Voluntary sector links state and isolated families
Loneliness and isolation in older people is increasingly recognised as a major aspect of life that can impact badly on an individual’s health and well being.
Towards the end of last year Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt spoke of the national shame of loneliness and that for around 5 million older people the television is their main companion. Loneliness is cited as being as dangerous to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. It leads to higher blood pressure and can also increase the likelihood of unnecessary hospital admissions. But despite the upsurge in publicity still around half of health and wellbeing boards have yet to include measures in their strategic plans to act to combat loneliness.
With funding for social care being cut, it is no surprise that local authorities now have to make extremely difficult choices and are deciding to fund those activities where they have statutory obligations to fulfil and little room for manoeuvre. Overall, 400,000 fewer older people are receiving support today than during 2006/7 despite an increasing ageing population. Nationally there are currently three million people aged more than 80 years and this is projected to almost double by 2030, and reach eight million by 2050.
Demand for core public services for older people will increase significantly over the next few years.
Whist there have been cuts in social care the NHS health budget has been ring fenced. Nevertheless, this service is also under severe pressure. This is highlighted by the fact that here were 18.3 million attendances at A&E departments recorded between April 2012 and March 2013, a 4.0 per cent increase on attendances in 2011-12.
We know that the number of people going to A&E departments in England has risen by 32 per cent in the past decade, and by one million each year since 2010. A study by the Care Quality Commission at the end of last year found the number of older people being admitted to hospital in an emergency, with conditions which could have been avoided – such as pneumonia, malnutrition and pressure sores – is far outstripping the growth in the older population. Those admitted with avoidable conditions is up from 374,000 in 2007/8 to 530,000 in 2012/13.
Another stark reality is that the emergency readmission rate for older people aged 75 and over nationally is 15%. Number of older people being readmitted within 28 days now stands at a staggering 201,000 up from 187,000 in the last year. The over-65s represent 17 per cent of the population, but 68 per cent of NHS emergency bed use. They also represent some of the NHS’s most vulnerable patients, and those most at risk from failures to provide seamless care.
With funding likely to be under severe pressure for some years to come and a population with more over 80s than ever before there is a critical role for the third sector to play. We know that families do what they can to provide help and support to older relatives, but in today’s society families are more dispersed through the need to find work, affordable housing and relationship breakdown. This combined with long or unsociable working hours and competing family commitments, means that it isn’t always feasible.
Neighbourhoods have changed too. A survey by Royal Voluntary Service carried out last year showed that nearly one million older people over 75 do not know their neighbours at all. Nine per cent of over 75s say that they couldn’t call on their neighbours for help in an emergency; with 23 per cent saying it is because they hardly know them and seven per cent saying that they don’t think their neighbours would be willing to help.
The fact that, as a society, we are living longer is a wonderful thing but the challenges that this brings with it has led to older people being seen as a burden that require support. We already know that older people have a huge amount to give back to society. Our Gold Age Pensioners report from 2011 showed that over 65s, through taxes, spending power, provision of social care and the value of their volunteering, made an astonishing net contribution of £40 billion to the UK economy. Furthermore we estimated that the positive net contribution of over 65s will grow to £77 billion by 2030.
The voluntary sector can provide the “social glue” to plug the gaps between formal care provided by the state and that normally supplied by families and neighbours where it is lacking. The sector can provide reassurance for those individuals who are located some distance from a loved one. It is therefore vital that Government, local authorities and agencies and Third Sector organisations work hand-in-hand and that Government acknowledges and supports the role that volunteers could and do play in helping older people with low level care needs. For many older people, the everyday issues they face can be as simple as having a friend to talk to, having healthy food in the cupboards and having support when they leave hospital, all of which can be roles carried out by caring volunteers. 15.1 million people in the UK volunteer at least once a month and these numbers could be increased substantially. It is time for the wasted skills and compassion of many members of our communities to be utilised if we are to meet the growing needs of older people in the UK.
Contact the Royal Voluntary Service
