What is NHS continuing healthcare funding?
The NHS provide a package of funding to those needing care for a severe health condition.
NHS continuing healthcare funding (CHC) is granted to those who have ongoing health conditions or care needs that require complex support or palliative care. It is a package of continuing care at home that is fully funded by the NHS and can either be permanent or applied on an unspecified period of time.
Am I eligible for continuing healthcare?
The need for care must be health related. The NHS call this a “primary health need”.
To find out if you qualify for continuing healthcare, individual needs must be assessed. Request an assessment from your local integrated care board (ICB) or get in touch with your GP. The ICBs are responsible for the provision of NHS services in England and hold the budget for continuing healthcare funding. Individual needs will be initially assessed by your GP, nurse or social worker.
It is important to note that you will be assessed on your care needs specifically, not any particular diagnosis or health condition.
What happens during a full continuing healthcare assessment?
Following a screening process, a full Continuing Healthcare assessment will be carried out by a team of healthcare professionals to determine whether a person is eligible for funding.
An assessment should always be undertaken with at least two healthcare professionals who are already involved in your care. They will assess a variety of different needs including cognition, medication, mobility, breathing and nutrition, and then mark each need as either ‘priority’, ‘severe’, ‘high’, ‘moderate’, ‘low’, or ‘no needs’. Healthcare professionals will look at:
The type of help you need
What sort of care you’d benefit from – for instance, palliative, domiciliary, or live-in – and whether you need specialist support for your condition
How complex your needs are
The complexity and stage of your condition, the level of care you need, and whether your care needs are likely to change or develop regularly
How much risk is involved
If you don’t receive the appropriate help, what risks are involved and what might be the consequences of not starting care immediately?
After an assessment
Application sent to CCG for approval
The agreed recommendation is presented to the local clinical commissioning group for approval.
Arrange a personalised care plan
Once approved, the continuing healthcare team at the CCG can arrange a personalised care plan. Where an individual’s condition is deteriorating rapidly, a fast-track continuing healthcare assessment and packages can be implemented.
Partner with a care provider
We regularly work with continuing healthcare teams and families requiring care. Our ability to form strong partnerships and respond promptly and professionally gives peace of mind.
Why partner with Helping Hands for home care?
With over 35 years’ experience, we’re the number one choice for home care in the UK.
We’re extremely proud of our team of expert carers and the commitment they show to providing exceptional private care to our customers day in, day out. All of our carers are trained to help people with a wide range of conditions and needs, and can assist you around the home in whatever way you may require – from doing the laundry and preparing meals to helping you get dressed.
Person-centred support
Your care plan will be fully designed around your needs and wishes, ensuring you always get the right type and level of support
A fully managed care service
Every aspect of your support will be managed by your local care team, with input from care experts and our clinical leads
Kind, compassionate carers
We only recruit and train the most kind and empathetic people, because we believe that they make for the very best carers
Carers who go above and beyond every day
We know that the care we provide will only ever be as exceptional as our carers, which is why we place such a strong emphasis on ensuring we recruit the best carers to our teams and giving them comprehensive, industry-leading carer training.
As direct employees, we manage each carer’s pay and benefits, including their holiday pay, pension contributions, overtime and travel expenses. Each of them has an assigned line manager and mentor, someone to go to with concerns or if they need extra support. Customers love our carers because they are:
Kind and compassionate
At Helping Hands, we have a rigorous recruitment process which means we only hire kind, empathetic carers who share our person-centred family values
Directly employed by us
We directly employ all of our carers, so we take full responsibility for managing their workload, maintaining their wellbeing and paying them
Expertly trained and fully vetted
Every carer is fully DBS-checked and receives our industry-renowned training which equips them to provide a wide range of specialist care services
Call us for help setting up care
Arranging dedicated home care has never been simpler. Call our team today to get the ball rolling on your care journey with Helping Hands.
Speak to our team
Our friendly, knowledgeable team can answer your questions and talk you through your options. We are available 7 days a week.
Book a free care assessment
Your local Helping Hands care manager will visit you to understand your needs and preferences and discuss how we can help. We can visit you at home, in hospital or even a care home to carry out the care assessment.
Confirm your care package
We create a tailored care plan for you to review. Once you’ve agreed the plan, we can organise care in as little as 24 hours.
A fully regulated home care provider
Here at Helping Hands, our service is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW)
This means we need to consistently meet high standards and are monitored by our regulators.
