ensure that older people are never unfairly
discriminated against in accessing NHS or social care services. Treatment services must be
provided on the basis of clinical need alone.
2.
Person-centred care aims to ensure that older people are treated as individuals and that
they receive appropriate and timely packages of care which meet their needs as individuals,
regardless of organisational boundaries. It includes specific plans that will have an impact on the
organisation and co-ordination of care in preparation for discharge. These include
implementation of:
10
The single assessment process (SAP)14 is a standardised assessment process and care
management system for older people. It aims to put individuals at the centre of
their own assessment and subsequent care planning, lead to greater information
sharing between professionals and encourage better outcomes for older people.
Further information is available on the SAP website, www.doh.gov.uk/scg/sap;
Community equipment services 15 play a vital role in helping sick and disabled
people of all ages develop their full potential and maintain their independence.
They can also make it possible for informal carers, family members and
professionals to manage someone at home, rather than in institutional care.
Currently the NHS and local authorities have separate statutory responsibilities
for equipment provision, which frequently causes confusion for users and
practitioners and delay in providing vital equipment. Integration of these
services will be taken forward through a three-year programme to deliver change
involving housing, education, employment, the independent sector and
specialist equipment providers. Integrated services and pooled budgets will
deliver one local service and increase the range and capacity of equipment
provision. The government has stated that by December 2004 all community
equipment for older people (e.g. aids and minor adaptations) will be provided
within seven days. Subject to legislation, from April 2003, the government
plans to remove charges for community equipment, such as handrails and
hoists. Further information is available on the ICES website: www.icesDH.org.
The delivery of integrated continence services by April 2003.
Service standards
3.
Intermediate care 16 aims to provide integrated services to promote faster recovery from
illness, prevent unnecessary acute hospital admission, support timely discharge and maximise
independent living. It sets out targets for increased provision of intermediate care services,
which will enable acute hospitals to concentrate on what they are good at. See Intermediate care:
moving forward (Department of Health, June 2002) for the latest information.
4.
General hospital care aims to ensure that older people receive the specialist help they need
in hospital and that they receive the maximum benefit from having been in hospital.
5.
Stroke aims to reduce the incidence of stroke in the population and ensure that those
who suffer a stroke have prompt access to integrated stroke services. This standard provides
guidance on a care pathway for stroke care for all ages.
6.
Falls aims to reduce the number of falls that result in serious injury and ensure effective
treatment and rehabilitation for those who have fallen.
7.
Mental health in older people aims to promote good mental health in older people and to
treat and support those older people with dementia and depression.
8.
The promotion of health and active life in older age aims to extend the life expectancy of
older people.
Implementing medicines-related aspects of the NSFOP aims to ensure that older people gain
maximum benefit from their medication to maintain or increase their quality and duration of
life.
The National service framework for mental health (NSFMH)17 sets out standards of care for
adults of working age with mental health problems. People who receive specialist mental health
services should be supported in accordance with the care programme approach (CPA) and have
a care co-ordinator who is responsible for ensuring the delivery of a seamless health and social
care plan. The NSFMH and Effective Care Co-ordination documents can be found on the
website, www.doh.uk/nsf/mentalhealth.
Valuing people18 emphasises the importance of providing people who have a learning disability
with the services and opportunities that should be afforded to them in order that they can lead
full lives. Of particular relevance to the provision of general health services is the need to
provide equal access to health promotion and treatment services. Good practice guidance on
health action plans and health facilitation to help people with learning disabilities use general
health services can be found on website: www.doh.gov.uk/learningdisabilites.
Two other documents published by the Department of Health, Signposts for success19 and
Once a day 20, recommend that all acute hospitals take into consideration the special needs
of people with learning disabilities, when they access hospital services.
The Supporting people 21 programme launched in January 2001, sets out important changes in
the way housing and related benefits could be used to help vulnerable people achieve greater
independence. These changes come into effect in 2003 through a working partnership
arrangement between local government, service users and support agencies.
The lead organisation is the local authority. However, stakeholder organisations, such as health
trusts and the independent sector, should contribute to the strategic plans for housing-related
11
services, which will complement and change existing support services. This important initiative
has a key role to play in the development and expansion of alternative care options.
Better care, higher standards (BCHS)22 published in 1999 by the Office of the Deputy Prime
Minister and the Department of Health promotes joint approaches on service standards and
information provision across housing, health and social care in order to strengthen partnership
working.
2.4 Future service developments

Delivery of The NHS plan 1 and Modernising social services 2 through the Priorities and Planning
Framework will see a continued emphasis on service development. The key developments that
will have an impact on the effective use of the acute hospital sector, promote independence and
support older people or those with complex health and social care needs, to be delivered over
the next five years, include:
Each year
12
less than a 1% growth in emergency hospital admissions and no growth in readmissions.
During 2003
agree, implement and jointly monitor, local improvement plans as a result of

surveys designed to explore the patients experience, and involve Patient Forums
as they become available;
strengthen accountability to local communities through improved engagement

with them as evidenced by annual Patient Forum reports to the Commission for
Patient and Public Involvement in Health, and annual publication of a patient
prospectus covering local health services;
strategic and operational plans will include the development of an integrated

continence service;
hospitals caring for people with stroke will have established clinical audit
systems;
risk management procedures will be in place in all providers of health and social
care to reduce the risk of older people falling;
strategic and operational plans will include a programme to promote healthy

ageing and to prevent disease in older people; all general hospitals that care for
older people will have completed a skills profile of their staff in relation to the
care of older people and have in place education and training programmes to
address gaps identified;
at least 500,00 extra pieces of community equipment will be provided free of

charge to an estimated 250,000 people.
Future service developments
April 2004
at least 5000 additional intermediate care beds and 1700 non-residential

intermediate care places compared to the 1999/2000 baseline will be in place;
protocols will be in place across health and social care systems for the care and
management of older people with mental health problems;
all general hospitals caring for people with stroke will have specialised stroke
services;
single integrated equipment services will be in place.
December 2004
for emergency care a single phone call to NHS Direct will be a one-stop
gateway to out-of-hours healthcare;
all assessment of older people will begin within 48 hours of first contact with
social services and will be completed within four weeks (70% in two weeks);
all community equipment for older people (e.g. aids and minor adaptations)
will be provided by social services within seven working days.
December 2005
for planned care, offer routine choice of hospital provider at the point of
booking;
all health and social care systems will have an integrated falls service;
establish new diagnostic and treatment centres to support meeting 2005 waiting
targets.
March 2006
Improve the quality of life and independence of older people so that they can
live at home wherever possible, by increasing the numbers of those supported
intensively to live at home to 30% of the total being supported by social services
at home or in residential care;
Carers Grant will be doubled.
During this period further National service frameworks will be developed that will have an
impact on community- and hospital-based health services and on social care. One of particular
significance to capacity within the health and social care system will be that on the management
of chronic physical disabilities and neurological conditions.
13
2.5 References
1. Department of Health (2000). The NHS plan: a plan for investment, a plan for reform.
London: Department of Health.
2. Department of Health (1998). Modernising social services. London: Department of Health.
3. The Health Act 1999. London: HMSO.
4. Department of Health (2001). Building capacity and partnership in care. London:
Department of Health.
5. Department of Health (2002). Improvement, expansion and reform: the next three years.
6. Department of Health (2000). Patient and public involvement in the new NHS. London:
7. The Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 2000. London: HMSO.
8. The Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000. London: HMSO.
9. Department of Health (2001). Free nursing care in nursing homes (HSC 2001/17: LAC
(2001)26). London: Department of Health.
10. The NHS and Community Care Act 1993. London: HMSO.
11. Department of Health (2001). Continuing care: NHS and local councils responsibilities
(HSC 2001/015: LAC (2001)18). London: Department of Health.
12. Department of Health (2002). Fair access to care services (LAC (2002)13). London:
13. Department of Health (2001). The national service framework for older people. London:
14. Department of Health (2002). The single assessment process for older people (HSC 2002/01:
LAC 2001(1)). London: Department of Health. www.doh.gov.uk/scq/sap/hsc200201.htm
15. Department of Health (2001). Guide to integrating community equipment services. London
16. Department of Health (2001). Intermediate care (HSC 2001/1: LAC 2001(1)). London:
17. Department of Health (1999). The national service framework for mental health. London:
18. Department of Health (2001). Valuing people. London: Department of Health.
19. NHS Executive (1998). Signpost for success. London: Department of Health.
20. NHS Executive (1999). Once a day. London: Department of Health.
21. Department of Health (2000). Supporting people. London: Department of Health and
Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions.
22. Department of Health (1999). Better care, higher standards. London: Department of Health
and Environment, Transport and the Regions.
14
3. Developing a whole system

approach
The key principles underpinning this aspect of an effective discharge and transfer of care
policy are:
The avoidance of unnecessary hospital admission, good clinical outcomes and effective
discharge planning is facilitated by a whole system approach to the commissioning and
delivery of services.
Organisations should work proactively, separately and together to review and improve
performance and find solutions.
The government has consistently emphasised the need for organisations and practitioners to
work together to meet the needs of individuals and their carers. A whole system approach is
one that recognises the contribution that all partners make to the delivery of high quality care.
Whole system working does not have restrictive service boundaries it puts the individual at
the centre of service provision and responds to their needs. Patients, with their expertise and
understanding of their own needs and their ability to influence how the discharge process works
must be kept integral to the system. The whole system is not simply a collection of
organisations that need to work together, but a mixture of different people, professions, services
and buildings which have individuals as their unifying concern and deliver a range of services in
a variety of settings to provide the right care in the right place at the right time.
The Audit Commission described how, Services for older people must work together if they are
to meet peoples needs and aspirations effectively. Many different agencies work with older
people, including non-specialist services, such as transport, education and housing, as well as
services that provide care. All too often older people receive a disjointed, confused response
when they need help or advice. Frequently the responses that they receive meet their needs only
in part.1 This builds on earlier work on rehabilitation services.2
3.1 What are the characteristics of whole system working?
Services are responsive to the needs of the individual patient/client/tenant/carer.
All stakeholders accept their inter-dependency and the fact that the action of any one
of them may have an impact on the whole system.
There is agreement between the stakeholders as to the vision of the service(s), the
priorities, the roles and responsibilities, the resources, the risks and the review mechanisms.
Those using the system do not experience gaps or duplication in provision.
Relationships and partnerships are enhanced.
15
Guiding people through the system

A comprehensive range of services is not enough.
Keeping people
at home
Staying
well
at home
Accompanying
older people through
the maze
Going
home
Preparing
to go
home
Assessing
the range
of needs
Planning
to return
home
If a hospital stay
becomes necessary
Figure 3.1. A virtuous circle of services.
Source: Audit Commission (2002).1
16
Responding
to
crisis
Who is included?
3.2 Who is included?
Training
skills needed to
deliver plans
links with Workforce
Confederation
shared training
programmes
moving and
handling training for
staff and carers
Multi-agency
commissioning group
ensuring an effective
local whole system
Prevention
range of schemes
incorporation of
concept into wider
community facilities
e.g. leisure centres
Patient/Individual/
Carer
Access to Services
criteria for different
services
single assessment
equipment
continence
Range of Services
(statutory and
independent sector)
community based
emergency
non-emergency
bed based
rehabilitation
recuperation
social care
active participant in own care services

planning
service review and redesign
represent local community
Interface with, and

expectation, of
Specialist Services
acute
mental health
learning disability
homeless
refugee
chronic disease
management
Professional input
pharmacy
therapy
dietetics
transport
GP input to hospitals
consultant
involvement in
Primary Care
management of the
discharge process
Information
for public
for patients
for carers
for people with
special needs
exchange between
hospital and
community services
Housing
range of housing
options
joint housing and
care schemes
provision of
adaptations
maintenance and
repair schemes
Figure 3.2. Health, housing and social care system for adults.
17
3.3 Whole system working for effective hospital discharge

There are three main areas where integrated whole systems working underpins the discharge
care pathway:
Capacity planning.
Reviewing performance.
Hospital discharge policies and inter-agency agreements.
The infrastructure that is required to support this is described in Appendix 3.1.
3.3.1 Capacity planning

This requires commissioners in primary care trusts and local authorities to work together to
ensure that the current capacity is used to best effect and to engage the independent sector in:
Acute hospital.
Community hospitals.
Mental health services.
Housing sector (further information is provided in Appendix 6.1).
Transport services (Appendix 3.2 provides an overview of the transport).
Care homes.
To increase capacity in services in order to avoid the need for admission to hospital and support
earlier hospital discharge such as:
18
Intermediate care.
Intensive home support.
Carers support.
Rapid response teams.
Very sheltered housing (innovative use of local authority and Housing Association voids).
Effective hospital discharge
3.3.2 Reviewing performance

National targets are in place for a reduction in delayed transfers of care and emergency
admission to hospital. These are noted in Section 2. The local performance of organisations is
closely monitored through SITREPs. Many organisations have found that by working together
to monitor and discuss the reason for delay they have been able to find joint solutions to some
of the issues. In many areas the performance monitoring has been extended to identify and
provide a more detailed analysis of the issues and improve the accuracy of the information.
The use of process maps to follow an individuals progress through the system has helped
practitioners to understand and develop a fresh perspective on NHS and social services
efficiency from the patients view point. It is a powerful way of demonstrating to practitioners
how their actions are viewed by the patient, the outcome of those actions and any duplication.3
The Modernisation Agency has developed a guide to process mapping, analysis and redesign,
which is available on their website: http://www.modern.nhs.uk/improvementguides/process.
Service Improvement Managers in strategic health authorities may also be contacted for advice.
3.3.3 Hospital discharge policies and practices

The way that health and social care organisations work together in the hospital setting is critical
to effective discharge/transfer planning. Primary care trusts, local authorities with social services
responsibilities and acute hospital trusts, in partnership with independent sector providers, need
to review and build on previous community care agreements.
The performance monitoring arrangements of delayed transfers of care should be detailed in the
local discharge policy together with arrangements to validate information and agree actions to
resolve, and investigate, concerns.
The policy, once agreed, will need to be understood by staff and its importance highlighted at
staff orientation and induction programmes and through regular training.
The performance framework to monitor delays provides the means to review practice and revise
the policy in a dynamic way as organisations learn what works well and what needs reform.
The policy should be readily available for patients, carers, their families and advocacy services
and in a range of media formats to meet sensory and language needs.
3.4 The contents, characteristics and components

of a good inter-agency discharge policy
The policy aims are to:
ensure the patient is always treated as an individual and to provide continuity of care
as they transfer from one care setting to another;
ensure acute hospital facilities are used appropriately;
identify and agree joint priorities for change.
19
The agreement should:
describe the overall referral, assessment, care planning and review framework;
set out clear guidance on professional and organisational responsibilities;
streamline the referral processes between hospital departments, primary care and social
care agencies, including the independent sector;
contain locally agreed standards for interdepartmental response times;
provide a performance and clinical governance framework;
describe an education and training programme for staff;
Describe an education and training programme for patients and carers;
Determine the out-of-hours availability of the independent sector providers.
Key outcomes of the policy:
20
Clinical protocols are agreed with the primary care trusts to ensure acute facilities are
used appropriately.
Risk assessment processes are integral to assessment and care planning.
Actions to ensure safe and timely transfer are initiated prior to admission or as soon as
possible after admission.
Discharge/transfer planning is seen as a continuous process that takes place seven days a
week.
Patients and their carers are fully involved at all stages.
Patients and their carers are provided with information, both verbal and written, and in
a range of media formats (to take into account any sensory or spoken language needs)
on what to expect and their contribution to the process.
Staff work within the principles set out in the single assessment process for assessment
and care management and ensure a named individual co-ordinates the patients progress
through the system.
Staff engaged in discharge planning are fully aware of the treatment, rehabilitation and
care options provided in the community in the statutory and independent sector and
how to access them.
Agreements are in place with the bordering local authorities and primary care trusts
regarding eligibility for home care, care home placements and for those requiring
NHS continuing care and home equipment.
Clinical protocols are in place to facilitate nurse/therapist initiated discharge/transfer.
Inter-agency discharge policy
Effective communication processes are agreed with community-based staff.
A comprehensive range of checklists and records are provided to assist staff.
Patients are provided with details of arrangements, contact details and any relevant
information regarding their future treatment and care.
Procedures are clearly defined for cases where the patients do not have the mental
capacity to represent themselves.
There should be a section for each professional group such as doctors, nurses, therapists,
pharmacists, social workers and care managers clarifying their responsibilities with regard to:
Discussing with the patient the reasons for his or her admission, treatment, likely
outcome and projected discharge date.
Engagement and communication with the carer and/or family.
Providing the patient and family with information.
Co-ordinating the patients journey.
Communication with the patients GP and primary healthcare team on admission,

transfer and discharge.
Referral for diagnostic, therapy, medication management and transport.
Documenting the discharge/transfer plans.
Planning and arranging reviews and follow-up appointments.
Decision about fitness for discharge/transfer.
Organising transfer/discharge.
Specific joint agreements/protocols for:
Fast track arrangements for short-term enhanced home care packages.
Patients who refuse to leave hospital.
Placements in care homes.
Out-of-hours access to the independent sector.
Assessment of carers needs.
Avoiding premature discharge.
Cross-border clients from a neighbouring local authority.
NHS continuing care.
21
Direction on choice.
Unplanned discharge and discharge against medical advice.
People who are homeless.
Links with mental health and learning disability services.
Use of interpreters, translators, Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) and
advocacy services.
3.5 Action steps

Senior managers from the primary care trust, acute trust and local authority with social services
responsibility need to agree:
who will lead a joint review of the discharge policy and information exchange practices
between organisations;
a timetable and terms of reference for the review;
to provide feedback to the Local Capacity Planning Group on findings and pressures
within the system related to capacity;
an action plan to address findings;
the immediate steps to improve the use of and access to information between agencies.
3.6 Practical example

