Researchers call for funding revolution for social care

Scotland should reallocate the £1billion the NHS spends every year on delayed hospital discharges to fund social care closer to people's homes, concludes a review co-authored by Professor Cam Donaldson.

Health and Social Care Integration in Scotland: Evidence vs Rhetoric claims moves to integrate health and social care have so far failed to meet their stated objectives.

The paper, published by the International Journal of Integrated Social Care, uses publicly-available data to review recent reforms.

Thirty-two Integration Joint Boards (IJBs), a partnership of health boards and local authorities, were established across the country in 2016 in order to reduce delayed discharges from hospitals and improve outcomes for patients, service users, carers and their families.

It's now proposed IJBs be reformed into community health and social care boards, funded by Scottish Government on the basis of a resource allocation formula. However, Scotland’s 14 NHS Boards would remain, and run on separate funding arrangements.

Cam Donaldson, Distinguished Professor of Health Economics at Glasgow Caledonian University, said: "Evidence shows integration of health and social care in its current form, and on its own, is unlikely to achieve the stated policy goals.

“But there can be no going back. We would propose a move in the opposite direction, evaluating a strengthening of IJBs as a basis for a locality-based approach.

“If successful, the prize would be treating people closer to home through reallocating to social care the £1billion Scotland currently spends annually in hospitals for delayed discharges.”

Read - Health and Social Care Integration in Scotland: Evidence vs Rhetoric