Baroness Kennedy of Cradley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kennedy of Cradley on 2015-11-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to avoid bed shortages due to delayed discharges from hospital.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Since April, local projects across the country have been using the Government’s £5.3 billion Better Care Fund in an effort to reduce non-elective admissions and move people out of hospital more quickly, as part of on-going work to bring health and social care services together.

In addition, the Government has made £400 million available to the National Health Service specifically to help with winter pressures in 2015/16. This money has been made available from the start of the financial year, enabling the health and care system to prepare more effectively than in previous years.

The Department of Health is also working closely with NHS England and local government to develop a package of support to help local areas reduce delays in hospital discharge. This includes tailored support from the new Emergency Care Improvement Programme to help make improvement in the systems under the most pressure, and local government’s Sector Led Improvement Plan to drive improvement in social care.