26.10.17
‘Airbnb’ for NHS faces ‘significant regulatory and legal hurdles’
The NHS is piloting a scheme that will pay home owners £1,000 a month to house hospital patients in a bid to reduce bed-blocking in hospitals.
The pilot, which is still in the discussion stages, will see patients in Southend, Essex being discharged from hospitals into people’s spare rooms in the community, according to the HSJ.
Startup company, CareRooms, is currently in discussions with the NHS to finalise how the pilot model would work.
The company claims that up to 42% of hospital patients do not need to be there, and Age UK have recently reported that the number of lost bed days is rising due to difficulties in getting patients to access post-hospital care in the community.
Last year more than 950,000 bed days were lost, at an estimated cost of £173m.
Members of the community who sign up to the scheme will be paid up to £50 per night to host a patient following their hospital discharge.
There is no requirement for hosts to have any care experience, although if they wish to increase their income the company says that there is an option for them to become carers for their guests.
CareRooms says that it converts people’s spare bedrooms, equipping them with monitoring equipment, mobility aids and, where required, external carers at additional cost.
Speaking to the BBC this morning, Nigel Edwards, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust, called the proposals “interesting,” although he appeared sceptical about the potential positive impact of the scheme.
He said: “The overall impact a scheme like this could have will be relatively small, even if they can get past the quite significant regulatory and legal hurdles they will face.
“There’s quite a large legal framework, in particular about safeguarding vulnerable people, which will need to be complied with.
“Set against the context of the bigger problem that is facing the NHS and social care at the moment, this is likely to be an interesting idea that, if they can get it to work, would certainly help.
“But there are bigger things at play at the moment in terms of the pressures on the wider health and care system.”
Tom Abell, deputy chief executive of Southend University NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Whilst we welcome and encourage new ideas and innovation, there is no intention and there never has been for the hospital to support this pilot at this time.
"We will never compromise the safety and quality of care for patients and we will not support this pilot until the necessary safeguarding and quality arrangements are in place and there has been full engagement and discussion with our local communities on the proposal, this will happen after a period of detailed work and scoping that we have requested."
Have you got a story to tell? Would you like to become a NHE columnist? If so, click here.