Carers Leeds provides support for unpaid carers if you yourself, or the person you care for is an inpatient on wards in Leeds Teaching Hospitals.
We understand that a hospital stay can be a stressful time for carers. Carers Leeds provides emotional support, guidance, and information to help you navigate hospital procedures and ensure your needs are acknowledged and addressed.
As part of this service, we connect carers with local community resources, refer carers to Carers Leeds for ongoing support after discharge, and provide advice on financial benefits. We also assist with understanding care home funding and finding suitable placements.
Things to consider during a Hospital Admission
It’s important to be aware that patients frequently switch wards during their hospital stay.
They might begin in an acute admissions ward, then move to another acute ward, and later to a discharge ward.
Communication can sometimes be challenging, so if you’re missing information or have concerns, please ask to speak with the “Nurse in Charge” or the nurse who is looking after the person you care for. You can also request to talk with a doctor.
The Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
The Hospital Carers Passport
If the person you care for is living with dementia, it’s important to know that ward staff have received dementia awareness training.
They use red trays during mealtimes to identify patients needing extra support, while forget-me-not magnets are placed above beds to signal those who may require additional assistance. If a finger food diet is preferred, this can be requested.
This is Me by the Alzheimer’s Society
When it comes to discharge, a referral to a hospital social worker is often necessary, even if the individual previously had a social worker at home. The social worker will conduct a Care Act assessment to determine the individual’s needs and recommend how and where these needs can be met.
Options may include a care package to facilitate a return home or 24-hour care in a care home.
Funding and Care
As a carer, you can ask for a carer’s assessment, but this will be done after the patient is discharged.
Funding options are available, including self-funding, local authority support, or continuing healthcare. Those with savings above £23,250 are typically considered self-funders. If a property needs to be sold, a 12-week disregard may apply, along with potential deferred loans if necessary.
Further information can be found on the Leeds City Council website.
Local authority funding is available for individuals with savings below £23,250 and no sellable property. Services are means-tested, involving a financial assessment to determine eligibility and potential contributions toward care. This assessment considers savings, investments, pensions, benefits, and relevant expenses. Opting out or failing to provide required documents results in self-funding status, incurring full costs.
You can find out more about how this works on the Leeds City Council website.
If the person you care for no longer has the ability to manage their own money, they will need legal representation in order for the financial assessment to be undertaken by the local authority. This will either be through a family member/friend who has lasting power of attorney (LPA) for finances/ property; appointeeship or deputyship.
Continuing Health Care
If the person you care for is assessed as having nursing needs, a continuing health care (CHC) checklist will typically be completed by the social worker upon discharge.
This checklist initiates an assessment by the continuing health care team, which identifies nursing needs eligible for funded nursing care or full CHC funding. Individuals self-funding nursing care should also apply for funding, as they would otherwise pay for the nursing care element in addition to care home fees.
Full CHC funding is subject to review and you can find out more on the NHS website.