Derek Thomas, Member of Parliament for West Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, has met with Cornwall's care and support providers to discuss the future of provision in the constituency and Cornwall as a whole. The meeting, which took place at the Queen's Hotel in Penzance, was organised by Derek in response to concerns raised by a number of people in West Cornwall regarding the pressures on care workers and the providers to meet the growing need for care and support of people in their homes.
Derek Thomas MP, who has placed the integration of health and social care as his top priority, has met with a number of people who receive care and support at home to hear about their concerns and experiences. Derek said 'For me ensuring we can provide adequate care and support workers to assist people at home is an urgent priority. It is right that people are enabled to continue to live at home if possible but care providers tell me they are having difficulty in recruiting and retaining care workers to meet the demand. I organised this meeting so that I can understand the issues better and work with my colleagues, the care providers and commissioners to ensure that we are able to meet the demands of health and social care in the community.'
Cllr Jim McKenna, Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care on Cornwall Council, who has met Derek to discuss the issues around social care, has been working closely with care and support providers to improve the way Cornwall Council contracts are agreed and implemented and has recently secured an agreement to increase the hourly rate providers are paid. This has been welcomed by care providers but there are concerns about the direction Cornwall Council is taking in regards to commissioning social care.
Derek Thomas concluded 'There is now a firm commitment to bring health and social care together in meaningful integration in Cornwall and on the Isles of Scilly. I want to ensure that the care providers are involved in the discussions about how this is achieved because they have a great deal of experience and expertise to bring to the table. Unless we can adequately meet the care and support of people in our community we will not reduce the pressure on acute hospital services.'
Cllr Jim McKenna and Derek Thomas have agreed to look at creating a multi-agency group including care providers. As the transition to integrated health and social care evolves it is important that the concerns of patients, care workers and providers are taken into account.