A discharge planning self-assessment tool has been developed by health and social services staff
to review policy and practice. This was developed from work carried out by South West
Regional Office and the Social Services Inspectorate. This is provided in Appendix 3.4.
3.7 References
1. Audit Commission (2002). Integrating services for older people. London: The Stationery
Office.
2. Audit Commission (2000). The way to go home. Oxford: Audit Commission.
3. NHS Modernisation Agency (2002). Improvement leaders guide: process mapping, analysis and
redesign. www.modern.nhs.uk/improvementguides
22
Appendix 3.1
Supporting the system
A3.1.1 Why this matters
Experience has shown that working collaboratively produces the best environment for creating
and sharing ideas that will improve services to patients and their carers. A collaborative
approach has to include the planning of services, their delivery and the empowerment of
practitioners to work in different ways and to test new models of delivering care. That is,
everyone commits to identify and contribute to ways of improving the patients journey through
the care services. All parties are seen as equal and the independent sector plays a key role.
The key areas that underpin effective partnership working are:
Leadership at all levels of the system.
A shared vision and trust between the different partners.
Communication across the system and within individual organisations.
A shared approach to service monitoring and review.
A culture that promotes reflective practice, service development and innovative practice.
Clear agreements about sharing and managing financial risk.
Multidisciplinary working and training.
Without addressing these areas there is an increased likelihood of:
Patients, carers and staff being dissatisfied with the care they receive.
Staff being dissatisfied with the services they offer.
A blame culture within, and between, agencies.
Limited service redesign and development.
Increased capacity problems.
An increase in bottlenecks in the system.
Marginalisation and the stigmatisation of certain groups of patients.
Gaps and/or duplication in services.
A risk of people getting lost in the system.
23
Appendices
Misunderstanding between patients and staff, carers and staff, and staff in different parts
of the system.
Delays in transfer of information between services as the patient moves, in getting

community services set up to support discharge, in obtaining essential equipment and
in getting housing adaptations in place.
Staff not understanding local policy, practice and procedures leading to inconsistent
information being given to patients, unnecessary delays and wasted effort on the part
of staff.
A reactive, not a proactive, approach to discharge.
A3.1.2 Leadership
Strong managerial and clinical leadership is required at all levels across the whole range of
services, at individual organisational level, at multidisciplinary team level and in individual
departments.
At Chief Executive and Director level leadership is required to provide: a shared vision, a shared
commitment to making the system work; agreement on priorities; development of shared
policies and protocols; and budgetary management. The strategic vision should demonstrate a
whole system approach to capacity and demand management. With strong senior leadership
it is easier to manage the tensions that will occur from time to time. These will be internally,
between organisations and with patients and carers who feel that they have not received the
service they should have.
At senior/middle manager level, for example ward manager, modern matron, day service
manager, departmental head, it is key that managers understand their part in:
Developing policies and practices based on current thinking.
Putting policy into practice and measuring the impact of change.
Ensuring that staff understand the key role they play in the discharge process.
Providing staff with tools and techniques to review performance and find solutions.
Ensuring that staff see both patients and carers as equal partners in the care planning
and delivery process.
Facilitating multidisciplinary team working.
Creating an environment, which encourages staff to make decisions, to feel a valuable

part of the system and to deliver an effective service.
Also, there needs to be job shadowing and secondments between the statutory and independent
sectors.
24
A3.1.3 Communication
Good communication is a pre-requisite for a well co-ordinated patient journey from preadmission through to discharge. Staff involved in discharge/transfer planning are frequently
working to conflicting pressures and priorities between organisations, professions and patients,
carers and relatives.
It is essential that there is communication at all levels within a system if there is to be effective
partnership working between organisations, within each organisation and between staff and the
patients, carers and tenants they are working with. This also needs to extend to communication
with the wider public about service plans, priorities, pressures, access routes and the roles and
responsibilities of different organisations.
Common sources of tension between professionals and agencies are:
Pre-judged referrals.
Differing ideologies between health, social care and housing.
Lack of engagement with patients and with carers.
Duplication and overlap of assessment.
The pace of assessment.
Poor quality and inconsistent documentation.
The need to progress chase between professionals and agencies.
Poor/lack of information given to the independent sector about the patient when
discharged.
Lack of engagement with the independent sector.
The inability to access information to plan discharge and by community staff following
discharge.
Effective services benefit from an agreed communication strategy that is applied consistently
throughout the whole system. This should be tailored to meet the needs of the various partners.
It should state clearly the vision of the service, the roles and responsibilities of all partners and
the means by which comments on the services will be responded to. Some communication
strategies follow.
25
Appendices
Who
Between
organisations
What
How
Resources available to provide services

Tensions between meeting national & local
Agreed meeting structure
priorities
based on lead
responsibilities
Interface arrangements with the Workforce

Confederation
Management accountability & responsibilities at

commissioning & service management level
Detailed information on delayed transfers of

care by local authority wards, GP practice to
look at reasons and possible action
With patients
What they can expect from services regarding

their medical condition, prognosis & needs,
pathway, length of stay, rehabilitation plans
Expectation of them
Choice protocol
How to complain
With carers
What the can expect from services

Expectation of them
How to access a carers assessment
Key worker discussion with

patient
Leaflets
Videos
Key worker discussion with

patient
Leaflets
Videos
Information in public
buildings libraries, health
centres, schools
With staff
With the public
Service plans
Priorities
Local vision for services
Service targets
Monitoring arrangements & reporting
Training & development opportunities
Local service plans

How to access service
Costs, if any, of services
Team briefing
Meetings with front line
staff to learn of their ideas
for service improvement
and to help get behind
performance data
Information with pay slips

Meetings with managers
Intranet
PCT prospectus
Local authority directory of
services
Annual reports
26
A3.1.4 Inter-agency training to improve the discharge

process
Multidisciplinary team working has become one of the key processes through which health and
social care is delivered. The organising principle is functional i.e. individual departments
recruit, manage and allocate their resources. The multidisciplinary team work together clinically,
and consult one another regarding the management of patients, but generally will remain
managerially aligned with the home department. Professional boundaries can be very strong in
many multidisciplinary teams, which may create conflict, often because there are overlaps in
roles. This of course is time consuming and energy is wasted that could be more usefully
applied to giving a seamless person-centered care for the patient.
The vision in the NHS plan, as described by the Modernisation Action team, for the professions
and the wider NHS workforce is more in the spirit of interdisciplinary and even transdisciplinary
working. Staff and resources in the interdisciplinary team are organised around a particular group
of service users.1 A single clinical head manages the service, and staff may still have professional
links with their individual disciplines for continuing professional development and professional
standards. Thus, collaboration occurs on a broader spectrum than in the multidisciplinary team
as some blending of roles enables flexibility so that clinical demands can be met, especially if
supported by cross-training between disciplines. Transdisciplinary teams take interdisciplinary
working a step further in order to reduce duplication, particularly with regard to assessment and
to make sure that individuals receive consistent information and treatment, with the needs of the
user at the centre of the interventions.
As NHS-based multidisciplinary teams now also include social care staff, usually social workers,
the challenges to those working in teams has increased. There is no best model for team working.
The aim of the service should be to make informed decisions about which kind of team is best.
However, the spirit of the single assessment process and person-centered care in the National
service framework for older people would seem to favour inter- and transdisciplinary ways of
working. This means that as well as having individual or uniprofessional training linked to
continuing professional development plans, attention needs to be paid to team building and
team working. This is essential for:
The delivery of service plans.
The clarity in the roles and responsibilities of team membership.
Agreement on the leadership within the team.
Understanding other organisations, other professions and other services.
Making the best use of resources and enabling highly skilled personnel to focus on their
areas of expertise and what they do best.
Delivering a joined up service across parts of the NHS, and between local authorities
and the independent sector.
A consistent approach to individuals, e.g. rehabilitative approaches built into 24-hour

care and not in isolation.
27
Appendices
A3.1.5 Action steps

For primary care trusts and social care commissioners:
Lead by example in supporting inter-agency working and to develop and sustain a

culture that promotes innovation, reviews and develops practice according to need.
Agree and make clear responsibilities regarding financial risk and local priorities.
Agree a risk assessment framework to assist decisions about care options.
Agree a joint training strategy that involves and supports the independent sector.
Agree how delayed discharges are to be defined, monitored and reviewed, and for
solutions to be sought in the context of overall performance monitoring.
Support the development of information sharing protocols between NHS trusts and
social services.
Consider the skills offered by the independent sector in providing solutions to problems
in a fast time scale.
For NHS and social care managers:
Agree how to cluster interdisciplinary teams across the hospital in order to provide
continuity of ward-based staff.
Provide staff with the opportunity to have team training in order to understand each
others roles and responsibilities, and to work with the local Workforce Confederation to
provide appropriate multi-agency and multidisciplinary training.
Hold regular team meetings to review and focus on complex discharge/transfer patients
and possible care options.
Agree a framework to review team performance and ensure this involves specific work to
follow patients through the system. Provide feedback in order for professionals to review
their own performance.
Develop and work within protocols for non-medical discharge.
Where teams are not working effectively, to provide external facilitation to explore the
issues and agree improved ways of working.
A3.1.6 Practical examples

The Modernisation Agency has produced the Improvement Leaders Guides programme to
assist managers and staff improve performance. Further information is available on their
website, www.modern.nhs.uk/improvementguides.
A3.1.7 Reference
1. Kumar, S. (2000). Multidisciplinary approach to rehabilitation.
London: Butterworth-Heinemann.
28
Appendix 3.2
Transport
A3.2.1 Key issues
To use hospital resources effectively, it is essential that patients keep their appointments.
Consideration, therefore, needs to be given to those patients who meet the criteria for transport,
whether for an emergency admission, a planned discharge, a transfer to another care centre or
an out-patient appointment. In the main, the local ambulance service and NHS hospital trust
will provide emergency transport, but careful consideration should be given to the use of patients
own transport, friends and relatives, taxis and voluntary transport organisations.
Based on initiatives highlighted in the NHS plan and following advice from the Audit
Commission and the Social Exclusion Unit a review of current practices for patient transport
services, social and community transport and the future integration of transport services is
recommended. There are also initiatives surrounding electronic booking for both clinical and
transport needs, aligned with the overall approach to patient choice.
Primary care trusts are responsible for the commissioning of transport across their geographical
area. With their local acute trusts and local ambulance service NHS trusts, they need to
consider:
Emergency provision within their geographical area and extended services to meet the
patient choice option for travel to other care centres.
Non-emergency provision within their geographical area and extended services to meet
the patient choice option for travel to other care centres.
Joint working with acute, community and ambulances services to develop strategies to
maximise the effective use of transport resources in order to:
reduce wasted journeys;
reduce journey times;
reduce delayed discharges;
co-ordinate inward and outward journeys;
synchronise discharges/transfers with other outward journeys;
make effective use of admission/discharge suites;
provide timely support for home assessment visits;
effective co-ordination of out-patient appointments with geographical planning;
29
Appendices
provide designated appointment times for out-patients requiring transport;
reduce unnecessary waiting times of ambulance crews, which limit their ability
to respond to other areas of need;
make transport an integral part of the patients pathway of care;
ensure receiving units are ready to accept patients.
A3.2.2 Action steps

For primary care trusts to:
lead a review of current transport arrangements with the local ambulance service and
NHS hospital trusts to establish whether current contracts meet the present and future
needs;
work with provider services to develop a local policy to accommodate out-of-area

referrals to meet access targets and meet the implications of patients requiring transport
to travel to distant treatment centres through patient choice;
review the criteria for on-going eligibility for use of an ambulance for out-patient
appointments.
For senior managers in acute trusts to:
work with the primary care trust and local ambulance service colleagues to establish
admission/discharge lounges;
review with the local ambulance service the use of discharge lounges, where they exist,
and their effectiveness;
review out-patient booking schedules for patients requiring transport, to allow local
ambulance services to support day hospital and day surgery units at the start and the
end of the day, prior to transporting out-patients;
work with local ambulance service colleagues to review integrated electronic patient
information and transport booking systems;
review the use of admission/discharge suites to effect earlier bed availability and the
reduction of local ambulance service waiting times for admissions and discharges.
For out-patient managers to:
consider geographical planning of out-patients appointments;
co-ordinate outward journeys with discharges/transfers.
For primary care trusts, local ambulance services and social services to:
30
consider the opportunities for sharing resources and for central co-ordination.
Transport
For local ambulance service managers to:
review the viability and implications of local ambulance service staff giving information
to hospital staff regarding the patients environment, which may have an impact on
discharge planning.
A3.2.3 Good practice examples
The establishment of an admissions/discharge suite with easy vehicle access.
Agreement between clinical staff and the local ambulance service of a simple checklist
that is completed prior to booking transport.
Agreement with GPs and clinicians that patient transport requirements will be
reassessed regularly as recovery progresses and mobility increases.
Nursing staff spending time with the local ambulance service as part of their induction
to understand its operational procedures.
A transport office within each acute hospital manned by the local ambulance service to
co-ordinate patients transport requirements.
31
Appendix 3.3
Discharge planning self-assessment
tool
Topic
Questions
Leadership and planning
Is a senior level planning group in place and are all the

key stakeholders involved.
Is the group proactive about improving discharge
management.
Does membership include individuals plus carers and
all stakeholders (primary and secondary care, social
services and housing, ambulance services, key
clinicians, independent and voluntary sectors).
Is leadership sufficiently senior with clear accountability.
Is there acknowledgement that discharge planning is a
joint responsibility.
Does the group monitor and evaluate the discharge
planning process.
Are there agreed ceilings for the maximum number
of delayed transfers.
Are Health Act flexibilities being considered to develop
integration and reduce boundary issues.
Discharge policy
Is there a discharge policy.

Has it been agreed by all stakeholders.
Is implementation of discharge policy and protocols
being audited.
Is there an agreed joint protocol to identify the carers
needs.
Does it include time frames for each stage of the
process.
Does the policy (or accompanying procedure) include
practical guidance.
Have eligibility criteria for transfers and continuing care
needs been jointly agreed in order to avoid delays or
duplication.
Are protocols in place to manage disputes about
discharge e.g. self-discharges, patient choice, patients
refusing discharge.
Is there an agreed interpretation of patient choice in
terms of long-term care (LTC) placement. Has this
been documented and provided to staff and patients.
Are protocols in place to manage different patient
groups, e.g. mental health, children, various discharge
destinations, rapid discharge.
32
Self Assessment
Discharge planning self-assessment tool
Topic
Questions
Communication and
Co-ordination
Is there a ward-based care co-ordinator (or equivalent)

in post. If so, is the role clear to stakeholders and
operational staff.
Self Assessment
Is there an integrated discharge planning team

approach.
How are the different functions co-ordinated, i.e.
assessment, bed management, education and
discharge facilitation.
How are links to intermediate care services co-ordinated.
Is discharge planning support available seven days a
week and for extended hours.
Are clear communication mechanisms in place between
agencies, disciplines and settings Do they work.
Has a discharge checklist been produced and
publicised (see Appendix 5.2).
Is information available for patients and carers about
discharge and transfer arrangements and expectations.
Is adequate IT available to support communication and
monitoring.
How is the accuracy and consistency of verbal
communication, particularly with patients and carers,
monitored and recorded.
Are community services contacted within 24 hours of
admission, to inform and to establish pre-admission
status.
Does a ward-based care co-ordinator have responsibility
for co-ordinating and monitoring discharge.
Is there a jointly agreed system for sharing information
with health and social care services.
Assessment
Is discharge planning started on admission (or

pre-admission where applicable).
Is a provisional discharge date set within 24-hours of
admission and reviewed regularly (daily).
Is an accredited single assessment process (SAP ) in
place/planned to be in place.
Does the SAP make provision for risk assessment
Does the assessment consider mental health
requirements.
Does the assessment include triggers for referral onto
other disciplines or agencies.
Is timely access to support services available, e.g.
diagnostics, consultant opinion or pharmacy.
Are there agreed target times for completion of
assessments.
When a patient is transferred does the provisional
discharge date remain intact.
Are opportunities for rehabilitation fully explored
before a LTC placement is made.
33
Appendices
Topic
Questions
Documentation
Is basic patient information recorded only once.
Self Assessment
Are unified records established.

Do patients have a copy of their care plan at the point
of discharge.
Are discharge letters sent to GPs within 24 hours
Are integrated care pathways in place for key
conditions.
Is the data collected on delayed transfers of care
accurate, based on national definitions and is it used
to evaluate the process and target resources.
Is effective use made of SITREP and CIC data including
delayed transfers of care and reasons for delays.
Data collection
Is there agreement as to why a discharge is delayed.

