It’s Occupational Therapy Week and Faye Patton, Head of Policy and Insights at Care & Repair, tells us how occupational therapists are supporting older people to live at home.
Last year Care & Repair fitted just under 25,000 Rapid Response Adaptations across Wales to help older people live safely and independently in their own homes. During November’s Occupational Therapy Week, we want to raise awareness of how Care & Repair are supporting Occupational Therapists to make sure those who need it get the help they need across Wales to live at home with dignity.
SUPPORT AT HOME
Our caseworkers across Wales are Trusted Assessor qualified, meaning health professionals can refer to us knowing we are able to both prescribe and fit home adaptations such as handrails, grab rails, mopsticks and more.
Over the last five years we have seen a year-on-year increase in the number of people we are supporting with home adaptations. Many of these referrals come from Occupational Therapists in primary and community settings. Through our ‘Hospital to a Healthier Home’ service, we support older people to leave hospital more quickly and safely by completing home adaptations and repairs.
Last year, the service received more than 5,700 referrals across Wales and completed over 7,000 home improvements to help people like Alistair in their home.
ALISTAIR’S STORY
Care & Repair received a referral from an Occupational Therapist in Nevill Hall for a patient who had been admitted to hospital following a fall at home. Alistair was 84 years old and lived at home with his wife. The referral was to carry out an assessment for aids at the front door, stairs and a bath as Alistair’s balance and mobility had declined in recent years, resulting in a few stumbles and falls.
When Care & Repair visited, we found that Alistair had been holding the doorframe of the front door to navigate in and out of the house. We organised for a number of adaptations to improve and ease Alistair’s access to his home.
While carrying out the assessment, Alistair’s wife explained that his health had been declining for a number of years and he relied on her for everyday tasks. We agreed to come back and do another thorough home assessment once Alistair had settled back from hospital to see if there was anything else we could support with.
Our Hospital to a Healthier Home caseworker followed up with a visit, resulting in additional grab rails around the shower, a referral to the Fire Service for smoke alarms, provision of a carbon monoxide monitor, registration to the priority service register and information on how to apply for a blue badge. We also completed an Attendance Allowance application which was awarded at the higher rate, increasing Alistair’s income by £5,740 a year.
Alistair is just one of thousands of older people we support across Wales each year to live more safely at home by providing adaptions and holistic support.
THE VALUE OF ADAPTATIONS
Adaptations have been proven to prevent falls, trips and accidents at home. Care & Repair has worked with Swansea University to compare older people aged between 60-95 to understand the impact of having and not having a Care & Repair intervention.
The research found that older people who had adaptations delivered by Care & Repair were 17% less likely to be admitted to hospital following an injurious fall. Since 2020 we have delivered over 104,000 adaptations, meaning we have potentially prevented more than 17,000 hospital admissions.
Adaptations not only support independent living but have a tangible impact on prevention hospital admissions and reducing pressures on health and social care services.
As our population in Wales continues to age, adaptations are a key example of linking housing and health prevention together to better support ageing well at home.
Find out more about the work of WCVA’s Health and Care Project.