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Elderly mentally ill care in freefall
April 14, 2003 12:00 AM
Paul Burstow MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesman on Older People today released new figures showing that since 1990, despite the increase in the older person population, there has been a 68% decrease in Elderly Mentally Ill (EMI) NHS beds and a 43% decrease in NHS geriatric beds.
The figures, revealed in Parliamentary Written Answers to Mr Burstow, show that between 1990 and 2000, 20,870 NHS and 12,840 NHS EMI geriatric beds were lost. Unofficial figures from healthcare specialist Laing and Buisson claim that the trend continued into 2001 and 2002.
Paul Burstow MP said:
"The NHS is leaving the care of the frail and vulnerable to the private sector at a time when the private care home sector is in meltdown. The frailest elderly people then get the wrong care, at the wrong time, in the wrong place.
"The accelerating loss of EMI beds has been unforeseen, unstructured, and unplanned for in Whitehall. The victims are the most vulnerable elderly people. For some the trauma is too much and costs them their lives.
"These figures must be a wake up call to the Government. The clock is ticking while pressures on capacity continue to increase."
ENDS
Notes to Editors.
Figures were taken from the following Parliamentary Answer:
Residential Care
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) local authority residential places, (b) independent sector residential places, (c) national health service long-stay geriatric and psycho-geriatric beds and (d) independent sector nursing home places there were in (i) 1973, (ii) 1980, (iii) 1990 and (iv) 2000. [97660]
25 Feb 2003 : Column 543W
Number of NHS geriatric and elderly long-stay mental illness beds, in England at 31 March, for the years 1973, 1980, 1990 and 2000
As at 31 March NHS geriatric beds1 NHS elderly long-stay mental illness beds
1973 56,180 -
1980 54,950 -
1990 48,730 18,880
2000 27,860 6,040
PQ 97660
1 Geriatric beds include long and short-stay beds. Long-stay beds are not collected as a separate category.
- : Data not available
Briefing
What are EMI beds?
EMI (Elderly mentally infirm) homes may either currently be Residential or Nursing. Specialist residential EMI is not a distinct legal registration category. Specialist nursing EMI nursing homes can be registered as a distinct legal category from other nursing homes (they are required to have a qualified mental health nurse on duty at all times)
The types of mental health problems common in older people in EMI homes primarily include dementia and functional mental illnesses (i.e. Not usually associated with physical degeneration of brain cells) such as clinical depression.
Where an individual requires care or supervision continually or at brief irregular intervals each day then a EMI residential or nursing home may be the only suitable provision.
In 2001, Paul Burstow MP produced the report 'Forget Me Not' looking at EMI provision.
The survey of Councils in England showed:
Of those Social Service Departments who responded:
72% are unable to meet current demands for Nursing EMI beds
68% are unable to meet current demands for Residential EMI beds
58% report shortfalls in provision of specialised dementia care and
62% report shortfalls in provision for those older people with Challenging behaviour.
The numbers of beds required by local authorities needed to meet shortfalls in provision varied from 2-5 beds to one local authority reporting the need for 1000 residential EMI beds and 350 nursing EMI beds
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