Are trends and variations of demand identified and
linked to service planning.
Is the discharge process audited against expectations
and outcomes.
Are LOS and readmission rates being monitored.
Discharge
Are special arrangements in place to support rapid

transfer or discharge.
Is there a mechanism to ensure the following are
managed and do not lead to a delay: equipment,
patient information, medication, discharge letter, set
up or reactivation of community services, home
preparation, settling in if required, transport, carers
notified, follow up arrangements (including named
contact in event of difficulties).
Is support and information available for staff, e.g.
through discharge co-ordinator, discharge handbook
and/or discharge pathway.
Is a discharge lounge (or equivalent) available and is it
used effectively by all directorates.
Do ward rounds take place at a time and frequency to
support discharge.
Are medication/drug dispensing arrangements in place
to prevent delays in discharge.
Training and Education
Are education and training opportunities available to

all staff concerned with discharge planning.
Are arrangements in place to repeat training sessions
at six-monthly intervals
Source: Adapted from work done by the South West Regional Office and Social Services Inspectorate.
34
4. Involving patients and carers
The key principle underpinning this aspect of effective discharge and transfer of care is:
The engagement and active participation of individuals and their carer(s) as equal
partners is central to the delivery of care and in the planning of a successful discharge.
4.1 An overview of the issues

The concept of person-centred care is at the heart of NHS and social care reform.1 As the
National service framework for older people described, the aim is to, ensure that older people are
treated as individuals and they receive appropriate and timely packages of care which meet their
needs as individuals, regardless of health and social care boundaries.2
Establishing a clear and common understanding of person-centred care is not without difficulty.
As some recent research has indicated, for many health professionals patient-centred care
focused predominantly on professional practice and keeping patients informed.3
A patient-centred approach must also recognise the important contribution made by carers.
Government policy has raised the profile of carers and given them their own rights to
assessment and services. It is important to remember that young people also may be carers and
that they should be offered a carers assessment if they are under 16 years of age, when the adult
receives a community care assessment. These rights are described in Section 2.
Carers organisations, however, continue to report concerns that carers issues are often
marginalised, and patients continue to be sent home too early, with carers left to cope in the
community with unacceptable caring situations.4 A recent survey by Carers UK found that 43%
of carers considered they were not given adequate support when the person returned home.5
Investigations into patients and carers experiences have consistently identified factors that have
caused delayed access to services and prevented their subsequent progress through the system.6
They report feelings of, having to fit in and of feeling anxious, insignificant and powerless.
Conversely, good relationships enabled patients and carers to put their points across and feel
involved. They report wanting consistent information, presented in an honest and sympathetic
way. This helped patients and carers gain confidence in the system and a feeling we had some
degree of control over what was happening.
The development of patient-centred care requires the transformation of the professional/patient
and carer relationship so that they are fully involved as partners in all stages of discharge
planning. Patient-centred care must be much more than just keeping the patient informed and
up-to-date with decisions about their care as passive players in the process.
35
The power and control exhibited by many professions needs to change from one of professional
dominance to one where power and control is shared. Professionals bring the professional and
technical expertise, patients and carers bring their individual experience, expertise and
aspirations (Figure 4.1).
Imbalanced Scale
Balanced Scale
Patient/Carer
Professionals
Professionals
Professional/technical
expertise
Patient/Carer
Individual experience
Personal aspirations
Figure 4.1. Power and control.
4.2 Key features to achieve successful involvement

Good communication skills are a fundamental component of a patient-centred approach. An
active training and development strategy is required to equip staff to deal with the sharing of
power.7 Many innovative schemes involve patients and carers in education and training
programmes and use their experiences of care to powerful effect.
The provision of information/discharge folders to the patient can be helpful. The patient and
carer can have their own record of events and future plans, thus enabling them time to look
through the information at their own pace, ask questions and raise their concerns. Care must
be taken to ensure that a patient who has communication difficulties, e.g. after a stroke, is
involved as fully as possible in planning his or her care.
Pre-admission assessment also helps the patient and carer plan for admission to hospital and to
understand what to expect and prepare for on return home. There are many good examples
where effective pre-admission processes are in place for elective admission.
For those people who are in receipt of packages of support prior to admission there is an
opportunity to anticipate and pre-plan for likely problem areas. It is particularly important that
the community care co-ordinator (or key worker, for people with a learning disability or mental
health problem) should be fully involved in this process to support hospital practitioners meet
the specific needs of these individuals and to support carers. For patients with learning disability
this will form part of their health action plan (more detail on this is provided in Appendix 5.6) .
This approach should become routine practice for elective work.
For patients admitted as an emergency, pre-admission planning obviously cannot take place.
Many people admitted to hospital in this way can become frightened and disorientated. Staff
need to be aware of this in their work with all patients and their carers. It can, however, be
particularly important to recognise this if, in addition to physical ill health or trauma, someone
admitted has a learning disability, mental ill health and/or appear to be confused. The change of
36
Key features to achieve successful involvement
environment and the nature of acute hospitals can quickly lead to a loss of independence or
possibly the development of behaviour that causes distress to other patients. Staff can often find
such behaviour a challenge to deal with.
Under stressful circumstances, such as an emergency admission, it is even more important to
recognise the role of the carer from the start of the process in order to ensure that all the stages
are well managed.
The admission process is the critical time to explain to patients and their carers what to expect
and how they are to be involved in key decisions, remembering that they are the experts in how
they feel and what it is like to live with, or care for, someone with a particular condition or
disability. Any form of communication must take account of the individuals ability to
understand and absorb information. The same information will need to be available in plain
language and in a variety of appropriate forms. This should include, for example, appropriate
minority and ethnic languages and presentations in large print, Braille and British Sign
Language. Other formats might also be appropriate including audiotapes and visual formats
such as interactive CD-rom. For some patients it will be necessary to involve an advocate or
interpreter to provide further assistance. Every effort must be made to ensure consistency and
continuity of information from different personnel.8
From the point of admission a ward-based care co-ordinator should be designated to coordinate care and ensure discharge planning proceeds smoothly. The role of care co-ordination
is described in Section 5.
The Modernisation Agency have developed an Improvement Leaders Guide on Working with
Patients and Carers website: www.modern.nhs.uk/improvementguides/patients/shim.gif
4.3 Assessing need

It is important from the outset that patients feel understood and able to discuss what they
perceive as their real concerns and worries. Asking patients how they like to be addressed (and
ensuring this is passed on) shows sensitivity and respect. Also when undertaking an assessment,
asking what is meaningful to them. This is especially important for older people as staff can
often overlook the fact that an older person has a rich life history and is probably terrified that
their sense of who they are is about to be denied. When these important points are omitted
patients may be labeled as difficult and uncooperative when they perceive themselves to be in
conflict with those staff responsible for their care. The introduction of the single assessment
process for older people will ensure the appropriate areas of assessment are covered. Well
developed interpersonal skills are essential if a trusting and collaborative professional patient
relationship is to be established.
Staff should understand that patients and their carers may have different needs from each other,
and that carers are entitled to a separate assessment. In circumstances where patients have the
mental capacity to contribute to the planning of their care, permission to share information
with the carer should be actively sought. There will be times when the mental capacity of the
patient does not allow this and the next of kin is responsible for taking on this role. A carers
assessment checklist is provided in Appendix 4.1.
37
All individuals who provide regular and substantial care for a person with mental health needs
who is on a care programme approach should:
have an assessment of their caring, physical and mental needs repeated on at least an
annual basis;
have their own written care plan, which is given to them and which is implemented in
discussion with them.
In circumstances where patients refuse permission to allow the carer to be involved in decisions
about their future care, carers should be informed of this and their right to an assessment
reinforced. There may be occasions where a carers needs or wishes conflict with the patients
aspirations and in these situations staff teams should review the care plan and endeavour to find
a realistic solution for all concerned. A multidisciplinary case conference is one way of joint
working to find a suitable way forward.
With adequate support, carers will often be willing to take on or continue with a caring role.
However, they should be given time to consider their options in making what are often lifechanging decisions. These may be about how much and what type of care and the impact on
their life and commitments and the financial consequences of the caring role. Attention should
be directed to ensuring that carers are informed about the support networks and services that
may be available to them. The needs of the carer should be under constant review to take
account of their personal health and social care needs as well as the caring role they are
undertaking. The assessment and review process should consider the need for a short-term
break from caring. Additional resources have been provided under the Carers Grant for this
purpose.
38
Assessing need
What do they think

is wrong with me?
If I need help how

much will it cost and
how do I get it?
Maybe I would
like to talk it over with
my family before
I decide
How would
it help me?
Can I drive/work/
look after my family
afterwards?
PATIENT
How long will I
have to stay in hospital?
What are the risks

and benefits of
the alternatives?
Can I get transport

to go there?
I havent got room for

that equipment do I need
to have it and how
can I use it?
How can I use my

bathroom if its upstairs?
How can I do my
shopping now?
Figure 4.2. Some common questions.

Strategic health authorities and primary care trusts must make sure that appropriate information
is available to patients, their families and any carers, about procedures for hospital discharge and
about assessments for continuing health and social care, continuing NHS health care or social
care support to help them make these decisions.9 This is covered in Section 7.
In planning for discharge, attention should first be given to whether or not an individuals
primary need is for health care and if they therefore satisfy the local eligibility criteria for fully
funded continuing NHS health care.
Patient and carer discharge standards and rights are set out in Appendix 4.3. These were
adaptedfrom the work of the discharge liaison nurses at York Health Services Trust.
39
4.4 Action steps

Those responsible for reviewing the discharge policy should take account of the following:
staff have available to them the knowledge, tools and techniques to review the patient
and carer experience of care throughout their stay in hospital and take action to resolve
problems;
an information/communication strategy is established with key stakeholders to assist

patients and carers through admission, transfer of care and discharge involve patients
and carers in the development of the strategy;
all information and decisions that relate to the patients journey are recorded in one
place at ward level whilst an in-patient;
carers are provided with information about their own rights and how to get help.
Carers UK can provide help and information for carers. Their website is:
www.carersonline.org.uk and their advice line: 0808 808 7777. The Princess Royal
Trust can also help with information on the local services to support carers. This can
be found on the website: www.carersonline.org.uk or phone 020 7480 7788;
booklets are provided to help carers understand their own rights. Two useful
publications are How do I get help in looking after someone (published by the Department
of Health) and How do I get Help (published by Carers UK and is available free to
individuals and carers however a charge is made for bulk orders. Copies can be ordered
from website: www.carersonline.org. under policy and publications). Carers UK also
run a training programme that includes practitioners working with carers. They can be
contacted on 020 7566 7632, or by e-mail: training@ukcarers.org;
annual training is provided for practitioners in approaches to the patients and to the
carers assessment; working with patients and carers as equal partners, will also need to
be included in orientation and induction programmes for new staff;
carers training needs are identified and ensure discharge planning makes provision to
meet those needs;
short-term car parking facilities are provided as close to the ward as possible to enable
carers and their families to collect patients;
information on voluntary transport schemes is provided.

4.5.1 Carers checklist
The list below is part of a helpful discharge good practice guide published by Carers UK.
The full set of information is available through their website: www.carersonline.org.uk or
by e-mail: info@ukcarers.org.
40
Actively seek permission from the patient to share information with the carer.
Practical examples
Provide carers with information about:
discharge plan in writing and verbally;
medical condition of the patient;
carers right to an assessment;
what is likely to be involved in caring;
benefits;
financial implications of caring;
charging for services;
other sources of help and support organisations such as self-help groups;
access to signers/interpreters to enable effective understanding and

communication;
challenging decisions and complaints procedures;
sufficient notice about discharge;
organising transport arrangements;
information about support to stay in or return to employment and/or

education.
Discharge information:
Patient and carer information:
purchase and loan out books from the series Books beyond word. The series is for
people who cant read and is very useful for people who do not speak English.
The series is published by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Booksales, 17
Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8PG. Tel 0207 235 2351.
Relatives/carers meetings:
provide the patient and carer with a folder/booklet to record relevant

information that they can take home with them.
hold evening/weekend clinics where relatives and carers can book an

appointment with the social worker, consultant, ward-based care co-ordinator.
Even up the odds:
provides patients and carers with access to independent/informal support at

important meetings with professionals to help them put their point across and
fully understand the situation/information they are being given.
41
Training:
use pharmacy technicians to provide medication advice and training to patients

and carers. This has been shown to improve medication compliance (see
Appendix 5.1).
Equipment:
demonstrate the correct use of any equipment prior to discharge and ensure
follow-up arrangements are in place to check equipment provided is adequate,
being used correctly and that patients and carers are given further training if
required.
4.6 References
3. Gillespie, R. (2001). Engaging with patients. London: Kings Fund.
4. Carers England (2002). Hospital discharge practice briefing. London: Carers UK.
5. Mather, J. et al. (2000). Carers 2000. London: Office of National Statistics.
6. Preston, C., Cheater, F., Baker, R. and Hearnshaw, H. (1999). Left in limbo: patients views
on care aross the primary/secondary interface. Quality in Health Care 8: 1621.
7. Audit Commission (2002). Integrated services for older people. London: The Stationery Office.
9. Department of Health (2001). Continuing care: NHS and local councils responsibilities
(HSC2001/015:LAC(2001)18). London: Department of Health.
42
Appendix 4.1
Carers assessment checklist
This follows the modules in the Practitioners guide to carers assessment issued with guidance on
the Carers and Disabled Childrens Act 2000.
Not all modules will be appropriate to all carers. However, it is suggested issues marked * are
always addressed with the carer (based on work carried out by Hertfordshire County Council
and Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Trust):
*1. Carers role.
*2. Breaks and social life.
*3. Physical and mental well being.
4. Relationships and mental well being.
5. Care of the home/s.
6. Accommodation.
*7. Finances.
*8.
9.
Work (where carer is of working age).

Education and training.
10. Current practical and emotional support.

11. Wider responsibilities.
12. Future caring role.
*13. Emergencies/alternative arrangements.
14. Access to information and advocacy.
*15. Personal safety and risk management.
*16. Agreed outcomes.
17. Complaints and challenges.
*18. Review.
19. Any issues around charging.
43
Appendix 4.2
Carers assessment and care plan
To be completed by the assessor AND the carer possibly with a helper/advocate, a carer support
worker, another carer or a mental health professional.
The carers plan is about describing what the carers needs are and what realistic and achievable
actions can be taken and by whom to do something about meeting those needs.
Need identified by carer
Action
Action by whom
and by when
The following summarise the

areas looked at:
Caregiving tasks
How to get help and advice
Information about care workers
Information about mental illness
Involvement in planning of
treatment and care
Support for carers
Relationships with the person you
care for
Family and friends
Money
Your well-being
Stigma and discrimination
Risk and safety
Choice of care
Other issues
Attach a copy of this Carers Plan to the Patients Assessment and CPA forms as appropriate.
44
Appendix 4.3
Patients and carers leaflet
Patients and Carers Discharge Standards

Patients being discharged from hospital have the right:
1.
To full information on their diagnosis and the assessment of their

health and social needs in preparation for discharge.
2.
To be fully involved in planning their own discharge, together with

a relative, carer or friend as appropriate.
3.
For the discharge plan to start on or before admission

where possible.
4.
To full information on the services available in the community

relevant to their care.
5.
To full information on short- or long-term nursing or residential

care, including financial implications.
6.
To be given an appropriate contact number where they can get help

or advice on discharge.
7.
To be given a clear, legible discharge letter detailing the support

services provided for them (where appropriate).
8.
To full information on health authority eligibility criteria

for continuing care.
9.
The discharge planning team to be available as a point of contact to

offer support and advice to patients, carers, statutory and voluntary
agencies.
10.
Information on advocacy support.
11.
To have access to the trust complaints procedure and any complaint

regarding their discharge arrangements investigated and a full
explanation given.
12.
If still not satisfied, then be given access to the health

service commissioner.
Source: Adapted from the work of the liaison nurses, York Health Services Trust.
45
5. Co-ordinating the patient journey
The key principles underpinning this aspect of effective discharge and transfer of care policy are:
Discharge is a process and not an isolated event. It has to be planned for at the earliest
opportunity between the primary, hospital and social care organisations, ensuring that
patients and their carer(s) understand and are able to contribute to care planning
decisions as appropriate.
The process of discharge planning should be co-ordinated by a named person who has
responsibility for co-ordinating all stages of the patients progress. This involves liaison
with the pre-admission case co-ordinator in the community at the earliest opportunity
and the transfer of those responsibilities, on discharge.
Staff should work within a framework of integrated multidisciplinary and multi-agency

team working to manage all aspects of the discharge process.
5.1 An overview of the key issues

The patient journey starts in the community where proactive early intervention and
preventative measures can avoid the need for emergency admission to hospital for some people.
The importance of developing preventative care and support for people judged to be at risk is
widely recognised and a key objective of intermediate care policy. The Audit Commission for
example has identified the potential of active gatekeeping of patients in Accident and
Emergency (A&E) departments to screen out those who do not need to be admitted. This can
only be effective when a full range of services are available to meet needs.1
A number of innovative schemes, including rapid response teams, have been developed to
provide support across the health and social care boundary. Others provide intermediate care,
interim/transitional care and supported housing. Many of these services provide early
intervention, to avoid unnecessary hospital admission and supported early discharge. These are
discussed in more detail in Section 6.
Once admitted to hospital individuals and their carer(s) often feel disempowered, unable to put
their point across, unsure about what is happening.2 Early engagement and identification of
their worries, concerns and aspirations are critical if individuals are to be helped to reach their
goals. A protracted length of stay brings with it inherent risks of infection, loss of independence
and confidence. The important contribution made by carers can be neglected and their
concerns marginalised, leading to unexpected difficulties later in the process.3
The NHS plan4 identified the need to simplify and clarify the assessment processes operating
within the NHS and between the NHS and councils with social services responsibility. Too
often there is lack of compatibility between the systems and people with complex needs find
themselves undergoing multiple, and unco-ordinated assessments.5
47
A single assessment process (SAP) is being introduced for older people to resolve these longstanding problems. Practitioners are advised to find out about their local implementation plans
through their managers. Detailed information about the SAP is provided on the website
www.doh.gov.uk/scg/sap.
Many of the delays that occur in discharging patients are predictable. This points to factors at
different stages of the patients journey that affect delay. Many of these relate to communication
and co-ordination between health and social care and between primary and secondary care.
Others are concerned with internal hospital systems.6 This underlines the importance of starting
discharge planning at the earliest opportunity following admission in order to plan for, and
resolve, problems before they impact on patient care and length of stay.
The pressure to discharge/transfer patients and release beds and a trend to shorter lengths of
stay means that assessment and discharge planning, by necessity, is concentrated into a shorter
time scale. Effective and efficient discharge practices are necessary to ensure that premature
discharge is avoided and an increase in re-admissions prevented.7
Premature discharge typically leaves the patient with some unmet needs and poorly prepared for
home. Carers have reported that inappropriate assumptions are made about their ability to
cope. Preparation to ensure medicines compliance, chronic disease management and the
provision of, and ability to use, equipment are some aspects of helping the individual prepare
for life outside of hospital that require sufficient time and attention.8
In recent years, owing to weak market conditions, there has been a notable reduction in the
number of care homes. There are also increasingly major capacity issues in home care services
that, in some areas, have restricted the availability and choice of homes and other services to
individuals.9 This will be covered in more detail in Section 7.
The aims of effective discharge co-ordination are to:
promote good clinical outcomes;
promote good care management of individuals and establish care pathways across
service boundaries;
ensure that the carer has a choice about caring and that, if they choose to care, they are
supported to do so in a way that promotes their health and well being;
provide effective and efficient systems for inter-professional referral, treatment and
support.
5.1.1 Effective discharge practice

