Getting discharged from hospital in Oxfordshire

At discharge an individuals care needs are initially met at home by care providers contracted by Oxfordshire County Council based on a predischarge assessment. Within the next 72 hours, a further assessment is conducted which establishes any further needs. There are two options at this point;

• Individual’s with a good potential to achieve long term independence will receive ‘reablement’ delivered by the Home First process. This is short-term support with practical daily tasks and aiming to achieve an agreed level of independence. Once completed you may be fully independent but if not further options will be developed for long-term support.
• For those who are unlikely to achieve full independence the assessment defines a longer-term care need and establishes a process to get there. This may be supported by the Oxfordshire County Council, for those who qualify, or provided privately for those who don’t.

Long term support at home, post discharge, can be obtained funded by different means including Social Services (County Council), Continuing Health Care funded (NHS) supported or of course private arrangements will be made.

Social Services funded support may be available to you dependent on a means test. This can be arranged following the discharge process. Age UK have some helpful information about this on their web site at https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/care/paying-for-care/paying-for-homecare/.  The process will involve a needs assessment and a means test. The latter takes account of liquid capital and income. It’s worth noting that provided you intend to continue living in your home then the value of your house is excluded. Council funding can include an arrangement where the council will find and pay provider or you / a relative can receive the funds as a Direct Payment and you can shop for providers. The Direct payment route means you are more in control of the support you receive.

NHS continuing healthcare is not means tested and can be provided in certain circumstances. To be eligible you will need to be assessed by a team of healthcare professionals who will consider what help you need and how complex / intense / unpredictable these needs are. The process can be complex and difficult to understand. There is more detail on the NHS web site https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/money-work-and-benefits/nhs-continuing-healthcare/ and other web sites e.g. https://beaconchc.co.uk/

Private pay support at home will be needed if you do not quality for state funded support. It can be a daunting task finding a good provider. All providers will be regulated by the care quality commission and you can view their inspection reports on their web site at https://www.cqc.org.uk/. There are also various web sites that will help find providers. For example homecare.co.uk works a little like trip advisor and ranks providers based on reviews left by clients and families. Both of these sites have a  geographic search facility.

For further detail about the support we can provide you at home please see our contact us page here.