older people

The introduction of national care standards and a strong and effective regulatory regime, along with a payment for quality agenda that has been devised to reward the best performing care homes, has delivered a general improvement in the overall quality of care provided.

However, the current mix of services within the care home market is not producing optimum outcomes, when viewed from a whole system and care user's perspective.

This document presents a summary of recommendations for the future of residential care for older people in Scotland.

Paper designed as a high-level resource and reference guide for local service leaders who want to improve care for older people. Within each component of care it describes the goal that the system should aim for and then presents key evidence about what can work, selected examples of local good practice, pointers to major reviews and guidelines, and advice about where to start.

Prevention has been identified as a key aspect of Scottish public service reform. In response to the findings of the Christie Commission (2011), the Scottish Government has called for a 'decisive shift towards prevention'.

This Insight looks specifically at the prevention of isolation and loneliness amongst older people, with a particular focus on what practitioners in the fields of health and social care should bear in mind when working to tackle this important and growing issue.

A document that discusses the importance of relationships in later life.

Briefing that brings together information about older people and substance misuse.

Report that explores whether the burden placed upon staff in care homes to produce paperwork is having a positive or a detrimental effect on the quality of care.

Audit that aimed to establish how much progress NHS boards and councils have made in improving health and care services for older people, including developments through RCOP. It looked at the extent to which care for older people has shifted towards communities and away from hospitals and care homes.

Guide that is primarily written for managers and senior staff of care homes but it has also been written with GPs in mind, as well as members of clinical commissioning groups and joint health and wellbeing boards.

Ten tips to help older people with high support needs make informed choices and plan their support.
Older people who need support are often offered a very narrow range of choices, and are rarely given good information about the many possibilities. This leaflet is about a range of options that care professionals may know little about. Document published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in December 2013. Summary and full report available.

What can help older people with high support needs to improve their quality of life? This research rounds-up the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's JRF’s A Better Life programme of work and presents a vision of what life can, and should, be like for all of us as we get older