This is underpinned by:
48
Inter-agency policy/agreements that deliver effective and flexible discharge care

pathways (see Section 3).
Pre-admission and admission assessment processes ensure individuals are directed to the
right care/service and the needs of the carer are taken into account
An overview of the key issues
Having and using a named person at ward level who is responsible for proactively coordinating the patients journey.
Having a clear communication strategy for each patient that takes account of their
needs, abilities and means of communication.
The identification of individuals who have additional health and social care discharge
needs on admission or at the earliest opportunity following admission.
Discharge planning takes place over seven days a week.
Effective patient-centred multidisciplinary teamwork that ensures the patient receives

continuity of care as they are transferred from one setting to another.
Efficient internal referral processes, treatment and rehabilitative services.
Well organised transport, medication, home support and equipment provision to

support discharge.
5.2 The patient journey

5.2.1 The role and purpose of pre-admission screening
Pre-admission screening should be routine for all elective admissions. This is the ideal time to
identify, and plan for, any additional health and social care needs on discharge, and to ensure
the stay in hospital is kept to the shortest time necessary for a good recovery. This period of
preparation helps patients and their families understand how they can help themselves and plan
for their return home. This can include arrangements for the provision of equipment and/or
adaptations to the home before, or during, admission.
For all other admissions pre-admission assessment provides an opportunity to distinguish
between emergency and non-emergency admissions and to decide whether admission for acute
care or an alternative course of action is necessary. Pre-admission assessment can take place
either as a fast track out-patient appointment, in a day hospital or on presentation to an A&E
Department or Medical Assessment Unit.
Not all patients are suitable for pre-admission screening; some will be too ill and need
urgent and immediate admission and medical or surgical treatment.
Pre-admission assessment/screening can work effectively as a gatekeeper to acute care when
primary and secondary care clinicians and managers and social services mangers agree protocols
and practices to ensure:
the appropriateness of GP referral to acute care;
effective in-patient selection for those who will need acute hospital care;
the development of integrated care pathways for specific chronic conditions;
49
the right capacity and organisation of diagnostic and treatment facilities
fast track access to intermediate care and transitional services outside the acute sector
(see Section 6).
5.3 Pre-admission assessment

The initial medical assessment will indicate whether the patients condition makes care options,
other than an acute hospital admission, viable and if so, assessment of the health and social care
needs of individuals will be required very quickly. When an individual is referred for admission,
and/or presents at an A&E department, it is usually in response to a crisis in their lives. The
assessment process should identify the reasons for the admission, including any social care issues
and any recent changes in these. It is important to find the underlying cause of the problems
that will need to be addressed to avoid a future referral and/or avoidable deterioration in health.
The use of systematic pre-admission/admission assessment processes will identify problems that
require additional planning before the patient can return home and if admitted enable patients
to be targeted for complex discharge planning.9 The discharge care pathway is described in
Figure 5.1 (see page 56).
It is important that there is a systematic assessment of the individuals recent functional ability
as well as that at the time of the pre-admission assessment. There are problems that might be
overlooked by traditional nursing and medical assessment, such as impairments in cognitive
ability, continence and/or mobility, which need to be recognised as new or long standing.
Assessment of the home environment and support networks also needs to be explored.
Departments undertaking admission assessment should ensure that procedures are in place to
systematically identify individuals who may have additional health and social care needs. If the
patients medical condition allows the following basic areas should be explored to give an
indication of possible problems requiring careful consideration:
The individuals views on how well they were coping with activities of daily living.
The carers worries and concerns about how he or she is coping.
Any issues in the home environment.
Medication compliance.
Pre-admission assessment and screening also helps to identify vulnerable individuals who need
specialist assessment and services for: falls prevention; chronic obstructive airways disease;
intermediate care; or dementia. Care pathways should be in place to enable patient referral to
these services.
Once additional needs have been identified a named individual will need to take the lead role in
obtaining/requesting the relevant information. This will require contact with other services
providing care to the individual in the community. These could include primary care and
community health teams, care home and home care providers, sheltered housing wardens,
sensory impairment, community mental health and learning disability teams.
50
Pre-admission assessment
The framework for assessment will be determined by the presenting needs of the individual.
Older people will be assessed using the single assessment process (SAP), a process whereby the
needs of an individual are identified and their impact on daily living and quality of life is evaluated.
The SAP, contained within the National service framework for older people,10 is in the process of
being implementated and provides guidance on how the depth and scale of assessment is kept in
proportion to older peoples needs. Agencies should not duplicate each others assessments, and
professionals need to contribute to these assessments in the most effective way. The SAP was
developed specifically for older people and has not been tested for other care groups.
When assessing the presenting needs and circumstances of other adults, reference should be
made to the particular assessment and care planning guidelines for those care groups. The Fair
access to care services11 provides guidance on such an assessment and is helpful in balancing the
different perceptions of risk and in countering a tendency to exclude the individuals own
priorities in favour of an emphasis on health and safety issues.
These assessment processes need to consider risk. The purpose of risk assessment is to consider
all the factors in patients abilities to manage their own care, the danger they pose to themselves
and others and a prediction about how they will respond to treatment and rehabilitation. It is
central to any decision-making that surrounds care planning and future care options.
The assessment of risk must involve patients in a meaningful way and in circumstances where
patients cannot represent themselves, the next of kin, and/or an advocate, should be involved.
Advocates might enable views that differ from the carers views to be heard. Carer(s) and
relatives are often present at this time to contribute to the assessment.
Research suggests that different professions tend to perceive risk factors in different ways. At
times these may be in conflict with the patients own perception of risk and what they consider
to be an acceptable risk, especially if it means that they can return to their desired destination.9
The construction and negotiation of risk management requires multidisciplinary team
involvement in order to ensure that all the different perspectives are considered and that a way
forward is agreed between all those concerned.
Medication compliance is an important factor in any risk assessment process to determine a
persons ability to manage at home. The use of medication is increasing in response to evidence
on the effective management of chronic disease, and many patients will be taking a number
of different medicines to manage their condition. This is particularly evident in the older age
groups who suffer from a number of chronic conditions. Mental and physical impairment is
also common in this age group. The risk of drug interaction increases with additional
medications and whilst in hospital it is likely that a familiar medication pattern will have
changed.12 More detail on medication management is provided in Appendix 5.1.
Patients may also have responsibilities such as being the parent of young children or as a carer
of someone who has a disability and who is unable to live independently. It is important to
identify whether an adult has dependent children and to ensure that arrangements are in place
for their care during the period of admission. If the child is the carer of an adult with a chronic
illness or disability, the childs own needs for support must be addressed. It is vital that every
effort is made to ensure that the family has sufficient services to ensure that children are not left
with unacceptable caring responsibilities that affect their welfare, education or development. In
addition, patients can also be carers, and it is important to ensure that if they are caring for
51
someone that they have the right services upon discharge, to ensure that they can look after
their own needs, as well as the person they are caring for.
The assessment of a carers needs is separate from the assessment of the patient. Care must be
taken to discuss with carers their concerns and make arrangements for a full assessment where
appropriate. Consideration at this stage should include any risks to their own health, risk of
harm to the carer and risk of loss of employment as well as helping carers to care with support.
This will also include factors that contribute to the patients risk assessment.
In a case where immediate admission to acute care is required the assessment should
follow at the earliest opportunity after admission to the ward. The assessment process
should continue once any immediate medical needs have been dealt with on transfer to
intermediate care or rapid response services in circumstances where there is no doubt that the
patient does not require an acute admission. Pre-admission assessment services should have fast
access to intermediate and transitional care services so that patients can be transferred, without
delay, to continue with their assessment and treatment.
5.3.1 Information flows between organisations and services

It is the responsibility of the referrer to ensure any previous assessment and care planning
information accompanies the individual, or is transferred as soon a possible. In the case of older
people it is anticipated that the flow of information will improve as a result of implementation
of the SAP. Interim measures should be in place to ensure that information comes with the
patient.
Using electronic methods of data transfer can speed up communication. In the pre-admission
stage a decision on the right care pathway is required quickly. Good communication between
agencies has been achieved when A&E staff have had immediate access to care management
information and advice. Inter-agency agreements can enable the persons own community care
provider to keep the care package open while awaiting the completion and evaluation of the
assessment and a decision to admit or to return home is made.
It has been shown that when inter-agency agreements are in place, quick and short-term
changes to the care package can be made in A&E and medical assessment units, enabling
patients to return home quickly. The individuals care manager at the earliest opportunity can
then review the care package.
The integration of therapy, particularly occupational therapy, care management and community
mental health nurses into A&E and medical assessment units has brought significant benefits in
ensuring individuals receive the right assessment and care. Regular input from discharge
planning teams similarly promotes integrated working and increases the awareness of hospital
staff of the options and constraints available for individual patients. Many different models have
emerged and details are available on the Department of Healths website: www.doh.gov, under
Change Agent Team. The role of discharge planning teams is described later in this section.
5.3.2 Pre-admission checklist

Allocate a named individual to undertake the initial screen/risk assessment to:
52
gather and record information from the patient;
Pre-admission assessment
liaise with the social services care manager and primary care to access SAP information,
where appropriate;
access home drugs regime;
investigate the individuals housing situation;
identify who is the main carer and discuss with them their own needs;
discuss with the carer their needs;
provide the patient and the carer with information and check they understand what is
happening and the most likely next steps.
Once the preliminary assessment information has been gathered a decision on the care options
is required to enable fast transfer of the patient, where immediate acute admission is not the
first choice. The medical team, in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team, will:
assess how risks are viewed by individuals and their carers (use advocacy and
interpreting services if appropriate in order to facilitate a shared approach to care);
identify and discuss with the patient the possible care options and verify their home
support systems;
narrow down care options and refer to services that will meet need and/or provide
additional information
agree with the patient, and with the carer, the next steps and provide information;
finalise care plan and arrange transfer or discharge;
check that information of financial benefits has been given and understood.
5.3.3 Action plan

Acute trusts should establish multidisciplinary pre-admission clinics for elective admissions.
Managers and clinicians of A&E, medical assessment units and rapid assessment clinics, in
conjunction with managers of social services, should agree a common approach to the initial
screening of patients to identify issues that may affect their return home. As part of this they
will want to consider:
Develop a system where the units have immediate access to care management
information and to GP and community health records seven days a week and during
evenings.
Agree joint documentation.
Agree inter-agency protocols that enable funded care packages to remain open while the
assessment is completed and short-term enhanced packages of care provided.
53
Ensure A&E and medical assessment units have fast access to occupational therapy and
care management support to ensure holistic assessment of individuals and fast referral to
more appropriate services.
Agree how the multidisciplinary team can access transitional support and intermediate
care services for individuals and how medical support for these referrals should be
provided.
Ensure staff have access to interpreting and advocacy services.
Have access to a range of information in appropriate formats to support the patient and
the carer.
Develop referral protocols to access specialist advice for people suffering from a
confused state and/or dementia or learning disability.
Establish and agree protocols for immediate access to simple equipment and minor aids.
5.3.4 Practical examples
The development of a single point of access for GPs and A&E to refer to community
based intermediate and rapid response services. A screening assessment is undertaken
over the phone and the single point of access coordinates the response. Inappropriate
referrals are referred to the right service following preliminary assessment.
Skill mix of community teams are able to assess for community nursing and/or care
management to ensure services are provided without delay in A&E/medical assessment
units.
The use of standardised joint documentation in A&E and medical assessment units
including a section to identify complexity.
5.4 Admission to the ward

On admission to the ward a named individual from the ward staff should be identified to coordinate all stages of the patient journey to proactively support and facilitate the work of the
multidisciplinary team in delivering the best outcomes for the patient and guide them through
the system to receive what they need, when they need it.6 This role, henceforth referred to as the
ward-based care co-ordinator, should focus on the needs of patients who have been identified as
requiring additional support in discharge planning. The discharge care pathway is described in
Figure 5.1 (see page 56).
If the patient is transferred to another ward it is the responsibility of the ward-based care
co-ordinator to provide a formal transfer of responsibility.
5.4.1 What is the role of a ward-based care co-ordinator?

This is an important, highly skilled role and requires an experienced practitioner who has a
good understanding of discharge planning. The role is usually undertaken by nurses; however,
54
Admission to the ward
it may be appropriate in a transitional or rehabilitation service for a therapist or social worker to

be the care co-ordinator.
When the ward-based care co-ordinator is off duty an associate care co-ordinator, or team
member, should provide cover to ensure continuity of care planning. Team working, with
responsibility for specific beds, is one way of providing continuity. Night staff can provide
additional support to this team approach as they are often on duty when carers and relatives
visit in the evening. It is important that, whatever the model, to ensure all concerned are clear
about who takes the lead.
The ward-based care co-ordinator has the lead responsibility for co-ordinating all aspects of the
patients care including discharge/transfer planning. This seven days a week role requires a
proactive approach to ensure the plan is progressing smoothly and to take immediate action to
address problems in support of the multidisciplinary team.13
The name of the ward-based care co-ordinator should be clear to all those involved in the
patients care and clearly documented in the patients notes. Patients, their carers and/or relatives
should be aware who this individual is, and how to contact him or her.
If at any time the ward-based care co-ordinator changes, the patient and his or her main
carer/relative should be informed immediately and a record made in the patient documentation,
informing all other members of the multidisciplinary team of the change.
Ideally, all communication with the patient should be recorded in one set of documentation.
5.4.2 Care co-ordinator key tasks
Co-ordinating patient assessment, care planning and daily review of the care pathway.
To discuss with the patient a potential transfer/discharge date usually within 24 hours of
admission and recorded in the patients notes.
Ensure that timely referrals are made, results are received and any delays are followed up.
Identify, involve and inform the patient about all aspects of care planning, ensuring that
the special needs of young carers are identified.
Engage the carer and make arrangements for carer assessment if appropriate. Make
arrangements to see the carer separately regarding their own needs.
Keep the patients documentation up-to-date.
Liaise with and work as an integral member of the multidisciplinary team and care
management services.
Liaise with specialist nursing service and other specialist services as appropriate.
Finalise the transfer/discharge arrangements 48 hours before discharge and confirm with
the patient and carer/family.
On day of transfer/discharge ensure the patients condition remains as expected and

confirm follow up arrangements.
A transfer/discharge checklist is provided in Appendix 5.2.
55
Figure 5.1. Hospital discharge pathway. Adapted from the Hospital Discharge Pathway
developed by the liaison nurses York Health Services Trust.
56
Admission to the ward
5.4.3 Decision to discharge

A decision that a patient is medically fit for discharge can only be made by the patients
consultant (or by someone to whom the consultant has delegated his/her authority) or by
another doctor who is responsible for the care of the patient. Patients, who have both health
and social care needs, must only be discharged when they are clinically fit. This is a decision
made by the multidisciplinary team when considering all the factors, which will include the
relative safety of remaining in hospital or being elsewhere and the patients and carers view
of these risks. It is also important to include the carer as part of the team as they will have
expertise regarding the patients home environment.
Self-discharge or discharge against medical advice may fall into one of the following categories.
The patient:
understands the risks they are taking in discharging themselves;
is not competent to understand the risks associated with discharge due to his or her
medical condition;
is not competent to understand the risks associated with discharge due to mental health
problems.
The discharge policy must set out the procedure to be followed by the ward-based care
co-ordinator in such circumstances.
5.4.4 Nurse-led discharge

In the NHS plan the Chief Nursing Officer identified 10 key roles for nurses, one being,
to admit and discharge patients for specific conditions using agreed protocols.4
The implementation of nurse-led discharge is already occurring in some trusts. Successful nurse
discharge requires the active involvement of senior nurses and medical staff. Where nurse-led
discharge is in place it has started with straightforward surgical procedures and been
underpinned by the development of local protocols agreed between the ward team. In these
areas nurse-led discharge is now being systematically extended to other surgical and medical
conditions. Further information is available in the Department of Health publication
Developing key roles for nurses and midwives guide for managers. This can be found on the
website: www.doh.gov/newrolesfornurses.
The role of ward-based care co-ordinator could be enhanced to include nurse-led discharge.
5.4.5 Supporting early discharge and avoiding re-admission

Many patients with long standing chronic conditions are readmitted to hospital several times
each year.
Exacerbation of chronic obstructive airways disease is one of the most common reasons for
emergency admissions to hospital.14 Several clinical trials have concluded that home supported
discharge is well tolerated, safe and an economic alternative to hospital care. These schemes also
57
provide an alternative to hospital admission for some patients when schemes are provided across
the primary acute interface and work within agreed clinical protocols.15
Other presentations that need additional support over and above what the acute hospital is able
to provide are described in Appendix 5.2.
The role of transitional and intermediate care is described fully in Section 6.

The role and provision of equipment is described in more detail in Appendix 5.3. Practitioners
are advised to keep up to date with the Integrating Community Equipment agenda through the
ICES website: www.icesdoh.org.

