Winter Resilience Plans
NHSE has published a letter and a number of papers on plans for winter pressures: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/going-further-on-our-winter-resilience-plans/. Please read these as there is information for social care providers – the letter contains a summary. In particular, the documents set out the following:
- Ensure the NHS can better support people in the community by reducing pressures on GPs and social care, and reducing admissions to hospital by:
- Putting in place a community-based falls response service in all systems for people who have fallen at home including care homes (see the relevant document on the linked page)
- Maximising the use of virtual wards, and actively considering establishing an Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) hub to support same day assessment
- Providing additional support for care homes through reducing unwarranted variation in ambulance conveyance rates
- Deliver on ambitions to maximise bed capacity and support ambulance services:
- Supporting delivery of additional beds including previously moth-balled beds
- All systems setting up a 24/7 System Control Centre to support system oversight and decision making based on demand and capacity across sites and settings
- Ensuring all ambulance services deploy 24/7 mental health professionals in emergency operation centres and on-scene
- Ensure timely discharge and support people to leave hospital when clinically appropriate – more details about how the £500m to support social care to speed up discharge to be shared shortly.
