In reaction to the reappointment of Jeremy Hunt as Secretary of State for Health, Janet Morrison, Chief Executive of Independent Age, the older people’s charity said:
“Jeremy Hunt’s reappointment as Secretary of State for Health cannot simply lead to business as usual. His urgent priority must be to tackle the underfunding of our National Health Service and the growing crisis in the ‘Cinderella’ service of social care. Too many people are stuck in hospital beds longer than they need to be, waiting times to see GPs are increasing, and hundreds of thousands of frail and elderly people continue to struggle with basis tasks such as washing, dressing and eating as cuts to social care continue to bite. Now is the time for the Secretary of State to be bold and consider long-lasting, cross-party solutions to creating a health and care system that will properly support our ageing population. “
And commenting on NHS England Monthly performance statistics for May 2016, released today, Janet Morrison, Chief Executive of Independent Age, the older people’s charity, said:
“These worrying figures are yet more evidence of an NHS under immense strain. It’s particularly alarming to see that the number of people being delayed from leaving hospital continues to rise dramatically with almost 35,000 extra patients experiencing a delayed transfer of care compared to this time last year, a 25% increase.
“This problem affects frail and elderly people the most and they are left stuck in hospital, often because proper care and support is not available at home. As our population ages, this problem will only get worse unless the new Government confronts these issues head on. It is vital that Theresa May’s Government delivers a fully funded health and social care system, which is fit for purpose, as a matter of urgency.”