The development of a discharge lounge can assist the co-ordination of the final stages of
discharge, such as transport and medication. The lounge provides a safe and pleasant
environment for patients who no longer need their hospital bed but are awaiting the
completion of various practical arrangements before they can be fully discharged. This is
described in Appendix 5.4.
5.7 Transport
Transport arrangements are important when planning a discharge. A range of options for
meeting a patients transport needs in a timely and suitable way are discussed in more detail in
Appendix 3.3.
5.8 Action plan

Agree the senior management lead for implementing care co-ordination across the hospital.
Agree the model of care to ensure continuity of co-ordination and a proactive approach seven
days a week through team or associate roles. As part of this, consider:
58
Agree contingency plans for sickness and agency cover.
Develop a competency framework for ward-based care co-ordinators.
Identify suitable staff to undertake the role of care co-ordinator. Provide regular training
and supervision for the role. Involve the hospital discharge team and patients and carer
representatives in development of the training programme.
Ensure ward-based care co-ordinator has access to comprehensive patient and carer
information.
Action plan
Develop one set of documentation to be used by all staff involved, which is kept on
the ward.
Clarify how the Patient Advisory and Liaison Service and advocacy support can assist
the role.
The role of the modern matron should include responsibility for nurse leadership in
discharge planning.
The ward-based care co-odinator role is provided through a team approach whereby a
senior staff nurse supervises more junior staff and ensures the role is a proactive one.
Care pathways are developed with supporting documentation. Documentation is colour

coded to assist practitioners to find specific discharge information easily.
5.10 Multidisciplinary and inter-agency teamwork

There is consistent evidence to suggest that best practice in hospital discharge involves
multidisciplinary teamwork to actively manage all aspects of the discharge process.16 The Health
Select Committee went further and recommended that the leader of the team should be jointly
appointed by the NHS and local authorities with social services responsibilities.15 In the context
of hospital discharge planning this is a way of organising the team around a group of patients
rather than in professional groups.
5.10.1 Developing discharge planning teams

A discharge planning team is a group of professionals and support workers who work together
to provide a service to an individual who requires community health and social care services on
leaving hospital. They work to agreed objectives that are interdependent of each other. They
have a clear understanding of each others roles and there is a free flow of communication and
information between team members. They work to a single care plan and to one set of
documentation and support the ward-based care co-ordinator and the wider multidisciplinary
team in caring for the patient.
There is some evidence that when a discharge planning team is organised around beds/wards
individual team members and ward staff build up a rapport and trust that facilitates joint
working and patient/carer engagement. It is also a more efficient use of team members time.
The multidisciplinary team working to provide clinical care to the patient at ward level may
consist of medical, nursing, therapy and pharmacy staff at any one time and collaborative
working is essential to achieve good patient outcomes.16 There is an opportunity to consider
how the team can reduce any overlap of roles, although the disciplines will remain professionally
distinct there will be some role blurring or blending, thus allowing flexibility in meeting an
individuals needs.
59

Ward-Based Care Co-ordinator
Discharge Co-ordination
Single Point of referral
One Team
Allocated to specific wards/beds
Proactive
One information system
Empowers, supports and educates ward staff
Clinical Care
Proactive screening of patients
care pathway and investigate
delays
Target and resolve issues
relating to hospital efficiency
Hospital bed management
Social Care
Assessment of patients and
carers needs
Care management
arrangements
Housing issues
Home adaptations
*Social services equipment
Liaison/Discharge Planning
Nurses
Advises on community nursing
service
Assessment for NHS
continuing care
RNCC determination
Advise and assist self-funding
patients to find an appropriate
care home placement
*Home nursing equipment
Continence service
* integrated equipment services will be
in place 2004
Figure 5.2. The discharge planning team.

The patient may be in receipt of care and treatment from a number of different teams at any
one time. It will be essential that the ward-based care co-ordinator liaises effectively with
appropriate personnel to co-ordinate the sequence of decisions and events in the care plan, so
that the planning progresses smoothly and any problems are identified and dealt with. The
combination of referral protocols and the frequency with which team members work together
has been shown to improve the appropriateness of referrals and improve care pathways for
patients.15
In care of the elderly services team co-ordination is frequently organised through routine weekly
multidisciplinary team meetings. This model of care-planning works best when it is organised
around wards and beds. Pressure on hospital services has resulted in patients being out-posted to
other wards where multidisciplinary working may not be so well developed. Such experiences
are associated with an extended length of stay for these patients.17
In order to reduce duplication and to support staff in managing their workload the discharge
planning team should work to agreed protocols for referral and standard response times if
delays are to be avoided. This may involve integrating some elements of health and social
care discharge planning roles and using generic support staff to take on the more routine
administrative functions as described above.
As part of the ward team, the discharge planning team has invaluable experience and
understanding of community services. They have a knowledge of the care management system
for individuals in the community and the available resources. This information can help wardbased staff understand the facilities available to support discharge and play an important
advisory role in determining the care options available for an individual. It is important to
60
Multidisciplinary and multi-agency teamwork
ensure that the independent sector providers are made to feel part of the team when planning
for ongoing health and social care needs.
The local geography and configuration of district nursing and care management services to GP
practices will influence the most effective way of providing support to the discharge planning
process. Two models for consideration are:
hospital based outreach teams who have community experience, with staff allocated to
specific wards/beds to improve continuity at ward level;
community-based in-reach teams who go into the hospital.
A good team has:
a well-developed understanding of the key roles and responsibilities of those involved in

rehabilitation and discharge planning;
a comprehensive knowledge of the care options available, the referral processes and
criteria for admission to those services;
information on what services are provided in the patients own locality by the
independent sector and housing organisations;
the support of generic staff who take on the more routine administrative functions to
enable the skills and experience of the team to be targeted effectively. New roles can be
developed such as homefinder posts;
excellent communication and problem solving skills;
the ability to work proactively to ensure patients receive appropriate care in the right
setting.
5.10.2 Action steps

Senior managers from local authorities with social services responsibilities, primary care trusts
and acute trusts need to consider:
Jointly commission an integrated hospital discharge team.
Agree which agency will have the lead responsibility for managing the team.
Appoint a project manager/team leader to establish an integrated approach.
Provide team building opportunities and joint training to enable a greater

understanding of respective roles and responsibilities contribution and joint working.
Consider locating the team together.
Develop agreements to share both electronic and manual information.
Agree how to implement and monitor the single assessment process and use integrated
care pathways.
61
Analyse where the roles overlap and agree the skill mix of core roles and generic support
staff to free-up skilled staff to focus their skills and resources effectively.
Develop an education/training programme for staff in discharge planning to include

working with carers.
5.10.3 Practical examples
Use of night staff/site co-ordinators to screen patient documentation to identify delays

and help provide a 24-hour approach to discharge/transfer planning.
Implementation plans for the single assessment process, include interface issues to
improve continuity between community and acute services to reduce red tape.
A structured out-of-hours appointment system so that carers and relatives can meet with
the professionals to discuss and plan care.
Co-location with the team of independent sector schemes such as Home from
Hospital and Handyman schemes and carers support.
The role of pharmacy technicians has been extended to provide medication advice and
training to patients and carers and liaise with primary care to follow up patients at risk
from non-medication compliance. This has been shown to improve medication
compliance.
5.11 References
1. Audit Commission (2000). Inpatient admissions and bed management in NHS acute hospital.
2. Preston, C., Cheater, F., Baker, R. and Hearnshaw, H. (1999). Left in limbo: patients views
on care across the primary/secondary interface. Quality in Health Care 8: 16-21.
3. National Audit Office (2000). The management and control of hospital acquired infection.
4. Department of Health (2000). The NHS plan: a plan for investment, a plan for reform.
5. Department of Health (2001). NHS funded nursing care-practice guide and workbook.
6. House of Commons Health Committee Delayed Discharges (2001-02). Vol. 1. London:
7. The Royal Commission on Long Term Care (1999). With respect to old age rights and
responsibilities. London: The Stationery Office.
62
An overview of theReferences
key issues
9. McMillan, M.S. (1994). Hospital staff s perception of risk associated with the discharge of
elderly patients from acute hospital. Journal of Advanced Nursing 19(2): 249-256.
11. Department of Health (2002). Fair access to care services (FACS). London: Department of
Health.
12. Pickrell, L., Duggan, C. and Dhillon, S. (2001). From hospital admission to discharge: an
exploratory study to evaluate seamless care. Pharmaceutical Journal 267: 650653.
13. NHS Modernisation Agency (2001). Improving the flow of emergency admissions. London:
NHS Modernisation Agency.
14. Swarska, E., Cohen, G., Swarska, K.M. et al. (2000). Randomised controlled trial of
supported discharge in patients with exacerbations of chronic obstructive airways disease.
Thorax 55: 907912.
15. Audit Commission (2002). Integrated services for older people. London: The Stationery
Office.
16. Borill, C., Carlatta, J., Carter, J. et al. (2001). Team working and effectiveness in health care.
Aston Centre for Health Service Origanisation Research. Aston: ACHSOR.
17. Audit Commission (2000). Inpatient admissions and bed management in NHS acute hospitals.
63
Appendix 5.1
Medicines management
A5.1.1 Why is it important?
Medicines management plays an important role in preparing patients and their carers for
transfer/discharge, which has an impact on the recovery and/or maintenance of their conditions
following discharge. The use of medication is increasing and many patients will be taking a
number of different medicines, quite appropriately, to manage their condition. This is
particularly evident in the older age group who may suffer from a number of chronic diseases.
Mental and physical impairment are common in this age group. The risk of drug interactions
increases with additional medication. A high proportion of hospital admissions and readmissions, quoted as between 5% and 17%, are due to adverse reactions to medicines or
incorrect medicine taking.1,2
Specific targets for medication review were set out in the National service framework for older
people:
Annual medication review is a target for all people over 75 years, and those taking four
or more medicines should have a six-monthly review. To meet this target primary and
hospital practitioners will need to work together.
All hospitals are to establish one stop dispensing for discharge schemes and where
appropriate, self-administration schemes for medicines for older people.
Whilst a patient is in hospital it is likely that a familiar medication pattern will be changed.
In order to take the changed medicines as the prescriber intended, the patient and/or their carer
needs to understand the rationale for the medication regime as well as physically manage to
take the medicines. The GP similarly needs to have up-to-date information so that he/she
can continue the revised medication plan when the patient is home. Taking medication in
accordance with the prescribers instructions is an important factor in any assessment process to
determine a persons ability to manage at home. The organisation of take-home drugs can also
be a reason for delay when a person is ready for transfer/discharge.3
A5.1.2 What are we trying to achieve?

That the patient is given and takes the correct medicines in the correct doses at the right time,
both when in hospital and after discharge.
Crucial to this is continuity of medicines management between primary and acute care:
64
The success of the acute episode, any continued rehabilitation and recuperation of the
patient, the avoidance of readmission and effective palliative care.
Ensure the patient does not suffer from illness caused by excessive, inappropriate, or
inadequate consumption of medicines.
This can only be achieved when services are designed around patients, their individual needs
and take account of pre admission care, the hospital stay and post discharge care.
A5.1.3 Some common problems
Information on patients medicines received by the hospital may not be fully accurate
and the wrong prescriptions may be continued during the hospital stay and on
discharge.
Patients home medication is destroyed when they are admitted to hospital.
Junior doctor delays in writing up take-home drugs so medicines are not ready when
patient is ready to leave.
Patients view their hospital medication and home medication as different and may take
both, thus taking double doses of some medicines.
When home, patients inappropriately revert to their pre-admission medication.
Repeat GP computer generated prescriptions following discharge are not always up to

date with the revised hospital medication plan.
GP discharge letter arrives at practice after repeat prescription due.
Discharge letter does not give full information: GP is not clear on the exact changes in
medication that have been made by the hospital.
Lack of communication between hospital and patients community pharmacist.
Disagreements on appropriate prescribing between hospital doctors and GPs leading to

switching of patients drugs after discharge, e.g. to cheaper or formulary drugs.
A5.1.4 How can we redesign services around patients?

The assessment and care planning processes must take account of both the medication and the
patients ability to take the medicine. It should include the assessment and care planning of
any medication that prepares the patient and carer for transfer/discharge. This is particularly
important where a patient has complex needs as they are known to be at a higher risk of
medication discrepancies. The assessment also needs to include an assessment of whether the
patient is able to take the medicines at home unaided or whether assistance is required in the
form of either personal (i.e. a carer is needed to give or assist with giving the medicines) or
mechanical (e.g. large type face for poorly-sighted patients).
The process of ensuring that the patient gets the right medicines on discharge needs to
begin at admission to ensure that the medication record is accurate and to avoid incorrect
medicines/doses being given in hospital and this being perpetuated on discharge. The early
identification of medicines issues can ensure patients receive targeted help to overcome
65
Appendices
problems. In many areas the use of pharmacists and an extended role for pharmacy technicians
has facilitated a patient/carer centred approach. Pharmacists tend to produce more complete
medication histories when compared with junior doctors, and they can make a valuable
contribution to improve patient outcomes.4,5
The pharmacist has the clinical knowledge to optimise the medication regime and develop a
medication plan, while the pharmacy technician can support the plan, by working on the
practical aspects which improve compliance, where appropriate, in liaison with primary care
and the community pharmacist. This is most effective when ward-based as part of the core
multidisciplinary team for a group of patients.
In some areas the role of pharmacists and technicians has been developed to provide continuity
of care between the hospital and home. Hospital and GP-based pharmacists have collaborated
for patients who are deemed to be at high risk from non-compliance. The community
pharmacist provides a follow-up visit soon after discharge and at the same time that a new GP
prescription is due. This approach can help resolve any misunderstanding of the correct
medication to take and reinforce medication compliance. Further follow-up visits are arranged
according to the patients needs.
A5.1.5 Patient centred schemes

Following publication in 2000 of Pharmacy in the future, implementing the NHS plan, other
approaches have been recommended that move dispensing from a pharmacy-based, to a wardbased and patient focused service:
One-stop dispensing.6
Use of patients own drugs.
Self-administration schemes.
One-stop dispensing refers to the practice of combining in-patient and discharge dispensing
into a single supply, labeled for discharge. Medicines are increasingly provided in individual
patient packs, which means that typically a patient will go home with several weeks supply.
Patients own drugs involve the patient bringing their medicines into hospital with them where
the medicines are assessed, and accepted or not, according to the local protocol for quality
control. These drugs are used during the in-patient stay and on discharge.
Self-administration relies on the patients ability to self-administer and of the education and
supervision required for them to become competent to self-administer.
These schemes require practical considerations of storage and work best when the patient has
his or her own lockable medicines cabinet and the key is kept by the nurse who administers
medicines.
All these schemes require careful project management during the planning stage and at
implementation on a practical level within the hospital and to gain agreement with primary
care on the changes to prescribing and on the communication processes.
66
A5.1.6 Action plan
Agree a multidisciplinary approach across primary and acute care to review and plan
change towards a patient centered approach.
Consider how the role of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians can be used in the
assessment and care planning of patients with complex needs.
Ensure the assessment process for discharge includes an assessment of the patients
capability to manage the medicines at home.
Review communication processes between acute and primary care to ensure follow-up
of patients at high risk from medication non-compliance including the role of
independent community pharmacists.
Review the role of junior doctors and pharmacists in taking medication histories on
admission and writing up TTAs (drugs to take away).
Agree protocols with pharmacy for the use of discharge lounges.
Use the media to publicise changes in practice, in particular patients own drugs
schemes, which require patients to bring their medication into hospital.
The pharmacist works closely with staff on assessment units to take a detailed
medication history and develop a medication plan. The technician liaises with the GP
practice and community pharmacist to access all relevant information and then carry
out the medication plan under the supervision of the pharmacist. Technicians receive
additional training to undertake this role.
GP-based community pharmacists follow-up patients with high-risk medication plans

in liaison with hospital pharmacists.
The use of one-stop dispensing with patient packs or patients own drugs labelled for
discharge means that most medicines are ready on the ward at the point of discharge.
Discharging patients with at least 14 days prescription means that there is no rush for a
repeat prescription and the GP has time to catch up with the new regime.
The GP practice has clear protocols in place to update computer records when
informed of revised medication plan.
Electronic prescriptions can assist communication between the ward, pharmacy and GP
practice. Electronic signatures have been used within an agreed clinical governance
framework. The patients prescription is electronically transferred to the patients GP via
NHSnet.
The use of a TTA cupboard at ward level has helped the pharmacist dispense simple
prescriptions on the ward. The cupboard can only be accessed by the pharmacist and
contains ready-labeled prepacks of routinely prescribed antibiotics, analgesics and
67
Appendices
topical preparations. The pharmacist visits the ward during or immediately after the
ward round and screens and dispenses any discharge prescriptions.
Patients are fully counselled on how to take their medicines either via enhanced training
for nurses, counseling by pharmacists or fully trained pharmacy technicians. They are
given an instruction sheet showing when to take their medicines prepared by
pharmacists or pharmacy technicians.
Pharmacists are writing discharge prescriptions instead of junior doctors in

collaboration with the multidisciplinary team and consultant with medical
responsibility. The medical practitioner is still currently responsible for signing the
prescription where medication changes have been made, however this may change.
Pharmacists are writing discharge letters on medicines giving full medication profiles
and details of changes made to medication during the patients hospital stay.
A5.1.8 References
1. Cunningham [initial needed] et al. (1997). Drug related problems in elderly patients
admitted to Tayside hospitals, methods for prevention and subsequent reassessment. Age and
Ageing 26: 375382.
2. Manesse, C. et al. (1997). Adverse drug reactions in elderly patients as contributing factor for
hospital admissions: cross sectional study. British Medical Journal 315: 10571058.
3. Green, P. and Rees, L. (1999). Hospital discharge of elderly patients: is seamless care
achieved? [Abstract]. British Pharmaceutical Conference, Cardiff. Pharmaceutical Journal, 263.
4. Jones, S. (2002). Assessing the effectiveness of one stop dispensing. Hospital Pharmacist
9: 237239.
5. North, S., Leach, D. and Goodson, S. (2000). Clinical technicians could deliver seamless
care. [Abstrct, conference], Pharmaceutical Journal 265: 527528.
6. Hospital Pharmacists Group (2002). One-stop dispensing. Use of patients own drugs and
self-medication schemes. Hospital Pharmacist 9: 8186.
68
Appendix 5.2
Discharge checklist
Checklist to be completed 48 hours before discharge.
Task
Completed by and comments
Date/signature
Written and verbal advice

given to patient
Patient care discussed with
family/carer.
Arrangements confirmed
Family/carer advised of
discharge date
Carer understands how to use
any specialist equipment provided
Transfer of care co-ordinator
responsibilities confirmed & note of
new coordinator made
Discharge letter completed and signed
GP letter written
Letter faxed or e-mailed
to primary care
Transport arranged:
Own
Hospital
Arrangements for home equipment
confirmed
Training in use of equipment completed
Relatives asked to bring
outdoor clothes for patient to go home in
69
Appendices
Checklist to be completed on day of discharge with patient.

