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Issued 19th February 2002

NURSING HOMES CANNOT PROVIDE TOP QUALITY CARE FOR BARGAIN BASEMENT PRICES - DISPUTE WITH SWANSEA AND NEWPORT SOCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENTS OVER FEES

Politicians in Wales - at both national and local levels - must make up their minds once and for all whether they want to see highly dependent older people properly cared for or not, according to the Registered Nursing Home Association.

The 'make your minds up' call has come loud and clear from 21 nursing homes in Swansea and a further 18 nursing homes in Newport.

Both groups of nursing homes have told their respective councils that it is no longer possible for them to continue to provide high quality care to social services-funded patients in return for weekly fees which they describe as 'bargain basement prices'. The homes say that they risk closure because their costs exceed the amount they are paid to care for very vulnerable people.

The RNHA in Wales, which represents many nursing homes in all parts of the country, believes that both the Welsh Assembly and local social services departments must match their desire for rising standards with the money that is necessary to pay for them to be achieved.

New national standards, covering everything from the size of nursing homes' rooms and doorways to continence care and staff training, have been introduced. These, say the RNHA, will require significant expenditure by the vast majority of homes on top of the extra money they have already had to find to meet the costs of the national minimum wage and other pay awards to staff.

At best, the vast majority of homes have been just breaking even over recent years, with little or nothing to spare for re-investment in improvements. Many have been making a loss and have had to close their doors for good. Six homes have closed in Swansea alone over the past year and a further nine in neighbouring Neath and Port Talbot.

Commented Anthony Ramsey-Williams, chairman of the Wales region of the RNHA: "It is against this gloomy backdrop that 21 nursing homes, which between them account for 630 out of 970 publicly funded nursing home beds in the Swansea area, have been forced to give 90 days' notice to the council of their intention to raise fees to an economic level. Nearly the same number of homes in the Newport area have felt obliged to do the same. More nursing homes in Wales are expected to follow suit."

He added: "This is not a sudden action - we have been talking for months with the councils about our desperate situation. But how can any organisation be expected to carry on indefinitely making a loss? What we need now is action. Otherwise, there may not be any nursing homes left a year from now."

Local nursing homes point to independent backing for their claims for extra cash to make ends meet. A survey recently commissioned by Swansea Social Services Department from accountants Price Waterhouse Coopers showed that there is a massive underfunding of nursing home care.

Other reports reveal that up to ?480 per week per patient is needed for nursing homes to balance their books. Swansea and Newport homes are seeking just ?450 per week from May 2002. Currently, most are getting about ?357 a week for those patients funded by social services.

"We are not out to make vast profits," said Mr Ramsey-Williams. "We simply want a fair fee to cover our spiralling costs. There is no way that the NHS or local authorities themselves could or would provide what we provide for this amount of money. Their own costs are very much higher. So why are we expected to provide top quality care for bargain basement prices? Is it because society's old people come at the bottom of the political pecking order?"

Swansea and Newport social services departments' response to the 39 nursing homes already involved in the dispute has been immediately to block any further referrals of patients to them, despite the fact that the new fees being asked for by the homes would not come into effect until May.

This, says the RNHA, has already resulted in the cancellation of transfers from local hospitals into the homes concerned and, as the weeks go by, will add further to the already serious problem of bed blocking.

Swansea nursing homes have so far received no direct communication from the council. Mr Emlyn Davies, RNHA director in Wales and himself a nursing home owner in the borough, said: "The first thing we heard was that Swansea council's cabinet member for social services, John Davies, had made a press statement. We would have thought it more useful for him to come to talk to us or our representatives about resolving the crisis."

The RNHA said today it expected the nursing homes concerned to continue to provide care to all their existing patients, whether or not the council paid the higher fees from May.

"The patients must come first," said Emlyn Davies. "It is on their behalf that we are in this dispute. Society owes it to them to ensure that their care is adequately funded.Our dispute is with the councils, not with the patients."

END

For further information or comment, please contact:

Emlyn Davies, RNHA director in Wales based at the Marina Nursing Home in Swansea (Tel: 01792 644299 or 01792 301025)

Anthony Ramsey-Williams, RNHA chairman in Wales, based at Campion Gardens Retirement Village in Swansea (Tel: 01792 235329 or 234997)

Cheryl Wilson (Tel: 01633 821141)