To be shocked that Derek Draper didn’t qualify for NHS Continuing Healthcare

[Mum1976Mum]

Just sat down to watch the latest Kate Garraway documentary. I am absolutely shocked that Derek didn’t qualify for NHS Continuing Healthcare funding as his needs weren’t deemed high enough. This funding isn’t means tested so how much money they have isn’t relevant.

I have some experience of this as we had to claim for my grandad about 8 years ago. He had sarcoma and had to have his leg amputated. He had a prosthesis fitted and was actually pretty active! He could do a lot of things for himself but struggled with self care (showering) and he qualified for the funding.

I honestly thought that, should the worst happen, and someone needed a substantial amount of care that they would qualify. Watching the documentary, Derek needed help with absolutely everything! How on earth did he not qualify?

I thought that too. If anyone needed it, he clearly did.

Doesn't surprise me as my Dad had a very severe stroke - one side of brain completely gone, couldn't talk, couldn't walk, doubly incontinent and we didn't get it - they do a rating system and because he could eat a normal diet, the points from that tipped him in to not qualifying. We had an appeal rejected 😕

That’s absolutely shocking. I’m so sorry. It’s so hard. I absolutely despair of this country and how we look after our most vulnerable.

It is very wrong.

Chc is underfunded - there’s a separate budget for it and locally it’s well overspent, which shouldn’t impact individuals who qualify for it but I’m sure it does.

My granny’s motorneurons disease wasn’t deemed bad enough - she was bed bound, could barely speak in a way you could understand and couldn’t eat solids.

I’m absolutely shocked and appalled by these stories. How can people who were bedbound not qualify? It’s an absolute disgrace!

It's becoming almost impossible to get now.

The system is so broken. Nobody should be having to pay £16k a month on their care when they can't afford it. And even with Kates salary it wouldn't stretch.
So many people currently have inadequate care. People are suffering as a result.

I've worked in care for 15 years. Things have never been this bad

@takeitorleave That sounds horrific. I'm so sorry that happened to your family had to go through that especially your dad! I'm shocked that with all the medical documentation he must have had given his condition, but because he could eat normal food meant he didn't qualify! The decision-making here is entirely absurd.

The 16k a month to care for Derek shocked me too. There must be other families who have people who need as much care. What on earth do they do? There’s no way they could pay 16k a month!

Because his needs were mostly for care, not medical treatment.

They owned 2 houses, one worth 2 million and one worth 1.7million. Of course they should pay for his care needs.

You know how the NHS is situated.

If I remember correctly from going through it with a relative is the way they get around giving funding is to discriminate between clinical nursing care & things like personal care.

So, needing help getting dressed, not being safe to be alone, having someone provide meals etc- all the basic daily caring duties don't count because they're not clinical nursing.

Of course, all of this used to be classed as nursing anyway but hasn't been for decades.

Continuing health care is about needing Nursing care. Apart from his PEG feeding I can't see how he would qualify as he needed basic care/ physio etc, but even PEG feeding can be done by many carers with training. Sorry I don't see how he would qualify for CHC funding.

I don't know anyone who has qualified for several years. Previously they used to and an appeal was often successful but now we have whole teams of people to make sure no one qualifies quite honestly and another whole team to try and find deliberate deprivation of assets.

My DP was very ill and on oxygen at home in his 30’s. He had a special machine for nighttime, special bed and we had a commode etc. When we looked at getting help it looked like we would have to pay for it. It was already tight with 3 young kids and we were worried about the future. We somehow managed until he went into hospital and passed away.

A lot of people don't pay, it is covered by the local authority funding it. Once savings get below £23250, it become funded or at least partially funded. I'm guessing they didn't qualify because they have significant assets in addition to the house they live in which would be disregarded.

Yep, my mum was another victim of a massive stroke, that left her paralysed down one side and entirely helpless but for the use of her right arm. She didn't qualify

Her care costs up to her death last week, totalled £800,000. She ran out of her own money (the proceeds from her house, her pension income, and all of her and my late dad's savings) after £550,000.

Yup. No CHC for PEG feeding, for turning re bedsores, for continence related issues, for drug administration, for dysphasia, mobilisation, obviously not for personal care, dressing changes, stomas. It's hard to know what's left really.

My Dad is 92, in a nursing home, catheter fitted, legs don't work due to diabetes, injected every day because of diabetes, doubly incontinent and unable to walk or even get out of bed. He also has dementia. He apparently has no "ongoing healthcare needs" so has to fund his own care. We have to visit twice a day to make sure he isn't left lying in his own shit for too long. Dad is paying nearly £4k per month for this "care".

I often wonder if some departments are given 'strong incentives' to kick claims into the long grass and deliberately only just 'come to' the case - and agree that the patient does indeed qualify for considerable funding - once they know they have died.

Not besmirching any individual hard-working HCP at all, but how else can you explain it?

Honestly, it feels like there’s two lotteries in this life.

One that gets you a big old cheque with lots of 000s, and one that gives you a particular qualifying disease that covers the bills.

It’s a sad state of affairs when you’re praying for cancer.

It honestly must be heartbreaking for older people to see their whole life savings go on care when they wanted to leave something to their kids. I work for an older people's charity and it is one of the most common queries we get from people, how they can protect inheritance, it causes people a lot of angst.

It's even worse when they see the care home owners driving new Porsches and don't understand why they can't give their own kids money to buy a cheap car so their visits can be made easier.

we were lucky with GD / the hospital gave GD medication against an advanced care plan. He then was classed at terminal - and his care was paid in full. However he could pay out of his local authority pension income- there isn’t many people of my generation who will be able to say the same!

My df was in a care home for 7 years after a stroke and dementia. He was doubly incontinent, had to be spoon fed, in a wheelchair and had to be turned at night due to pressure sores, couldn't communicate etc. He didn't get it. We appealed, and the meeting was awful. The 'independent ' moderator was from another council who just backed our council person up. She said he wasn't ill enough - even though he'd died by then!

Everything seemed to be excluded eg he couldnt walk, or mobilise, wheelchair bound and slumps over, pressure sores - 'but he's not had any falls' etc. I can't imagine who would get it, as anyone I'll enough would surely need to be in hospital or a Hospice.

I get there's not enough money around, but it's the inequality that makes me most angry. Need a district nurse to visit you = paid for, need a carer because you can't do anything yourself = stump up the money