Task
House Keys
Heating on
Food available
Medication instructions discussed
with patient and/or carer
Prescription arranged
Prescription dispensed
Community therapies informed
Community nursing informed
Out-patient appointment given
Transport confirmed
70
Completed by & comments
Date/signature
Appendix 5.3
Equipment provision
5.3.1 Why this matters
Many people require equipment or adaptations to help them manage at home, or for their carers
to be able to care for them safely. There will be other occasions when equipment or adaptations
are required in a care home, residential home or a sheltered housing environment. Delays in
completing assessments and in arranging any necessary equipment have caused considerable
problems in many parts of the country for a number of years. These difficulties have contributed
to delays in discharging people from hospital. The government has stated that by December
2004 all community equipment for older people (e.g. aids and minor adaptations) will be
provided within seven days of it being requested. Subject to legislation, from April 2003, the
government plans to remove charges for community equipment, such as handrails and hoists.
Traditionally responsibility for providing equipment has been split between the NHS and local
authority social service departments. By 2004, all areas are to have a joint provision in place
with agreed assessment and access criteria. This is intended to reduce waits for people and
should help facilitate the promotion of independence and the appropriate discharge
arrangements for individuals. This should also help services ensure that appropriate staff are
involved in home visits. Training programmes will need to be put in place to ensure that staff
expertise supports the new local arrangements for the prescribing of equipment introduced as
part of the joint provision initiative.
Generally the equipment or adaptations that are required fall into four categories:
Simple and easily transportable equipment which can often be purchased from
commercial outlets and for which only minimal instructions for use is normally
required, e.g. walking stick, bath seats.
Equipment where the patient or their carer requires training in the correct use of
equipment. This will address the repair and maintenance of the equipment. Often this
equipment needs delivering to the patients home and will require installation,
e.g. hoists, beds, grab rails.
Adaptations to the home, often where the skills of an architect are needed following
assessment by a therapist and where a grant may be needed to fund the work.
Arrangements for Disabled Facilities Grants and the funding of such work vary across
the country and with the ownership of the property. Delays in referral and in
completion of any necessary works can result in a patients discharge being delayed
or interim accommodation having to be found until the work is completed.
Wheelchairs (manual and electric).
Care homes providing nursing care are expected to have, as part of the facilities they provide,
some standard items of equipment for anyone needing them and for the safety of staff. These
should include hoists, wheelchairs for occasional use, bath and shower seats and fixed items
71
Appendices
such as grab rails. All other items of equipment to meet the needs of an individual should be, or
should have been, provided to them on the same basis as if they were living in a private house,
applying the same eligibility criteria.
The timing of the delivery of equipment to a patients home is important if a safe and needs-led
discharge is to take place. Hospitals need to understand that the local ambulance service is
generally not able, or equipped, to take home equipment other than walking frames. Timely
delivery can be facilitated by:
having a hospital store for simple equipment that can leave the hospital with the
patient;
the use of staff, such as technical instructors, in a hospital-based occupational therapy

department or a member of social services, to deliver equipment at the point of
discharge or in advance when possible.
Local initiatives that can support the effective provision of equipment include:
Local areas funding, and regularly providing, through their wheelchair service,
accredited therapist training programmes for assessment for wheelchairs for mainstream
therapists who can then access the system on an agreed basis.
Local reviews of the take-up of the wheelchair voucher scheme to give patients greater
choice in the chair they will have.
Handyman schemes that ensure equipment and minor adaptations are installed in a
persons home within a few days of referral.
Temporary accommodation for people waiting for complex adaptations to their home
so they can be discharged from the acute sector prior to their move home.
Assessment centres that enable people to try out alternative or a range of pieces of
equipment prior to reaching a decision on what is most appropriate for them.
The provision of clear information for those people who require equipment, and their
carers, on how it can be returned when no longer required.
More information can be found on the ICES website www.icesdoh.org and in the Care and
Repair England publication On the mend hospital discharge and the role of Home Improvement
Agencies.
72
Appendix 5.4
Discharge lounges
A5.4.1 What are these?
Discharge lounges have been established in many acute hospitals. These are comfortable, staffed
areas where patients can wait for transport home once they no longer require the level of
nursing care offered on an in-patient ward. Patients can be collected from these areas by family
members or transport services to take them home. Meals, drinks and basic nursing care are all
available. Ideally, they are located in an area of the hospital where there is easy transport access
for ambulances. Some provide beds for patients to wait in but the majority provide chairs only.
An agreed level of involvement with the pharmacy service is key to their success so patients can
receive their take home medication and receive final advice/information on it in this area.
The advantages of discharge lounges are:
Pressure on wards is decreased and capacity increased.
Transport services do not waste time looking for patients who have been moved from
the ward that booked their transport to another.
Patients waiting for relatives, friends or transport services to take them home are not
occupying a hospital bed.
Delays in waiting for discharge medication can be avoided.
Factors required for success:
An operational policy that is reviewed and updated regularly.
A clear understanding within the hospital of the purpose and use of the area, e.g. ward
staff know what has to be in place before a patient is moved to the lounge.
Clear communication with patients and carers regarding the area, e.g. through leaflets.
Regular input from the pharmacy service, often from a pharmacy technician.
73
Appendix 5.5
Discharge needs of people who are
homeless
A5.5.1 What are the current problems and issues?
In England most providers of services to homeless people can point to examples of poor practice
in terms of unplanned discharges from hospitals (particularly from acute sector wards). Where
this happens structured discharge planning arrangements may be in place, but not properly
implemented. Far more significant is evidence that follow-on or resettlement arrangements have
broken down, or that people are discharged inappropriately back to hostels after a hospital
admission.1
Homeless people generally have more acute medical problems than the general population.
There are situations where homeless people are hospitalised for short-term treatment and then
discharged to inappropriate places or back into homelessness. This can be due to a lack of
information regarding the living conditions of homeless people, which may result in hospital
staff discharging them without making contact with relevant service providers. In addition, poor
planning may result in someone losing a hostel bed space. It is vital all hospitals consider the
housing situation of patients to ensure that people are not discharged to inappropriate places,
homeless or become homeless as a result of their stay in hospital.
The hospitalisation of a homeless person may present an opportunity to deal with underlying
medical, social and mental health problems in a structured manner. However, certain
procedures, particularly with regard to the discharge of patients, need to be addressed in order
to reduce the risk of homelessness. Sometimes, workers report that there has been an inadequate
risk assessment under the care programme approach and information has not been passed on to
either primary care staff or service providers.
It is vital that there is good liaison between hospital and service providers particularly around
homeless women with children. Surgery is not straightforward for a mother with children who
may be living in temporary accommodation with no family or friends. Children may have to go
into temporary foster care. The initial stay in hospital may need to be extended. There is
evidence that community midwives may not be able to provide postnatal care and support to
women living in temporary accommodation.
All acute hospitals should have formal admission and discharge policies which will ensure that
homeless people are identified on admission and their pending discharge notified to relevant
primary health care services and to homeless services providers. In addition, for patients in
psychiatric hospitals/units a post-discharge care plan will be drawn up well in advance of
discharge and procedures put in place to ensure appropriate accommodation and continuity
of care is in place for each person discharged.
74
Discharge needs of people who are homeless
A5.5.2 Action plan

The lead managers for hospital discharge in acute hospitals and social services should ensure
that their hospital discharge policy includes guidance for staff dealing with individuals who are
homeless and aged both under and over 65 years.
It is usually the role of social services to facilitate the care of people over 65 years in liaison with
the local homeless unit. The needs of those under 65 years are covered by the local homeless
unit.
Good practice can be achieved when there is a clear agreement between the homeless unit, the
acute hospital and the primary care trust on how appropriate and timely referral and liaison
between the three units can be established. This is essential in order to: support the discharge of
individuals who are homeless; ensure they have access to primary care services who will oversee
their clinical care following discharge; and ensure acute facilities are not used inappropriately.
A5.5.3 References
1. Fisher, K. and Collins, C. (1993). Homelessness, health care and welfare provision. London:
Routledge.
75
Appendix 5.6 Admission of people with

additional needs learning disability,
mental health problems or dementia
A5.6.1 What are the issues?
Most people admitted to hospital will experience some level of psychological distress that
professionals will need to address. However, people who present at A&E departments or require
treatment in an acute hospital setting have difficulties beyond that of their physical health needs
and may need some specialist input. This can be the result of, for example, mental health
problems, substance misuse, a confused state, dementia or a learning disability. This may
present additional challenges for both the individual and for staff in the acute sector. In
particular they may find it difficult to identify and then meet needs. The challenges for staff
not familiar with working with people with such difficulties can be compounded when patients
feel frightened, confused and bewildered, unsupported and unable to communicate effectively.
These can continue after someone is admitted. While they can be lessened by involvement of
members of specialist learning disability, substance misuse and mental health teams, many acute
services are slow to engage the support of these experts or carers, who can be an invaluable
resource and support to staff and to patients.
Common problems for these individuals include:
staff having communication challenges that make it difficult to assess whether the
patient is able to provide consent and/or understand the processes he or she is
to undergo;
open ward environments not providing a feeling of security that many people need,
as the ward environment is busy and confusing;
the emphasis on rapid discharge limiting the time for thorough assessment and peoples
full needs are not always identified or treated. They may return to the community, or
institutional care, with needs still not met;
care plans being made without vital information being obtained from those health,
social care, family carers or housing services that are aware of their needs and current
difficulties.
Some common difficulties for acute hospital services include:
76
links between specialist services and A&E, e.g. liaison mental health or learning
disability services not being in place, or are not used effectively. Staff from these services
can provide vital information on the individuals health and social needs, and also help
them understand what the A&E process involves. It may be that a gateway worker
will be available through A&E departments to respond to people with mental health
needs who need immediate help. These staff will be able to call on crisis resolution
teams if necessary;
Addition of people with additional needs
delays in getting expert input for more detailed assessment or rehabilitation as this is
not agreed/funded, or acute staff do not consider this early enough in the assessment
process;
the demands on carers, and the importance of a thorough assessment of their own needs
when the patient has severe and/or enduring mental health problems or dementia not
always being appreciated. This can lead to delays in requesting carers assessments and/or
incomplete and unrealistic discharge planning;
other in-patients may feel uncomfortable when someone with these additional needs is
in a bed close to them. This may be especially so if the person is behaving in an agitated
manner, or displaying challenging symptoms or behaviour. This can cause anxiety in
both patients and staff, and lead to the feeling that their individual needs may not be
met as well as they might be;
the hospital environment, or occupational therapy department, not necessarily being

the best place to assess practical abilities. It can be the case that activity of daily living
assessments done in hospital are not effective or do not give a true picture of what the
individuals abilities will be in their familiar home environment;
acute multidisciplinary teams often being slow to access specialist mental health team
advice. This means that assessments are not holistic and can take too much account of
physical health needs, and not mental health ones. It often means that expert input is
not sought until there is a crisis;
different rehabilitation needs not being understood, nor the approaches that may help
facilitate a successful discharge;
the limited number of quality services for people with dementia to move on to, can
make it hard to discharge someone when there is no longer a need for the acute sector
to be involved in their care.
A5.6.2 Actions for commissioners

Commissioners may wish to consider:
the need for mental health and learning disability service input to A&E;
supporting the on-going role of advocacy services and their input to the acute sector
and for services commissioned for mental health and learning disability to be able to
work with a patient while they are involved with the acute sector. Alternatively ensure
the Patient and Advisory Liaison Service has appropriate links with specialist services for
advice and support;
supporting the development of non-verbal communication systems, e.g. picture books;
commissioning space on older peoples mental health wards for those admitted with
acute confusion by providing a more suitable environment.
77
Appendices
A5.6.3 Actions for acute, mental health and learning

disability service
Managers may wish to consider:
supporting the provision of training for acute staff in issues of consent, basic mental
health, dealing with people who are confused and the impact of having a learning
disability on physical functioning and communication;
developing protocols or guidelines for dealing with both emergency and planned
admissions and presentations at A&E, including simple pictorial means of
communication for people with a learning disability (see Appendix 5. 7 for an example);
providing active support and time for practitioners from learning disability and mental
health teams to support individuals when in acute and physical health care sector;
working with the police to consider locating a place of safety, as defined in the Mental
Heath Act, adjacent to A&E;
support training and support for Patient Advisory and Liaison Service workers.
Practitioners may wish to consider:
actively engaging the CPA (care programme approach) co-ordinator for and with the
client in any pre-admission work that takes place with the acute sector, e.g. attend
appointments, visit the ward, speak to the staff;
if working in the acute sector, looking at each patient as an individual and

understanding the anxieties he or she may have and working with staff in specialist
services to alleviate these;
actively seeking the involvement of families and/or professional health or social care
staff.
A5.6.4 Good practice examples
78
Intensive home support from the community mental health team or community team
for people with a learning disability to ensure that admission is short as possible.
Regular visits to acute wards/community and rehabilitative schemes to support

individuals and staff in working with the client.
Appendix 5.7 Guidelines for the acute

sector when caring for someone with a
learning disability
A5.7.1 Preparation for admission
A5.7.1.1 Making contact
It is advisable for the hospital ward/unit to make contact with the individual as far in advance as
possible so that arrangements can be made. These may include:
pre-admission visits for the person with a learning disability (patient) and carer;
discussing issues of consent;
arranging longer appointments;
making links with the community team for people with a learning disability /social
work team.
However, by 2005, every person with a learning disability who wants one will have a health
action plan (HAP). A HAP is a personal plan detailing the actions needed to maintain and
improve the health of an individual and any help needed to achieve this. The plan will usually
be co-produced with them. A HAP may cover day-to-day issues such as diet, exercise,
medicines, going to the dentist and to the optician. It can also include more temporary plans
to cover specific episodes such as going into hospital for an operation. If the person does
not already have a HAP this would be a good time to start one. Good practice guidance on
HAPs is at website: www.doh.gov.uk/learningdisabilities.
If appropriate, this contact may also include the individuals parent, family carer or a residential
carer.
A5.7.1.2 Reducing anxiety

It is well recognised that some people with learning disabilities are anxious about receiving
medical treatment. For this reason, preparation is essential to eliminate any fears and minimise
concern and may require several visits to the ward/unit for relationship building and developing
an awareness of what to expect with medical procedures.
This contact aims to help the ward/unit team to understand any special needs of the individual.
79
Appendices
A5.7.1.3 Involving the community team for people with learning

disabilities
If the person lives independently the local community team for learning disabilities could be
approached to offer support to the individual if requested. Prior to admission the community
team for learning disabilities could also provide liaison with and links between the:
GP and the primary health care team;
social work team;
relevant hospital ward/unit.
This support could also be extended to support the individual with hospital discharge
arrangements.
A5.7.1.4 Contacting the community team for people with learning

disabilities
The individuals named/assessing nurse is advised to contact the community team for learning
disabilities before admission for advice and support as needed.
The intensive response nurse or the healthcare co-ordinator will then make links with colleagues
from the community team and/or social work team as appropriate.
A5.7.2 The hospital book

A5.7.2.1 Before using the hospital book
For people with learning disabilities, the personal information book will provide personal care
information that will enhance their stay in hospital. A person with learning disabilities, parent,
carers or the nurse completing the book can obtain good health and social history through
its use.
A5.7.2.2 Accessing the completed book during admission

It is recommended that a copy of this book is kept by the person with a learning disability
(patient) or if the patient has given consent, it may be kept with the patients records for easy
access by the multidisciplinary team. This can promote the patients care in hospital whilst
enabling communication of needs.
80
Guidelines for the acute sector learning disability
A5.7.3 Emergency admission

A5.7.3.1 Prior to arrival
If the person with a learning disability needs an emergency admission to hospital, and if the
individual has special needs, the carers should be encouraged to contact the A&E department
prior to arrival and inform them of the special circumstances.
A5.7.3.2 At triage
The triage nurse should be informed of patients expected arrival.
A5.7.3.3 Support for parents/carers

In some situations the triage nurse/medical staff/health professionals need to be responsive to
parents/carers needs as they may be upset and worried and need additional support.
A5.7.3.4 Contacting parent/family/next of kin or carer

If the patient presents to the A&E department on their own, the appropriateness of making
contact with their parent, family, next of kin or carer should be raised. This contact may help
the A&E team to understand any additional support needs of the individual so that provisions
can be made.
A5.7.3.5 Using the hospital book

The hospital book will provide additional information on communication and personal needs.
The triage nurse should refer to the patients hospital book and use supportive material to
perform an assessment that involves the patient.
A5.7.3.6 Waiting areas

Access to quiet waiting areas should be made available to minimise additional concerns the
individual may be experiencing during this time.
A5.7.3.7 Fast tracking through Accident and Emergency

The A&E nurse and the doctor responsible for the patients carers will fast track the patient
through the department when this is deemed to be necessary.
81
Appendices
A5.7.3.8 Preparation for admission to a ward

If the patient is due to be transferred to an in-patients unit/ward in the hospital, where
appropriate, the A&E nurse should advise this department to contact the:
persons parent/carer;
learning disabilities resource nurse for the ward;
healthcare co-ordinator/duty intensive response nurse at the community team for

learning disabilities;
health facilitator for advice about local arrangements for specialist learning disabilities
support (every primary care trust should have an identified health facilitator and there
should be a named contact for health facilitation for each GP practice).
A5.7.4 Admission to the ward

A5.7.4.1 The admission process
During admission it is good practice to obtain the handover from the carers, with full
involvement encouraged from the patient. Details of the main carer and contact numbers
should be clearly documented in the patients nursing notes.
A5.7.4.2 The handover

The handover to the ward nurse should involve the patient, with the use of the personal
information book and the attached picture sheets.
A5.7.4.3 On going patient involvement/information

During their stay in hospital the patient and, if appropriate, their carer should be kept informed
of their multidisciplinary care plan.
A5.7.4.4 Carer support

The ward/unit nurse should discuss with the patient and the carer the support that the
carer/parent may be able to provide. This may be short term (e.g. to help the patient
settle in the new environment) or long term (e.g. regular visits around meal times).
If this is not possible and the carers are unable to accompany the patient at regular intervals,
a detailed support plan, including dietary and communication needs and the personal
information book should be made available from the carer through a handover to ward nurse.
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Guidelines for the acute sector learning disability
A5.7.4.5 Communication
The patient will require extra time for care and communication, especially during the early days
following admission. The hospital book will help people with learning disabilities communicate
their needs in hospital. It will also enable hospital staff to help the person to make decisions
about treatment and investigations.
A5.7.4.6 Recovering
During recovery, health professionals need to take into account that a person with a learning
disability may require longer time and additional encouragement to make a full recovery. It is
important to gain the co-operation of the patient at their own pace. The hospital book will
prove useful here.
A5.7.4.7 On going support during the hospital stay

Additional time and support needs to be allocated when an individual is recovering from
surgery. Carers should be encouraged to participate in helping the individual with their
treatment when requests are made by nurses, physiotherapist, doctors and occupational
therapists to participate in exercises to aid with rehabilitation.
When explaining treatment, it is advisable to obtain support from the patients carer, their
community learning disability nurse, social worker and/or other relevant specialists from the
learning disability team, such as speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, psychologists
and psychiatrists. Documentation of the action plan needs to be completed by all involved.
Along with the use of the hospital book and the attached picture sheets, hospital staff should be
encouraged to use additional appropriate communication resources to assist communication
with a person with a learning disability. These pictorial resources can be used to help the person
understand their treatment and investigations, as well as communicate their personal and
clinical needs.
Prior to discharge the ward/unit nurse should liaise with the health or social care professional
supporting the individual. In the first instance liaison should be with the intensive response
nurse/healthcare co-ordinator at the community team for learning disabilities and/or the
learning disabilities duty social worker. If appropriate, it is advisable that the home care team
and primary health care teams should co-ordinate the discharge arrangements.
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Appendix 5.8
Common problems and simple
solutions
A number of issues contribute to the delays in the timely transfer of a patient from one care
setting to another or to his or her own home. There is a remarkable consistency in the issues
that cause delays. In many instances very simple and relatively cheap solutions can reduce the
impact of these. Diagnostic work should be undertaken to analyse the problem and to engage the key
stakeholders in determining the right solutions. The list below provides some practical ideas to
facilitate discussion.
Co-ordination of patient journey
Problems
Discharge is concentrated between
Monday and Thursday
Solutions
Services are commissioned and organised over 7
days a week
Actual discharge day is agreed with family and
carers to take account of support they can offer
Limited services to help prevent avoidable hospital

admissions, provide health promotion or chronic
disease management schemes
Falls clinics
GP clinics based in A&E
therapists based in A&E
falls co-ordinator links with local exercise groups
for older people and provides support and/or training
Primary care service unclear if admission of patient

necessary to meet clinical needs
Agreed hot line arrangements for GPs for

immediate responses in relation to health and/or
social care
Consultant liaison to GP practices for additional
advice
A&E only point of access for out of hours intervention
GP out of hour co-operatives based in, or near,

A&E
Wide publication of NHS Direct phone number
Community nursing out of hours and social
services department out-of-hours duty services work
together to access information and support people
until mainstream services are available, e.g. agreed
access to community and primary care information,
pooled budget for generic staff
Limited medical cover in the community at night
Base night nursing service with out of hours GP

co-operatives to increase staff resources and allow
sharing of expertise
Peg feeding once initiated is not reviewed and may

lead to readmission or patient having to rely on peg
for longer than necessary
Service exists for SALT and/or dietitians to follow

up and review the appropriateness of on-going peg
feeding
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Common problems and simple solutions
Co-ordination of patient journey continued

Problems
Delays in discharge occur due to disagreements over
the funding of giving sets for peg feeds
Solutions
Management of budget for peg feeding held by
the one services to cover in- and out- patient work
and care home care
In-patient/hospital based dietitic department
moves patient on to the products provided in their
local area a few days prior to discharge when patient
is from another area
Limited, if any, follow up for people with dysphagia
Provide speech and language therapy input as

part of intermediate care services
Communication between primary and secondary services and continuity of approach

Problems
Solutions
Primary or social care believe they do not get the

information they require on a patient when
transferred from the acute sector
Involve primary and secondary care staff in

agreeing standard admission and discharge
documentation, e.g. a form to be sent at time of
admission and discharge
Delays in information getting to primary care from

bed-based services
Fax machine on each acute ward with report sent

as patient leaves the ward and readily accessible in
other settings
Delays in obtaining equipment necessary to support

discharge
Hospital-based store for simple and frequently

required equipment and therapy staff able to issue
and deliver
Protocols for access to joint equipment store
Patients resume home medication on discharge from

hospital and do not understand, or comply, with the
new medication regime
On admission medication reviews are undertaken

by a pharmacist, a medication care plan put in place,
and compliance training undertaken
Delay in discharge when training for carers required re

manual handling and other aspects of caring for
someone with physical and/or communication
difficulties
Agreement between primary care trust, social

services and acute trusts re responsibility and funding
Training programme for families and carers
provided on regular basis, possibly by, or in
conjunction with, volunatry sector
Internal acute hospital issues

Problems
Information on home circumstances very slow in
getting to hospital
Solutions
Local schemes that allow ambulance service to
bring essential information on, e.g. message in a
bottle
Primary care identify at risk patients who then
carry a small card issued at the GP surgery that
contains key medical and social information
Information about the patient is not available in the

one place in the hospital
One set of notes used by all and held at ward

level
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Appendices
Internal acute hospital issues continued

Problems
Outliers on wards in an acute hospital miss consultant
round leading to delays in all aspects of care
Solutions
Case co-ordinator system operates in hospital
Protocols to allow nurse or therapist discharge
Hospital-wide system for identification of outliers
to prompt care co-ordinator to ensure that discharge
plan is in place and followed
Care co-ordinator advises hospital discharge team
daily of any new oultiers
Hospital discharge team visit all outlier wards daily
Delay in obtaining therapy input
Agreed criteria for referral to therapy services

Named therapist per ward/beds
Proactive use of therapy support workers to screen
patients for rehabilitation potential
Development of generic worker role to work
across nursing and therapy
Inappropriate timing of referrals to social care
Agreed criteria for referral to social work services

Named social worker/care manager per
ward/beds or central referral number
Proactive use of social care support workers to
screen
Hospital team is slow to identify complex issues that

will cause delays in discharging, e.g. no GP, major
housing adaptations, homeless
Develop a simple risk screening proforma to be

used on admission
Care co-ordinator to organise comprehensive
assessment and involve multidisciplinary team as
required
Advise discharge team of such patients to enlist
their help early in the process
Introduce a file system that makes it easy to
identify them, e.g. patient record in a particular
coloured folder, special front sheet in notes
Patients with challenging behaviour and/or cognitive

in-patient are not well served in acute wards and can
cause a risk to others
Agreements are in place for rapid access to

specialist mental health and learning disabilities
opinion from medics or nurse specialists enabling a
shared care approach
Uncertainty in A&E about the most effective way to

work with people who may have, or do have, mental
health problems, confused state and/or a learning
disability
Mental health & learning disability services to

have clear out-of-hours liaison services and links with
emergency services
Patient with mental health problems. Learning

disability and/or dementia present management
problems on the acute ward
For planned admissions, the care programme

approach key worker attends hospital with patient in
advance of admission to allow them to see
environment and to discuss management issues with
acute ward staff/team
Simple training programme for A&E staff provided

by specialist teams
Liaison services provide immediate input within

agreed referral protocols available or patient not
known to the local specialist mental health or
learning disability team
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Common problems and simple solutions
Communication with patients and carers

Problems
Patient and/or carer feel unsupported immediately
after discharge and uncertain about arrangements put
in place and/or how to use equipment
Solutions
Practice nurse, health visitor for the elderly,
healthcare assistant or member of the ward team
phone on day after discharge to check how
patient/carer is managing
Home from hospital schemes for people living
alone
Patient leaves hospital with phone number to
contact for advice/reassurance
At point of discharge carers state they are not able to,

do not wish to have their relative return home
Clarify at the outset of the care episode the

involvement patients want their carer(s) to have in
the decision making process re their care
Provide training for hospital-based staff on the
principles of working with carers as partners
Agree who in multidisciplinary team has lead role
in liaising with carers on an individual patient basis
Have information for carers on their rights to an
assessment available
Individual patient characteristics

Problems
Patient or carer not able to understand written
information available
Solutions
Patient and information available in local
languages, on tape, in pictorial form, in simple
booklets
Use of advocates
Care co-ordinator checks understanding and
reinforces messages in visual forms where necessary
Patient unable to understand, and easily participate, in Ensure that the speech and language therapy
decision making process re their care due to
service is involved in agreeing the nature, content
communication difficulties
and style of leaflets and that patients with
communication difficulites, e.g. aphasia, are seen by
a therapist
Speech and language therapy service provides
training for other practitioners in working with
people with communication difficulties
Patient does not speak English
Contract with interpreting services to avoid

inappropriate use of family members, especially of
children
Patient does not have a GP
Primary care trust allocates GP as soon as possible

after admission
Primary care trust has named person for acute
sector to contact on these occasions
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Appendices
Staffing issues
Problems
High need for use of agency staff who do not
understand the English health and social care system
Solutions
Display pathway pictorially and as simply as
possible
Use check lists as an aide memoir
Junior doctors unfamiliar with local services and

policies re: admission and discharge
Limit the number of wards that a junior doctor has

to cover
Formal induction to cover discharge planning,
prevention of admission schemes, community
resources
Staff lack understanding of wider system
Shared agency induction programmes

GP practices host forums with other practices and
social services department to share ideas and good
practice
Rolling programme and open inivtation to the
independent and acute sector to learn with primary
and social care staff
Shadowing programmes for key personnel
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6. Intermediate care, transitional care

and sheltered housing
The key principle underpinning this aspect of an effective discharge and transfer of care policy is
that:
Transitional and intermediate care services are used as effectively as possible, so that
existing acute hospital capacity is used appropriately and patients achieve optimal
outcomes.
There are now a number of services and new ways of working that provide person-centred care
and enable people to live in a supported environment with appropriate care, support and, at
times, rehabilitation. These services can also support the acute sector in preventing avoidable
admissions, facilitating timely discharge and in providing capacity within a local health, housing
and social care system.1
6.1 Intermediate care

The NHS plan set out a new programme to promote independence for older people, by
developing a range of services delivered in partnership between primary and secondary health
care, local government services, in particular social care, and the independent sector.
Intermediate care is a vital component of that programme and is central to the modernisation
agenda. Intermediate care is a range of integrated services that are intended to:
promote faster recovery from illness;
prevent unnecessary admission to an acute hospital bed;
support timely discharge;
reduce avoidable use of long-term care;
maximise independent living.
This support can be delivered into an individuals own home, housing schemes, day centres and
hospitals, as well as in more traditional care and rehabilitation settings such as community
hospitals and care homes. However, it needs to be accepted that these services are not only
provided as part of intermediate care initiatives other services can also provide facilities that
fulfill these purposes.
Intermediate care is not an optional extra. It is designed to ensure that patients get the right
kind and quality of care at the right time. It contributes to the effective use of resources and
capacity in the health and social care system at a local level.
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Partnership is at the heart of intermediate care. To be effective, services and new ways of
working need:
the active co-operation of organisations, and of professionals;
to be person-centred;
to promote the independence of people actively and consistently;
to support carers in promoting the independence of their relatives and to help them
understand the role they can play, and the means they can use, in doing this;
to be based on whole system working;
to be able to provide timely access to specialist care;
to support the promotion of health and an active life for older people.
In order to ensure a consistent approach to intermediate care the Department of Health advised
the NHS and local authorities of the definition that they were to apply in reporting investment
and activity.2 These can be summarised as services that:
are targeted at people who would otherwise face a prolonged and unnecessary stay in
hospital or an inappropriate admission to acute in-patient care, long-term residential
care or continuing NHS in-patient care;
are provided following a comprehensive assessment that results in a care plan that has
active therapy, treatment and/or time for recovery as part of it;
have a planned outcome of maximising independence and wherever possible allowing

individuals to live at home;
involve cross-professional working, with a single assessment framework, single records

and shared protocols.
6.1.1 Success factors

The experiences of the change agent team and the work of the Audit Commission3 and Kings
Fund suggest that there are a number of practices that actively support the successful
implementation and delivery of intermediate care.
These are:
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there is a single point of access that is widely known in a local area;
services are person-centred and tailored to meet individual need;
services are responsive, flexible and can be adapted to suit the needs of an individual;
services are provided in a range of settings an individuals own home, bed-based and
day services;
Transitional care
an active case-finding approach is adopted to identify as early as possible the

rehabilitation potential of an individual or for intermediate care staff to go into the
hospital to identify those who would be most likely benefit from their services;
staff providing services are empowered, clear about their accountability and are highly
skilled, adopting a rehabilitative approach;
there is co-ordination at a strategic and an operational level;
services are well promoted locally and their place in the system understood;
the single assessment process links all care sectors housing, health and social care;
there are strong and respected leaders at all levels in each organisation and robust
leadership of the whole system approach;
performance review is a regular feature of the service and all partners are willing to
respond quickly to improve service delivery where deficiencies are found;
the accountability and responsibilities of the different organisations providing services

are agreed.
Further detailed information on intermediate care is available on the website

www.doh.gov.uk/intermediatecare and the Change Agent Team website
www.doh.gov.uk/jointunit/changeagents.htm/. The Kings Fund publication
Developing intermediate care a guide for health and social care professionals1 offers a
comprehensive overview of intermediate care and practical advice and information.
6.2 Transitional care

Transitional care refers to that care provided to a person who is not able to be placed in their
home or the permanent setting of their choice but who still requires a supportive, and
appropriately staffed, environment to live in. It can be used, for example, while someone is
awaiting major adaptations to their own home. The essential feature is that the individual is
there on a temporary basis, and there is an agreement that this is the case with the person, their
carers, if relevant, and those administering the placement. All should be clear as to why the
placement is needed and for how long. The care provided must be appropriate to the persons
needs, including providing rehabilitation, support, confidence building and time for recovery.
These placements can be provided by the NHS and the independent sector. Community
hospitals can be used for this purpose, but only when agreement has been reached regarding a
long-term placement.
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6.3 Sheltered housing

This is specially designed accommodation, available for rent or purchase, mainly for older
people. It is sometimes called retirement housing. Some sheltered schemes are called extra care
sheltered housing or very sheltered housing. In recent years the nature of sheltered housing has
changed and many housing schemes provide intensive support to residents. Both sheltered and
extra care housing can be available locally. Their use for an individual should be based on an
assessment of their needs and a decision that the support and care offered is appropriate to those
needs. This can be extended to supporting and keeping people in their own home, but
managing their care in the sheltered housing at times of sickness/crisis, which can also be used
as a setting for intermediate care in short-term residencies.
Sheltered housing can offer a range of services to support older people to live independently.
Alarm services, scheme managers, a sense of community and good design all contribute to the
ability of sheltered housing to support individuals. Scheme managers can play a key role in
supporting the discharge of an individual and in ensuring that there are support mechanisms in
place to meet their needs.
Very sheltered housing provides a greater amount of support. It may use care staff and routinely
provide meals for residents. Wardens in these schemes can play a key role in supporting
someone in the community. Further information is set out in Appendix 6.1.
More information on very sheltered housing, including leaflets for NHS staff, social services,
sheltered housing providers and for older people, their friends and relatives can be obtained
from EroSH (The National Consortium for Sheltered Housing) on 01905 21112.
6.4 Action plan

Primary care trust commissioners with their local acute providers and their social service
colleagues should consider:
agree referral protocols for the use of, and access to intermediate care and transitional
care;
consider the need for, provision of, and support for sheltered housing provided locally as
part of whole-system commissioning;
develop a single point of access for intermediate care for all referrers;
agree a means of monitoring the use of transitional care.
Primary care trust commissioners and their social service colleagues should consider:
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assess the local populations need for intermediate care in a variety of settings;
review existing intermediate care opportunities and, if necessary, take steps to increase
capacity to meet local needs;
engage with housing providers to identify current capacity for intermediate and
transitional care beds and the need for a local range of sheltered housing options.
References
6.5 References
1. Kings Fund (2002). Developing intermediate care: a guide for health and social services
professionals. London: Kings Fund.
2. Department of Health (2001). Intermediate care (HSC2001/1: LAC(2001)1). London:
3. Audit Commission (2002). Integrated services for older people. London: The Stationery Office.
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Appendix 6.1 Housing
A6.1.1 Why this matters

Where an individual lives is extremely important to them and can also have a considerable
impact on their health and well being. The significant majority of people who are admitted to
hospital come from their own homes and want to return there as soon as possible. Sometimes
complex adaptations are needed to their homes to enable this to happen. The options for
independent living are increased when local areas have a range of housing stock, some with
support for older and/or vulnerable people, and local partners work together to review available
capacity, options and solutions.
Within a local area the ownership of, and style of housing, will vary. It will include owner
occupied stock, local authority stock, an increasing number of housing association owned stock
and privately rented accommodation.
Those commissioning services for older people and those with physical disabilities, and possibly
sensory impairment, need to be aware of the range of local providers and the range of provision.
Housing providers need to be seen as an integral part of the planning and commissioning teams
for services.
Cultural and organisational divides and a limited understanding of housing by the NHS, and to
a lesser extent social services, have limited effective joint working. While the Supporting People
agenda should help address this, the NHS needs to work at understanding housing issues if this
sector is to be able to play its rightful role in the care system. A particular issue for NHS staff
involved in the discharge of people from hospital, or the avoidance of unnecessary hospital
admission, is the system for access to supported housing and also the local system for the
funding, planning and provision of home adaptations.
For minor repairs and adaptations to make discharge home possible, the hospital occupational
therapist should involve, at an early stage, a local Home Improvement Agency (HIA) (Care and
Repair or Staying Put scheme) or handyperson service. Where the HIA also has a dedicated
rapid response service team for hospital discharge, the ward-based care co-ordinator should
consider involving it directly in discharge planning at an early stage.
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Housing
Areas for the NHS and housing providers to address together:

What to address
Some actions to consider
Tackling the cultural divide
bringing staff from housing into mainstream training opportunities;

supporting a common language and care culture
look at opportunities for cross learning; shadowing, secondments,

mentoring
look at opportunities for locality based forums and events
understand the different planning regimes and make sense of them;

rationalise use of local information where possible (see below)
the need to link in with housing and Supporting People in mapping

existing services, building capacity and identifying gaps in services
consider best value principles in planning across the system
whole-system approaches to commissioning means including

housing as part of the process, not just bolting it on
looking across all existing local services; including sheltered and

extra care provision
engage Supporting People in the commissioning process
explore different contracting solutions (flexible contracting, longer

contract periods, different options for performance measuring,
offering freedoms and flexibilities to good providers)
look beyond the traditional use of the Health Act
Planning
Commissioning
Use of Health Act flexibilities
flexibilities in health and social care, to including housing based

options of care and support. This might include:
involving housing staff as part of rapid response teams
pooling funds for capacity building, reviewing existing housing
stock for older people and commissioning extra care housing
creating fluidity between sheltered/extra care and intermediate
care arrangements
working with housing authorities on joint assessments
A6.1.1.1 Practical examples
Use of sheltered and extra care housing for intermediate care activities.
Home improvement agency projects to provide home safety checks, falls prevention,
rapid response repair and adaptation services to older and/or disabled people.
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A6.1.2 Further information

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department of Health has produced a guide
Preparing housing strategies, which provides practical assistance in developing health and housing
strategies for older people.
Produced by Care and Repair England, On the mend: hospital discharge and the role of home
improvement agencies, looks at the range of services broadly referred to as Hospital Discharge or
Home from Hospital schemes and examines the policy framework in which these services are
expanding and developing. Further details can be obtained from http://www.careandrepairengland.org.uk
Practical examples of the role of sheltered housing and Home Improvement Agenices in hospital
discharge practices are included in the Department of Health report Moving forward. A copy
can be obtained from: http://www.doh.gov.uk/intermediatecare/icmovingforward.pdf
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Use of existing housing for intermediate care services or for interim housing while an
individual waits for adaptations to their own home to be completed.
Confederation of home improvement schemes to provide repair services to older and/or

disabled people.
Use of housing association maintenance units repair services in privately owned stock.
7. Continuing health and social care
The key principle underpinning this aspect of an effective discharge and transfer of care policy is:
The assessment for, and delivery of, continuing health and social care is organised so
that individuals understand the continuum of health and social care services, their
rights, and receive advice and information to enable them to make informed decisions
about their future care.
7.1 What is continuing care?

Continuing care, frequently referred to as long-term care, is the provision of care over an
extended period of time as the result of disability, accident or illness, to meet both physical and
mental health needs. It can be provided in a range of settings, from an NHS hospital, care home
or hospice, to a persons own home.1
Continuing care can include both health and social care:
Continuing NHS health care a package of care arranged and funded solely by the
NHS.
Continuing health and social care a package of care that involves services from both
the NHS and social care.
The Royal Commission report on long-term care2 emphasised the need to transform long-term
care services by developing new models of support that focused on maintaining independence,
rather than doing things to people. The governments policy on long-term care is to improve the
range and type of services that help people recover and gain independence. Changes have been
made in the arrangements for adults who enter a care home to ensure there is a reasonable
length of time between entering it and any question of their needing to sell the family home.
This important interval gives people the time to think about their future, and keeps open the
possibility of a return home.
7.2 Who is responsible for providing and funding

continuing care?
The NHS and local authorities with responsibilities for social services must work together to
meet the needs of people with continuing health and social care needs. Strategic health
authorities (StHAs) and local authorities are required to agree joint continuing health and social
care eligibility criteria, setting out their respective responsibilities for the provision of the full
range of health and social care services, regardless of age.2 They include equally important
responsibilities for palliative health care and respite care. The NHS is responsible for arranging
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and funding a range of services to meet the needs of people who require continuing physical or
mental health care. The range of services which the NHS is expected to arrange and fund to
meet the needs of people at home or in a care home includes:
primary health care;
assessment involving doctors and nurses;
rehabilitation and recovery as part of a package of NHS care;
respite healthcare;
community health services;
specialist health care support;
healthcare equipment;
palliative care;
specialist transport services.
Primary care trusts and local authorities are responsible for making sure that local arrangements
and procedures are in place to assess need and organise care provision, and make clear that a
regular review of care needs will be made. Throughout this process the patient and their family
must agree the assessment is an accurate reflection of their needs and sign the assessment to that
effect. They must also be fully informed of their rights in relation to any decisions made about
continuing care provision.
As previously discussed, carers have an entitlement in their own right. The assessment of the
patients needs and the care plan must take carers needs into account. This plan will reflect both
the ability and willingness of the carer to provide support and their needs as an individual.
From April 2003, NHS-funded nursing care will apply to all residents in care homes providing
nursing care. All people in care homes providing nursing care will have their needs for registered
nursing care assessed. The NHS is responsible for the costs of this nursing care and they are
allocated a banding of needs as high, medium or low. A practice guide and workbook3 was issued
by the Department of Health in 2001 to assist nurses who are responsible for determining the
level of funding support for individuals. It is recommended that the guide is used in
conjunction with this publication.
All staff involved in the referral, assessment and decision-making process for continuing health
and social care, should be fully conversant with the local eligibility criteria, the referral and
funding processes, and must understand their role and responsibilities in caring for patients and
supporting carers.
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Where is continuing care provided?
7.3 Where is continuing care provided?

The independent sector is the main provider of continuing care services. This is through the
care home and home care provider market and non-profit-making organisations. Over recent
years there has been a notable reduction in the number of care home beds available4 and home
care providers are reporting difficulties in recruitment and retention of staff. A person waiting
for a care home bed to become available is one of the main causes of a delayed transfer of care.5
Although work is underway to review capacity and develop new models of care, there is an
immediate need to find solutions to current problems. The governments investment in
developing capacity and partnership in care has been directed towards alleviating these
pressures.
Primary care and community health services are responsible for meeting the health needs of
people residing in the independent sector. There are many good examples of joint working
between independent and community services to improve the quality of life and independence
of people in long-term care.
In some areas NHS continuing care beds are provided in community hospitals or through
contracts with the independent sector for people who meet the criteria for NHS continuing
care.
7.4 What effect does the provision of continuing care have

on delayed transfers of care?
The systems for agreeing agency responsibility and the funding of care are known to cause delay
in the transfer of patients from one type of care to another, for example:5
a referral for care home placement is made too early. This can be before the assessment
has been completed and, therefore, may well be before the person has reached his or
her full potential;
there has not been an assessment of the carers needs;
there are disputes over funding responsibility;
there is a lack of clarity about who will provide specialist nursing equipment;
there is a limited choice of care homes in the local area;
there are delays in the care home provider assessing the potential resident;
care home provider uncertainty about who is responsible for arranging the placement
and assessment details;
dementia and behaviour management needs are overlooked or neglected in care

planning;
continence assessment and management is overlooked during the assessment process;
there is a lack of understanding about legal responsibility for people unable to represent
themselves.
99
7.5 Assessing the need for continuing health and

social care
The assessment for continuing health and social care needs is a joint responsibility between the
NHS and local authorities with social services responsibilities. This shared responsibility is
reflected in the development of a single assessment for older people.
A new referral for continuing care should only follow a comprehensive assessment of need, in
the case of older people, or a joint assessment for all other people, and an evaluation of the
appropriateness of other interventions, such as a period of rehabilitation and recuperation.
In cases where a person has already been receiving services the care package may simply need
reinstating at the point of discharge from hospital. There should be a local agreement between
agencies on the minimum notice required to reinstate a care package from the point of referral.
This is usually two working days. The ward-based care co-ordinator is responsible for making
the referral and co-ordinating the discharge date.
In the case of new referrals, the comprehensive assessment for older people will identify the
nature (complexity, intensity or unpredictability) of health care needs. These are the areas that
determine eligibility for continuing health and social care. The multidisciplinary team should
consider firstly, whether the need is predominantly a health one, indicating continuing NHS
health care.
For all other adults, a joint assessment process will be required. The depth and breath of the
assessment should be proportionate to the individuals presenting needs. Professionals should
explore the intensity of particular needs, including the physical pain, distress or disruption they
cause, and the instability and predictability of problems, both on a day-to-day basis and over
longer periods of time. The number of different needs required by individuals, how they
interact, and how individuals react to the difficulties facing them are also important. Together,
the individual and professional should look at the strengths and abilities that the individual can
bring to bear on his or her own needs.6
Once a care plan has been developed to meet these needs the local eligibility criteria should
be applied and responsibility for specific elements of the transfer/discharge care plan discussed
and agreed.
It is the responsibility of the ward-based care co-ordinator to make a referral to the discharge
planning team for a joint assessment. It is recommended that a single point of referral is
established and that a team leader is appointed with the overall responsibility for an integrated
health and social care response to such referrals. See Section 5.
Following the assessment there are a number of possible care pathways. These include:
100
support at home with a care package of health and/or social care;
intermediate care;
referral for very sheltered housing or other model of housing with care;
admission to a care home that does not provide nursing care;
The Direction on choice for accommodation
admission to a care home providing nursing care;
admission to a hospice;
admission for NHS continuing care.
It is important to ensure that every opportunity to enable patients to recover their independence
is taken. All decisions made at this stage should be reviewed and a future review date set and
agreed with the patient and their family. Any permanent decision to admit a patient to a care
home should not be made until the review has been completed.
If admission to a care home providing nursing care is required, the process for determining the
Registered Nurse Contribution to Care should ideally be followed before admission, but within
14 days. The independent sector is a key stakeholder in the implementation of the single
assessment process and a continuation/transfer of care is required. The independent sector needs
to have confidence in the continuity of assessments undertaken in hospital, so that they do not
need to carry out another assessment, which can sometimes lead to delay in people being
admitted to a care home.
Continence assessment and care planning are an important factor in managing continuing care
as a number of people will suffer from a degree of incontinence. The assessment, treatment and
management of incontinence should adhere to the Guidance on continence.7 From April 2003,
the provision of continence equipment is a NHS responsibility and all individuals should have a
specialist assessment to ensure they receive the right treatment and care.
Responsibility for the provision of specialist equipment must be clearly set out in guidance for
community staff and care home providers to ensure organisation of the equipment is clear for
all concerned.
Independent advocacy services can play a valuable role when the patient or carer has difficulty
in communicating their views or when there may be potential conflict of interest between the
patient and carer.
An advocate should be free from any professional involvement with any of the services likely to
become involved in the care or aftercare of the patient to ensure impartiality.
7.6 The Direction on choice for accommodation

If admission to a care home is agreed as the best option, any patient who is being placed with
public support is able to choose a home under the Direction on choice. The directions are
currently undergoing a review to update them in the light of forthcoming legislation and
further information will be available.
Because residential placements can be delayed considerably while people wait for a place in their
home of choice to become available, transition or interim placement should be considered when
the first choice of home is not available. If the interim placement meets a persons needs, it is
acceptable for a person to move from an acute setting to a transitional placement until a
permanent/alternative choice becomes available.
101
In circumstances where waiting for a care home placement is causing an unacceptable delay in
care transfer, the following processes should be put in place:
Patients and carers should be informed about the possibility of an interim placement as
soon as possible. It is important that people understand that it is inappropriate for them
to remain on an acute ward indefinitely while they are waiting for admission to a care
home.
The interim or transitional placement must be able to meet the assessed care needs of
the patient and they must receive active help to move on to the home of their choice
when a place is available.
There must be support (such as an independent advisory service) to patients and their
carers in making important decisions. Self-funders should also be offered support in
making such choices.
Practitioners should be signed up to the use of transitional placements with appropriate

protocols.
Trusts should have in place agreed policies and procedures to address situations in
which patients and their families refuse to move from an acute bed to another setting.
The guidance stresses that when a persons acute episode of ill health has been treated, it is not
appropriate for them to remain on an acute hospital ward. This is providing they are clinically
fit and have been assessed as safe to transfer. Remaining in an acute ward has disadvantages for
the patient and capacity of the whole system.
The Direction on choice states that where an individual expresses a preference for a particular
type of accommodation within the UK, the placing local authority has to accommodate this
request, provided that:
the accommodation is suitable in relation to the individuals assessed needs;
to do so would cost the local authority more than it would usually expect to pay for
someone with the individuals assessed needs;
the accommodation is available;
the person in charge of the accommodation is willing to provide accommodation

subject to the local authoritys usual terms and conditions for such accommodation.
7.7 Dealing with disputes

The processes for review and resolution of disputes must be clearly set out in the Eligibility
Criteria for continuing Health and Social Care.
A comprehensive range of information should be available as described earlier.
102
Action plan
7.8 Action plan

Primary care trusts, in partnership with local authorities with social services responsibilities
should consider:
Ensure that the Eligibility Criteria for Health and Social Care is available to all staff
involved in the assessment for continuing care.
Develop a joint training programme on application of health and social care eligibility
criteria.
Consider how referrals for funding NHS continuing care and care home placements can
be considered jointly by the responsible primary care trust and local authority. Options
include:
the joint appointment of an individual able to make a decision on behalf of

both organisations;
the development of an integrated hospital discharge team with the team leader
empowered to make the decisions (see Section 5);
a joint panel with membership from both organisations.
Consider how to integrate the single assessment process with the independent sector.
Provide information for patients and their carers on how to access health and social care
services, agency responsibilities and patient and carer rights.
Primary care trusts and acute trusts should review their current contracts for PEG (percutaneous
endoscopic gastrostomy) feeding equipment and jointly contract for the service for acute,
community and care homes and the provision of specialist equipment including nebulisers.
Health care managers and the providers of care homes should:
Work together to support care home staff in delivering care packages through a variety
of approaches. These could include:
providing clinical guidance by nurse consultants/specialists going into care

homes;
seconding nurses to care homes to educate staff in clinical procedures;
regular input from therapists on the safe use of equipment, the basic principles
and practices of rehabilitation, and the safe handling and moving of residents;
providing on site training in continence management, managing confusion,

tissue viability;
providing regular input from a dietitian on healthy eating and on the

management of residents who are being PEG-fed;
103
providing regular support from a community pharmacist to help staff

understand the importance of medication compliance, common side effects and
safe dispensing practice.
Develop referral protocols that enable care homes access to rapid response teams,
community assessment and rehabilitation teams, out-of-hours community nurses
support.
7.9 References
1. Department of Health (2001). Continuing care: NHS and local councils responsibilities.
(HSC 2001/015: LAC (2001) 18). London: Department of Health.
2. The Royal Commission on Long Term Care (1999). With respect to old age rights and
responsibilities. London: The Stationery Office.
3. Department of Health (2001). NHS funded nursing care practice guide and workbook.
5. House of Commons Health Committee Delayed Dishcarges (2001-02). London:
6. Department of Health (2002). Fair access to care services (LAC (2002)13). London:
7. Department of Health (2000). Good practice in continence services. London: Department
of Health.
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Discharge from hospital:

pathway, process and practice

Document Purpose Best Practice Guidance

Discharge from hospital: pathway, process

Health & Social Care Joint Unit and Change

PCT CEs, NHS Trusts CEs, StHAs CEs, Care Trusts

This good practice guidance updates and builds

Hospital Discharge Workbook 1994

Hospital Discharge Workbook 1994

Incorporate into discharge planning process

For recipient use

Further copies of this document are available from:

Introduction and overview

Background information: policy context

Developing a whole system approach

Involving patients and carers

Co-ordinating the patient journey

Intermediate care, transitional care and sheltered housing

Continuing health and social care

Consider how an integrated discharge planning team can be developed to provide

Essex County Council

Epping Forest Primary Care Trust

Accident and Emergency

a process whereby the needs of an individual are identified and

admission to an acute hospital, which would be unnecessary

a process whereby an individuals needs are assessed and

a practitioner who, as part of their role, undertakes care

a combination of services designed to meet a persons assessed

an agreed and explicit route an individual takes through health

a process based on an assessment of an individuals needs that

Care programme approach:

the formal process (integrated with care management) assessing

a person, usually a relative or friend, who provides care on

the process of specifying, securing and monitoring services

cash payments from social services in lieu of community

a person whose role is to strengthen access and to provide

includes both private and voluntary organisations

when professionals from different disciplines, such as social

an assessment of an individuals needs that has actively involved

a programme of therapy and reablement designed to restore

1. Introduction and overview

1.1 Delayed transfer of care

Introduction and overview

occur too soon;

are poorly managed from the patient/carer perspective;

are to unsafe environments.

The causes of these difficulties are diverse, and include:

1.2 Improving discharge performance

The governments policy

1.3 The governments policy

1.4 Key principles

unnecessary admissions are avoided and effective discharge is facilitated by a whole

staff should work within a framework of integrated multidisciplinary and multi-agency

The benefits of effective discharge planning are:

needs are met;

able to maximise independence;

Introduction and overview